Iranian Parliament Plans to Appreciate IRGC Navy for Hunting US Drone

Members of the Iranian parliament invited the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Navy commanders to the parliament in a bid to appreciate them for hunting down an intruder US drone over the Persian Gulf and protecting Iran’s airspace against US aggressions.

Earlier today, Commander of the IRGC Navy Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi announced that his forces had hunted a US ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) over the Persian Gulf after the drone violated the country’s airspace.

The UAV which had conducted several reconnaissance flights over the Persian Gulf general zone in the past few days was caught and brought under control by the air defense units and control systems of the IRGC Navy.

Speaking to FNA, member of the parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Ebrahim Aqa Mohammadi said the capture of the US drone “demonstrated Iran’s deterrent power to the world once again”.

“For sure, the national security commission and the entire parliament appreciate the Navy’s recent move and hunting of the US drone. We also invite the IRGC navy commanders and officials to attend a national security commission meeting to present a detailed report on the capture of the drone.”

ScanEagle is a small, low-cost, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle built by Insitu, a subsidiary of Boeing.

ScanEagle is based on Insitu’s Seascan miniature robotic aircraft and draws on Boeing’s systems integration, communications and payload technologies.

As standard payload ScanEagle carries either an inertially stabilized electro-optical or an infrared camera. The gimbaled camera allows the operator to easily track both stationary and moving targets, providing real-time intelligence.

Capable of flying above 16,000 feet, the UAV has also demonstrated the ability to provide persistent low-altitude reconnaissance.

The development came exactly a year after Iran announced on December 4, 2011 that its defense forces had downed the RQ-170 spy drone through a sophisticated cyber attack.