Iranian drone reportedly films close-up shots of US aircraft carrier… and gets away with it (VIDEO)

Published time: 28 Apr, 2019 01:47Edited time: 28 Apr, 2019 15:46

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USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier © AFP / US Navy

An Iranian UAV has reportedly brazenly approached a US aircraft carrier group in the Persian Gulf to film the ships close-up in HD. The images were shared by Tehran's semi-official news agency.

The undated clip, which was released by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, showed a homemade Ababail-3 drone taking off from an Iranian airfield with the musical accompaniment of a rather epic tune.

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Its audacious mission proved successful, according to Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency, which reported on the close-up shots of the USS 'Dwight D. Eisenhower' aircraft carrier apparently taken by the UAV.

The footage was recorded from such a small distance that the numbers on the wings of E-2C reconnaissance planes and F-18 fighter jets on deck are easily distinguishable. Iranian graphic designers even captioned some of the aircraft in the video.

Tasnim hinted that the drone flyby was a response to the US designating the Revolutionary Guard a "terrorist organization" earlier in April. It was the first time that a whole foreign military was put on the blacklist by Washington.

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USS 'Dwight D. Eisenhower' is the flagship of the Carrier Strike Group 10, which also includes guided-missile cruisers USS 'Monterey,' USS 'San Jacinto' and USS 'Vella Gulf.' The air wing of the 333-meter-long aircraft carrier consists of around 90 planes and helicopters.