Iran fighter jets practice carpet-bombing amid drills

Overnight, fighter planes with the Iranian Air Force have conducted carpet-bombing of mock enemy positions amid the aerial maneuvers in the central province of Isfahan.

Flying at low altitude, Iran’s Sukho-24 and Phantom aircraft practiced the bombardment technique, which features dropping a large number of bombs on enemy targets in an area with the aim of causing uniform destruction.

The Air Force’s F-4 planes were also backing up the overnight mission by releasing flares to light up the drill zone.

Brigadier General Massoud Rouzkhosh, the spokesman for the drills, said this stage of the maneuvers also witnessed aerial refueling of Phantom combat planes at low altitude under the air cover of F-14 jets.

Meanwhile, Sukho-24-to-Sukho-24 refueling was also performed for the first time at low altitude, the general added.

The two-day drills, codenamed Fada’ian-e Harim-e Velayat 7 (Death-defying Defenders of Velayat’s Sanctuary) 7, began on Tuesday morning.

The event enlists the services of all Iranian airbases, with the Shahid Babayi Airbase in Isfahan Province playing the central role.

Also joining the drills are MiG-29 and Sa’egheh (Lightning bolt) fighter bombers, alongside interceptor aircraft, manned and unmanned reconnaissance planes, Boeing 707 and 747 cargo planes as well as logistical aircraft.

The aircraft drilled air-to-surface and surface-to-air firing, test-fired highly-destructive air-to-air munitions, and practiced aerial fire control and surveillance as part of the drills’ first stage.

They also fired laser-guided, television-guided, radar-guided, and thermal missiles, as well as 500-pound (226-kg), smart and precision bombs.

According to Rouzkhosh, the exercises carry the message of security, stability, friendship, and lasting peace for the countries of the region.