How the F-35 Scored Its First Kill Against an Iranian Stealth Drone

SCiTech

In a world-first, Israeli F-35 stealth jets engaged and destroyed Iranian stealth drones in March 2021. This marked the F-35's first-ever air-to-air kill and revealed the growing threat from Iran's advanced UAV program.  This video dives into the specific models Israel has faced, including the Shahed-141 recon drone (intercepted by an Apache helicopter in 2018) and the Shahed-161, a jet-powered suicide drone with advanced capabilities. Despite these encounters and the proven success of simpler Iranian drones in hitting targets across Israel, a major question remains: Why isn't Iran deploying its most advanced stealth UAVs more frequently? We'll analyze the known encounters, break down the technology, and explore the strategic reasons why Iran might be holding its best weapon in reserve.

Transcript

00:00We encountered this Shahed in the field. In March 2021, two were intercepted after being

00:06sent from Iran with a shipment of weapons for Judea and Samaria as a show-off, a display of

00:12force. Their stealth drones were detected and met our stealth jets, and thus the F-35 aircraft

00:18recorded its first ever air-to-air kill. The enemy's next stealth UAVs were made even smaller

00:24than the original, with a wingspan of just over 5 meters. The Shahed 161 model is a suicide-stealth

00:32UAV that, alongside its satellite navigation system that brings it to the target, also

00:37received an optical sensor, a camera, that theoretically could allow for attacking mobile

00:42targets. The engine is a jet, and the range is 300 kilometers, but it would likely be much shorter

00:48if the camera is activated due to the limited transmission distance from it to the control

00:53station. It also received a version with an economical piston engine used for reconnaissance

00:59and observation with a mission radius of more than 1,300 kilometers. It is called the Shahed

01:04141, which we encountered back in February 2018. One of them flew through Syria, reached our

01:11territory, and was successfully intercepted by an Apache helicopter.

01:16Okay, all of this is strange. Iran and the terror armies have launched and are launching explosive

01:22UAVs here in large quantities and with success. They have hit bases and airport and targets

01:28in the heart of the country.

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