Iran Says It Warned Off US Spy Plane

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An Iranian General said that a US U-2 spy plane which was trying to fly over Iran’s border was chased away by the country’s air defense troops.

The incident, which the Pentagon has not yet commented on, happened “in recent days,” according to Iranian state television.

Press TV reports: Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili, the commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya Air Defense Base, said on Thursday the forces warned off the intruding American aircraft in recent days and made them fly away.

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The commander did not give further details elaborating on where the planes attempted to enter Iranian airspace.

The Lockheed U2, nicknamed “Dragon Lady”, is an American single-jet engine, ultra-high altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force. The spy plane can fly at an altitude of 21,000 meters and provide day and night and all-weather intelligence gathering as it carries high-resolution cameras and sensors.

The Iranian Army’s Air Defense Base reportedly warned off a US radar-evading unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in late August which had sought to intrude on Iranian airspace.

The US spy drone had sought to cross into Iran through the eastern border from neighboring Afghanistan. However, it was immediately detected and forced to leave the area after a “timely and stern” warning by the Air Defense Base.

Less than a fortnight ago US military officials claimed that Iran threatened to shoot down two US spy planes as they were flying in the northern Persian Gulf.

The military officials said that Iran behaved “unprofessionally” and “unsafely” during the US stunt which was designed to “test” Iran’s reaction.