The bottom line up front: Iran believes the U.S. Navy under Trump is the same U.S. Navy under Obama, meaning they must suspect Trump and his national security team are following the same policy of looking the other way no matter the Islamic republic’s provocations. At some point, I believe they will be proven incorrect — sooner rather than later if Iran’s actions lead to the injury or death of U.S. service personnel or damage to U.S. military assets. — JED
An unarmed Iranian drone shadowed a U.S. aircraft carrier at night and came close enough to F-18 fighter jets to put the lives of American pilots at risk, the Navy said Tuesday, reporting the second such tense encounter within a week.
The Iranian Sadegh drone flew without any warning lights during the encounter Sunday night with the USS Nimitz, said Lt. Ian McConnaughey, a spokesman for the Bahrain-based 5th Fleet.
The drone did not respond to repeated calls over the radio and came within 1,000 feet (300 meters) of U.S. fighters, he said.
That “created a dangerous situation with the potential for collision and is not in keeping with international maritime customs and laws,” McConnaughey said in a statement.
Source: AP
