'Israeli drone spying on Turkey almost shot down'

[RedBeard]

Turkish media outlet claims fighter jets called up to intercept unmanned aerial vehicle circling over missile batteries, radar equipment
Ynet
Published:* 01.03.12, 22:04 / Israel News


An Israeli drone flying over Turkey was nearly intercepted by Turkish aerial defense forces, an Istanbul-based media outlet reported on Tuesday.
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Two F-16 fighter jets were called-up to the area, but failed to locate the drone.


"The Israeli 'Heron' drone was detected spying on military headquarters in Turkey's southern Hatay province," the report stated, adding that "the aircraft hovered over the Turkish forces in order to capture images of missile batteries and radar equipment."

'Officer noticed bright light.' (Photo: AFP)
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A Turkish officer, who reportedly noticed a bright light in the sky, asked a senior sergeant to confirm the identity of the object. When they received confirmation, the soldiers abandoned their post for fear of an attack.
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Meanwhile, the report claimed the Turkish radar continued to monitor the unmanned aerial vehicle, while the Turkish army waited for authorization to shoot it down.
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The report stated that "by the time the order was given, the drone had already left the area."
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The IDF Spokesperson's Unit refused to comment on the Turkish report.
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The IDF maintains full coordination with the Turkish army regarding all flights in the eastern Mediterranean region. Turkey has also purchased from Israel 10 drones of the same kind in recent years.
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The Heron drone is designed for prolonged flights at medium altitude. During its flight testing, the aircraft preformed a 52 hour flight, but its operational flight time is much lower due to the heavy weight of the cargo.

'Israeli drone spying on Turkey almost shot down' - Israel News, Ynetnews

 

[araz]

It is a simple case of "keep your friends close and your enemies closer"! However, since the drone has not been intercepted or confirmed as being present(as it was not found when the F16s came to the area) one cannot comment any more on the issue.

"A Turkish officer, who reportedly noticed a bright light in the sky, asked a senior sergeant to confirm the identity of the object. When they received confirmation, the soldiers abandoned their post for fear of an attack."

I would like to however draw the attention of the readers to this bit, which I have highlighted! Is this not a bad reflection on the Turkish soldier, who have always had a reputation of being fearless and ruthless in facing huge numbers of enemies.
Araz

 

[livingdead]

I would like to however draw the attention of the readers to this bit, which I have highlighted! Is this not a bad reflection on the Turkish soldier, who have always had a reputation of being fearless and ruthless in facing huge numbers of enemies.
Araz

Sometimes it is better to ignore certain things than emphasize and draw attention.

 

[VelocuR]

‘Israeli Heron hovered over Hatay for four hours’

An Israeli Heron unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was observed spying above the 14th Hawk B. Brigade Command in Hatay’s Kırıkhan district for four hours, the Taraf daily claimed on Tuesday.

The aerial vehicle was hovering over the brigade command post in order to capture pictures of missile batteries and radar equipment.

According to the daily’s report, the Israeli drone was first noticed by a military lieutenant, who saw a white light flashing in the sky. Later he asked an air defense senior sergeant to verify what he had seen, who confirmed that a drone was hovering over the command post.

All the military personnel then left the post in preparation for a possible attack.

Radar followed the Israeli drone as military officials waited for the order to shoot it down. Higher ranked military officials did not reply to the radar center’s call before the drone moved out of range.

At the same time as the events in Hatay, the Diyarbakır 2nd Air Force Command Strike Center was also tracking the drone. Upon an insistent request of the Hatay command, the Diyarbakır command center sent two F-16 fighter jets to the region, where they tracked and followed the drones, and eventually returned to their base in Diyarbakır.

In a related story, Turkey purchased 10 Herons from Israel in a 2004 arms deal at a cost of about $183 million. Turkey has been using Israeli-made Heron drones in its fight against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). But the Herons purchased by Turkey were not able to reach the altitudes indicated in the contract, and five of the Herons had engine-related problems. These five and at least two others that had other problems were sent to Israel for repair.

There were significant delays in the return of the drones, prompting Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to publicly complain in September. This, intelligence sources say, sped up the delivery process, and Israel recently returned all of the Herons. Israeli technical personnel in charge of renovating the crafts left Turkey due to security reasons, following a diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Israel in September 2011.

The UAVs have been important in Turkey’s intensified fight against the PKK, which has stepped up its terrorist attacks against Turkish security forces, civilians and businesses in southeast Turkey over the past six months. Turkey has greatly improved counterterrorism efforts with the increased use of drones, and the domestic manufacture of drones; 168 domestically produced drones are used by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) for surveillance.

 

[avrasya]

ynetnews is ulta conservative iraeli news site. Its news are always biased. (some of them fabricated like this one) I have not seen this news any other cradible turkish web site. So this news is hoax. There is no reason for israel to send its unmanned planes to Turkey also there is no reason for Turkish soldiers to escape.

What will drones do ? Attack turkish soliders on Turkish soil?

 

[RedBeard]

and how could the soldiers see the uav flying at 30.000 ft?

 

[RickyBahal]

"The Israeli 'Heron' drone was detected spying on military headquarters in Turkey's southern Hatay province," the report stated, adding that "the aircraft hovered over the Turkish forces in order to capture images of missile batteries and radar equipment."

I thought they already have spy Satellite .....

 

[Cirit]

and how could the soldiers see the uav flying at 30.000 ft?

If it is a clear night, light reflections and engine sound can be seen and heard. Besides drones do not keep same altitude all the time, and observer's elevation is not zero feet, so it can be seen.

---------- Post added at 12:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:47 AM ----------

I thought they already have spy Satellite .....

But as you know satellites have very limited observing time due to their orbital movement.