TEHRAN (Tasnim) A ranking Iranian commander said the air defense forces have warned off a number of foreign surveillance aircraft that tried to approach the countrys airspace in the last two days, noting that some were identified as U-2 spy planes.Yesterday and today, several warnings have been given to the reconnaissance planes belonging to trans-regional forces near the countrys borders. A number of the planes were U-2, Lieutenant Commander of Khatam al-Anbia Air Defense Base General Shahrokh Shahram said on Monday.
Warnings to the intruding aircraft are not unusual in Iran. Earlier this month, Commander of Irans Khatam al-Anbia Air Defense Base Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili said his forces had identified a U-2 reconnaissance plane and forced it to leave the countrys airspace.
The intruding aircraft, only in possession of the US, was forced to leave the country when the Air Defense systems were prepared to hit the plane, Esmaili said.
The Lockheed U-2 is an ultra-high altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the US and has been in service for over 50 years. The spy planes have taken part in post-Cold War conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Iran is using different types of radar and missile systems in its integrated air defense network.
In June, a new long-range radar system, manufactured by the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force, became fully operational. The advanced air defense radar system, dubbed the Qadir (Almighty), has been totally designed and produced by the local military experts at the IRGC aerospace force.
The Qadir identifies the aerial targets on the basis of 3-dimensional detection. The system enjoys nonstop monitoring activity.
With an approximate range of 1,100 kilometers, the homegrown radar system can even detect the targets with pretty small cross-section area.
By Tasnim News Agency
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