Iran's new drone weapon based on US technology

Adam Kredo:

Intelligence from a downed U.S. drone could have helped Iranian engineers produce a newly unveiled unmanned aircraft reportedly capable of shooting targets from 31 miles away and reaching an altitude of 15,000 feet, according to a U.S. Army analysis.

The increased weaponization of remote controlled Iranian planes could imperil U.S. warships, fighter jets, and even domestic airliners in the region, experts warn.

“A growing [unmanned] fleet might embolden the [Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps] to test the defense of American naval vessels and the [fleet’s] armament might also require U.S. or other international forces to fire sooner upon intruders,” Michael Rubin, a former Pentagon adviser on Iran and Iraq, observed in a recent analysis published by the U.S. Army’s Foreign Military Studies Office (FMSO).

The Iranian press in recent months has carried a slate of stories detailing the military’s increased manufacture of unmanned aerial vehicles, otherwise known as UAVs or drones.

It is suspected that Iran has capitalized on technology gleaned from thedowning of a U.S.-made stealth drone last year.

Military officials revealed in July that they had decoded and extracted information from the CIA-owned drone, an RQ-170 Sentinel produced by Lockheed Martin, according to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA).

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The US may need to get those guys from the University of Texas to come seize control of Iran's wonder weapon.   The RQ-170 was not an attack drone so it may not be the best model for the capabilities described.  It also is not clear how real this weapon is.  This looks like more Iranian saber rattling in hopes of scaring off an Israeli attack.  They have also claimed a new air defense system.  I don't think they are that innovative.