The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has announced that its Aerospace Force brought down an American MQM-170 reconnaissance drone over Qeshm Island using advanced electronic warfare systems, capturing the aircraft intact for the second time.
The IRGC said on Friday that its elite officers of the Aerospace Force successfully intercepted and seized the drone a few hours ago in the skies over Qeshm through the force’s sophisticated electronic warfare capabilities.
The operation marks the second time such a craft has been seized by IRGC personnel.
Since the beginning of the 40-day war, dozens of enemy drones and various types of aircraft have been either destroyed or captured by Iranian air defenses.
Earlier in the day, the IRGC said in a statement that its air defenses have downed 68 US MQ-1 and MQ-9 drones since the start of the US-Israeli war of aggression, delivering repeated blows to American aerial operations.
The latest capture over Qeshm underscores the growing effectiveness of Iran’s integrated air-defense network and indigenous electronic warfare systems.
The IRGC has previously said these systems operate under the country’s integrated air-defense network and can detect, track, and neutralize advanced targets under real combat conditions.
Iranian specialists and commanders have spent years developing these domestic capabilities, which have repeatedly proven their worth against US reconnaissance and combat assets equipped with advanced surveillance equipment, thermal cameras, satellite communications, and long-endurance flight systems.
Earlier this week, the IRGC Navy separately announced that its electronic warfare unit had captured and safely landed another US MQM-170 spy and deception drone intact west of the Strait of Hormuz after taking control of its guidance systems. Data from the aircraft indicated it took off from the coast of a southern Persian Gulf littoral state.
On September 21, the IRGC announced that it had shot down a US MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz, while the Iranian Army reported destroying an Orbiter reconnaissance drone in the same strategic area. On October 20, the IRGC confirmed the destruction of a 54th US MQ-9 Reaper. Thursday’s announcements raised the combined tally of MQ-1 and MQ-9 drones downed by Iran’s air defenses to 69.
The repeated successful interceptions and intact captures demonstrate the resilience and technological self-reliance of the Islamic Republic’s air defenses in the face of continued hostile aerial activity.
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