The site is in Iran, where the Americans destroyed the plane while rescuing a US Air Force F-15 pilot. Reuters
The American fighter pilot who shot down an F-15E Strike Eagle over Iran in April recalls seeing a “jellyfish-like” formation of Iranian drones moments before his plane was shot down, according to CNN.Read also | Evacuating ‘the guys’: How the US was able to pull off a high-risk rescue of F-15 pilots in IranThe pilot revealed the previously unreported account during debriefing sessions with intelligence officials.“Multiple drones are interconnected and moving as one, with smaller drones underneath the larger ones like legs — a true alien,” CNN quoted an official who attended the press conference as saying.According to another official, the pilot described seeing a “drone minefield” in the air.After the pilot’s account, the intelligence officials conducting the investigation asked him whether the pilot was sure of what he saw.This is because he suffered a concussion after getting off the plane. This was also the second time his plane was shot down during the Iran War; He was also among the American pilots shot down in a friendly fire incident involving a Kuwaiti fighter pilot in the early days of the conflict.
What does it say about Iran’s drone capability?
While the specific drone capability described by the pilot has not been previously assessed by US intelligence agencies as being possessed by Iran, there are a series of reports indicating that Tehran has received assistance in developing drone technology from China and Russia.
Read also | The ‘epic’ rescue: How much did it cost the US to rescue an F-15E pilot and why America destroyed its planesThe technical term for the capability described by the pilot is “one-to-many mesh networking.”In general, mesh networks allow an operator to control multiple drones simultaneously.Russia and China are also believed to have this capability. Any progress in Tehran’s already advanced drone warfare program would be a source of concern for US forces and their allies in the region.Iran has deployed attack drones extensively as an asymmetric weapon during the weeks-long conflict against US and Israeli forces, as well as against neighboring Gulf states.
The incident
The F-15 carried a crew of two – a pilot and a weapons systems officer (WSO). The United States immediately launched a search and rescue operation.The downing of the F-15 was the first time a US fighter jet had been shot down over Iran during the conflict.The pilot was rescued hours after the jump, while the WSO evaded Iranian capture in the mountains for several days before being rescued as well. It is not clear whether the global safety organization has also noticed the formation of the drones.While the exact cause of the downing of the F-15 remains under investigation, initial reports indicated that the drone formation may have somehow enabled Iranian forces to shoot down the American plane.