Iran warns extra-regional recon aircraft near borders

Spokesman of Khatam al-Anbia Air Defense Base General Shahrokh Shahram said on Monday that several of the reconnaissance aircraft that received the warnings over the past two days were U-2.

The ultra-high altitude aircraft are operated by the US.

Iranian armed forces have in the past issued warnings to the aircraft flying close to Iranian borders and intercepted those that had intruded into the Islamic Republic’s airspace.

In August, Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) shot down an Israeli spy drone, named Hermers, over the Iranian territory before the unmanned aerial vehicle reached its destination, Natanz nuclear facility in central Iran.

The stealth spy drone was targeted by a surface-to-air missile before it reached the strategic location.

On December 4, 2011, the Iranian military’s electronic warfare unit announced that it had successfully downed the American RQ-170 reconnaissance and spy drone in the eastern part of Iran with minimal damage.

The RQ-170, an unmanned stealth aircraft designed and developed by the Lockheed Martin Company, had crossed into Iran’s airspace over the border with Afghanistan.

The drone was one of America’s most advanced spy aircraft and its loss was considered a major embarrassment for Washington.