US shoots down second Iran-made armed drone over Syria in 12 days

You mean Daesh. Right?

 

Iran has plenty of drones and losing a few doesn't make any difference. In fact, we have a drone base right near where the US has unlawfully set up camp in Syria.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/iran-has-drone-base-near-u-s-troops-syria-n774811
Iran Has Drone Base Near U.S. Troops in Syria

Of course, a drone like Shahed 129 has the range to fly to Syria and back from Iran and we don't need a base outside to operate it anywhere in the region.

Last but not least, the Iranian drones shot down over Syria were there because they were wanted. They were wanted by the government of Syria, which is the only legitimate source to decide who can operate in their country and who can't.

 

Good, then we are in agreement that shooting them down is fun and doesn't mean much

And they were wanted by Assad, all of Syria does not agree with him. That line of attacks is silly and means nothing to me

 

You can spin as you wish, but Iran and the US are fighting over who will be controlling the corridor linking Syria to Iraq. And for now, Iran is winning that fight. Iranian backed forces "looped" around the US and US backed forces last week to make dramatic gains, bringing them right at the Iraq border where they met the Iraqi shia forces which has cleaned their part of western Iraq from ISIS and made their move to the Syrian border.

And as we speak, a significant offensive is reported by Iranian backed forces moving towards the Syrian-Jordanian border as well.

 

No, I mean the other Syrian Rebel Terrorists. Oh and the Kurds.


Opposition groups in Syria took a new turn in 2011 during the Syrian civil war as they united to form the Syrian National Council (SNC), which has received significant international support and recognition as a partner for dialogue. The Syrian National Council has been recognised or supported in some capacity by at least 17 member states of the United Nations, with three of those (France, United Kingdom and the United States) being permanent members of the Security Council.

A new opposition umbrella group — the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces — was formed in November 2012 and has gained recognition as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people" by the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (CCASG) and as a "representative of aspirations of Syrian people" by the Arab League.

The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces is a coalition of opposition groups in the Syrian civil war. It formed on 11 November 2012 at a conference of opposition groups held in Doha, Qatar. It includes organisations such as the SNC. Islamic preacher Moaz al-Khatib serves as the president of the coalition, Riad Seif and Suheir Atassi were elected vice presidents. Mustafa Sabbagh is the coalition's secretary-general.

The Syrian National Council, a coalition of Syrian opposition groups based in Istanbul, formed in 2011 during the Syrian civil war. Key people include chairman as of 2013 George Sabra, and former chairmen Burhan Ghalioun and Abdulbaset Sieda.

Muslim Brotherhood: Islamist party founded in 1930. The brotherhood was behind the Islamic uprising in Syria between 1976 until 1982. The party is banned in Syria and membership became a capital offence in 1980. The régime of Bashar al Assad, and others[who?], have accused the Muslim Brotherhood of being key players in the Syrian uprising that escalated into a civil war. Other sources have described the group as having "risen from the ashes", "resurrected itself" to be a dominant force in the uprising. Current leader is Ali Sadreddine Al-Bayanouni.

Coalition of Secular and Democratic Syrians: nucleus of a Syrian secular and democratic opposition that appeared during the Syrian civil war. It came about through the union of a dozen Muslim and Christian, Arab and Kurd parties, who called the minorities of Syria to support the fight against the regime of Bashar al-Assad. The Coalition has also called for military intervention in Syria, under the form of a no-fly zone similar to that of Kosovo, with a safe zone and cities. The president of the coalition, who is also a member of the SNC, is Randa Kassis.

Damascus Declaration: Opposition bloc from 2005. Twelve members were sentenced to 2.5 years in prison in 2008. Syrian journalist and activist Michel Kilo launched the declaration, after the Syrian writer and thinker Abdulrazak Eid had written its first draft. Riad Seif, another democracy activist, became the first signatory. The "five small opposition groups" signing the declaration were the Arab nationalist National Democratic Rally.

the Kurdish Democratic Alliance
the Committees of Civil Society
the Kurdish Democratic Front

The Movement of the Future. The Movement for Justice and Development in Syria (MJD) also subscribes to the Damascus Declaration. In a series of splits 2007-2009, most members left the Damascus Declaration, leaving the MJD and SDPP (see below) as the only remaining factions of any consequence, along with a number of independents.

Syrian Democratic People's Party: A socialist party which played a "key role" in the creation of the SNC. The party's leader George Sabra (a secularist born to a Christian family) is the official spokesman of the SNC, and also ran for chairman.

Supreme Council of the Syrian Revolution: Syrian opposition group supporting the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's government. It grants local opposition groups representation in its national organization.

Assyrian Democratic Organization: A party representing Assyrians in Syria and long repressed by the Assad regime, it has been a participant in opposition structures since the beginning of the conflict. Abdul-Ahad Astepho is a member of the SNC.

Syrian Turkmen Assembly: A recently formed assembly of Syrian Turkmens which constitutes a coalition of Turkmen parties and groups in Syria. It is against the partition of Syria after the collapse of Baath regime. The common decision of Syrian Turkmen Assembly is: "Regardless of any ethnic or religious identity, a future in which everybody can be able to live commonly under the identity of Syrian is targeted in the future of Syria."

Syrian Democratic Turkmen Movement: An opposition party of Syrian Turkmens, which was constituted in Istanbul on 21 March 2012. The leader of Syrian Democratic Turkmen Movement is Ziyad Hasan.

Syrian Turkmen National Bloc: An opposition party of Syrian Turkmens, which was founded in February 2012. The chairman of the political party is Yusuf Molla.

Local Coordination Committees of Syria: Network of local protest groups that organise and report on protests as part of the Syrian civil war, founded in 2011. As of August 2011, the network supported civil disobedience and opposed local armed resistance and international military intervention as methods of opposing the Syrian government. Key people are activists Razan Zaitouneh and Suhair al-Atassi.

Free Syrian Army & Higher Military Council: Paramilitary that has been active during the Syrian civil war. Composed mainly of defected Syrian Armed Forces personnel, its formation was announced on 29 July 2011 in a video released on the Internet by a uniformed group of deserters from the Syrian military who called upon members of the Syrian army to defect and join them. The leader of the group, who identified himself as Colonel Riad al-Asaad, announced that the Free Syrian Army would work with demonstrators to bring down the system, and declared that all security forces attacking civilians are justified targets. It has also been reported that many former Syrian Consulates are trying to band together a Free Syrian Navy from fishermen and defectors to secure the coast.

Al-Tawhid Brigade: an armed group of the Free Syrian Army active in the Battle of Aleppo.

Liwaa al-Umma: a paramilitary group fighting against the Syrian government in the Syrian civil war. The group was previously led by Mahdi Al-Harati, an Irish-Libyan who led Libyan rebel Tripoli Brigade during the Battle of Tripoli. In September 2012 it came under command of the Free Syrian Army.

Syrian Turkmen Brigades: An armed opposition structure of Syrian Turkmens fighting against Syrian Armed Forces. It is also the military wing of Syrian Turkmen Assembly. It is led by Colonel Muhammad Awad and Ali Basher.

Syrian opposition - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

This map provides a general look at the military situation in Syria on June 21, 2017. The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are storming the ISIS-held city of Raqqah. The Syrian army and its allies are attempting to advance near Palmyra amid intense clashes with ISIS.

- See more at: https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-syria-on-june-21-2017-map-update/#sthash.OPxBYBOH.dpuf

 

I think they are flying from Jordan.

 

F-15's are not catapult aircraft. In order to be on a carrier, an aircraft needs to be catapult capable, or, VTOL. Excluding helicopters, the current list of carrier based aircraft:

F-14 (Cata) - Not really used anymore
F/A-18 (Cata)
Harrier (VTOL) - Very few in service
F-35 (VTOL) - Not widely in service, yet

Other land based aircraft:

F-15 (Strike Eagle, more common)
F-16 (Not many left in service)
F-2 (Not many in service)
F-22
A-10
All B class planes.

Edit: This is from a US perspective. This is discounting all MIG and Sukoi class planes, which are of Russian origin.

 

From what I've read it is difficult to shoot these drones down from a jet because of the difference in speed, they have to be visually sighted and aimed at, but evidently pilots are getting good at it.

 

To appreciate the dramatic shift in what really matters, you can compare the situation when this report was filed less than 3 weeks ago to the reports filed a couple of weeks afterwards:
On June 2, 2017:
https://www.newsdeeply.com/syria/ar...ked-forces-in-iraq-and-syria-cant-link-up-yet

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20170615-damascus-opens-arms-corridor-from-iran-via-iraq/
Damascus opens arms corridor from Iran via Iraq

June 18, 2017
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/aid-convoy-besieged-area-fire-syria-48113443
Syria, Iraq troops link at border for first time in years

 

______
I'm surprised that you didn't include a YouTube rendition of the "Internationale" anthem, or The Hymn of the Soviet Union with your post.

 

It's their fuсking border, how the fuсk are they supposed to keep country secure from ISIS without a recoinassence?

I am asking seriously, and yes, do that is such a harsh tone - because it is very, very much a state right and necessity to watch their border, this is one of things the government and army exist in the first place.

 

You are right and I actually knew the F-15s are not operated from aircraft carriers, despite my question that suggested otherwise.

Incidentally, while unlike the US Tomcats which used to operate from aircraft carriers, these are not being operated from any aircraft carriers, there is actually one nation that does operate the F-14 Tomcat still, namely Iran You guys will never realize how much of a slap in the face of US propaganda is the fact that Iran still operates the F-14s, despite predictions back in the 1980s that Iran wouldn't be able to operate them without US spare parts and the like for at most a few years after finishing cannibalizing its fleet. Several decades later, and despite the US destroying all its F-14s and spare parts to make sure none of their spare parts could find its way to Iran on the black market, Iran not only flies these birds but has domesticated and improved them.

https://theaviationist.com/2016/10/...-off-for-night-missions-few-days-ago-in-iran/
Top Gun Reloaded: F-14 Tomcats take off for night missions. Few days ago, in Iran.

Below is a picture of the F-14AM (the "M" stands for modernized), along with the "Fakour 90" missile developed by Iran for the F-14AM.



http://www.defense-aerospace.com/art...-missions.html
Iran Optimizing F14 Fighter Jets for New Missions

This note at the end of that report is why the pictures of these F-14s are actually the most relevant:

 

Taking ground from Daesh is a complete different story than taking it from TAF controlled areas. Especially when the Kurds and US is focusing on Raqqa.

Its not like the US was preventing the Shia in Iraq to link up at the border. Especially knowing Al Sadr had sent over 3k Shia into Syria.

 

The same kind of annoying propaganda which was used to question Iran's ability to keep its F-14 fleet airworthy, we see with reaction by arm chair "military experts" who are given a media platform to try to discredit other achievements by Iran's army industries. For instance, after Ira showcased a mock-up of a stealth fighter still in its early development stages in 2013, you had a slew of articles mocking Iran's Qaher 313 as fake! How is a mock up even supposed to be fake? It was a mock up! Then, a few months ago, Iran showed a prototype of the Qaher 313 doing taxi tests on a runway. You would think that these folks would stop the nonsense, but while a few started backtracking on their original claims, other continued with their nonsense.

In the meantime, below is the video of Iran's Qaher 313 stealth fighter doing taxi tests. According to Iranian sources, it will be still a couple of years before this plane will be ready for mass production. But it is an interesting design and a milestone in Iran's aeronotic industry, which until now has developed most of its other aircraft based on US designs and models.

 

Even more impressive than the Qaher 313 (which is still in a development stage and not a final, finished, product), is Iran's development of the Karrar tank, which is already in mass production and is entering service in Iran. In developing this tank, Iran declined to purchase the Russian T-90 tanks. This caused even the Russians to be less than thrilled with the development of the Karrar tank. But you can watch this tank doing exercises, including running in shallow waters and up hill on mountains. Quite an impressive tank!

 

Support for Assad in spite of US - Israeli efforts to depose him and replace him with a suitable puppet have failed for the following reasons:

"Why Syrians Support President Bashar al Assad"

http://www.globalresearch.ca/why-syrians-support-president-bashar-al-assad/5510448

EXCERPT "It may be surprising to some that the Syrian people still support Pres. Bashar al Assad. The western media has gone to great lengths to portray him as an evil dictator. However, Syrian residents are not affected by western media, and have a different view of their leader. " CONTINUED

 

So looking at today's map.. Is our goal there to leave Assad in charge of a.. smaller Syria since regime change is out?
Nice border there along the Euphrates up from Iraq to Raqqa then up.

So.. we are going to hold Eastern Syria. That shooting down of Syrias plane near Tabaqah was us stating so. That plane was bombing close by. Russia won't fight us directly and neither will anyone else. Iran will kill some ISIS then go home, Turkey will kill some Kurds then go home

Then do what with Eastern Syria I wonder. I guess we will know soon once ISIS is gone. Then the real BS will start.

 

Ah, forgive me then. Context it appeared it wasn't known. I'm a massive aircraft nerd, so I tend to gush over these things.

As far as the F-14 goes, yes, Iran is the only nation that uses it, despite the planes extreme flaws. Even after it was produced it was common knowledge that the plane was not very maneuverable, and was more akin to a flying tank than it was a maneuverable interceptor. That's why it was developed specifically for carriers, as the Navy requires Multirole Aircraft, rather than specialized aircraft. This is also why the F/A-18 and F-35C are classified Multirole, as they can be used in interception as well as ATG missions.

Now, something you have brought to my attention is this Qaher fighter. I hadn't seen or heard of this until today. I've been primarily focused on Sukoi for foreign developments, since they're able to match US Air Superiority... but it would seem, as the saying goes... A Challenger Approaches

 

By the same token, one could ask what "right" does a "condemned and illegitimate" regime in Iran (to use the late Grand Ayatollah Montazeri's terms) give itself to conduct military operations against the Syrian citizens who are fighting an illegitimate, terrorist-sponsoring regime that is guilty of committing crimes of humanity and was previously driven out of Lebanon in 2005 by that country's people for behaving in a similar manner?

No doubt, every government and non-state actor fighting in Syria can tell you what "right" they have to be in that country, and no doubt Bashar al-Assad is reaping what he has sown, just as a Libyan tyrant who made too many enemies for himself meddling in other country's affairs did before him. The brutal fact of the matter is that Syria exists within the sordid universe that its dictator and his father before him have always existed within. It's not the nice, neat, pleasant world of diplomats, international law and rights that The Top Goon has never cared about.

Indeed, and if Assad makes the mistake of shedding a drop of American blood he'll be signing his own death sentence. He knows that and we know that.

 

The drones were shot down in Syria, not Iran.

 

Hey do you believe all this evil Tyrant and dictator stuff you keep going on about? Like it's actually Assad's fault or Ghadaffis... or the so called illegitimate Iranians attacking Syrian citizens? When did that happen? Pretty sure the Iranians are after ISIS after that bombing they had.

I think the US is telling everyone Eastern Syria is off limits to everyone except the people we support and Turkey next might as well be the next one to get its hand slapped if not careful.

 

At best it was shot in 600-700 kilometers away from the border of Iran, this is ~8-10 hours away on the wheels from it. It's somewhat a length of one state of USA. A less. Than half a day. Away. From their border. And there is a war going on, and one of factions of this war poses a direct threat to Iran.

I'd say what USA does makes them a second threat after ISIS, especially with the

kind of mindset. Your army has little to no right to be even present in Syria, let alone to dictate any neighbouring or involved country what to do.

 

Maybe, as an aircraft nerd, you know some of this but maybe you don't know some of it either?
https://www.thrillist.com/cars/thin...story-and-trivia-about-the-plane-from-top-gun

The Qaher is still in a development stage and has a long way to go before it can be genuinely compared with other 5th generation fighters. But the work on the project is a milestone for Iran and its still nascent aeronautic industry.

 

I did notice the Kurds are carving out a big chunk. But yeah.....things will get quite interesting once Daesh is removed from Syria.