"In March 2021, the Iranian regime launched two UAVs toward Israeli territory," the IDF said. "The UAVs were successfully intercepted by the Israeli Air Force's F-35i 'Adir' aircraft. This was the first operational interception of a UAV by an F-35i aircraft in the world."
This is an important accomplishment for the F-35. It also shows Israel's advanced abilities to detect these kinds of threats. "The interception of the UAVs was carried out prior to them entering Israeli airspace, in coordination with neighboring countries. The UAVs were detected and tracked throughout their flight by ground control units," Israel's military said.
It's not the first time we are hearing about Iran trying to use drones to move weapons or munitions to Palestinian terror groups.
In November 2021, Defense Minister Benny Gantz discussed the Iran drone threat and said that a February 2018 incursion by an Iranian drone was an attempt to move explosives to the West Bank. In May 2021, Iran expanded its threats by flying a drone from Iraq into Israeli airspace. The drone was shot down. In late February, days before Russia launched its war on Ukraine, a Hezbollah drone also entered Israeli airspace and then returned to Lebanon.
It's clear from available information that the Iranian drone threat is growing and changing. Even though the recent details relate to a March 2021 incident, there have been more incidents since then, such as the May and February drone threats.
Iran also continues to showcase its drone stockpiles. It recently showcased an underground base with Shahed 136 drones. The base appeared to show dozens of them ready for use. These drones also supposedly have long-range capabilities. READ MORE
