Iranian drones, we told you so

I don’t want to say we told you so, but we told you so. back in 2011 an Iranian student kindly sent us an article about their competitions all very cutting edge, especially when we were following Western competitions that looked like this.

To me, Iran’s technical ability seems to be underplayed and put down with suggestions that they will only get there with American tech. The Iranians have aggressively developed what they needed, the very fact that they are being talked about around the globe is proof of their success.

It has not been without some interesting claims on the way

My personal favourite that was picked up by all sorts of news outlets was when I spotted a faked image they used in 2012 the Koker 1 eVTOL, which I knew I had seen before.

In 2013 as a sign of friendship, Iran gave the Russians some copies of the Scan Eagle that they claimed to have made

So whilst Iran has been creating hubris in extreme over in America trade shows and renders have produced very few winning products.

The justice department in America has released –

Guidance to Industry on Iran’s UAV-Related Activities

Iran’s procurement, development, and proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is an increasing threat to international peace and security. The Department of Commerce, the Department of Justice, the Department of State, and the Department of the Treasury are issuing this advisory to alert persons and businesses globally to the threat of Iran’s UAV-related activities and the need to take appropriate steps to avoid or prevent any activities that would support the further development of Iran’s UAV program.

The United States is committed to countering Iran’s UAV programs, including through preventing abuse of the U.S financial system and disrupting the procurement of foreign-sourced components. It is critical that private industry be aware of its legal obligations vis-à-vis entities and items involved in such procurement efforts, given the potential applicability of U.S. export controls and sanctions. The intent of this advisory is to highlight effective due diligence policies, compliance structures, and internal controls relevant specifically to Iran’s UAV-related activities to ensure compliance with applicable legal requirements across the entire supply chain.

This advisory is also designed to help prevent companies from contributing to Iran’s UAV programs,
including via direct and indirect transfers to third-country suppliers, which may threaten broader
national and international security interests of the United States and its allies and partners.

The Threat Iran’s development, procurement, and proliferation of UAVs destabilizes the Middle East region and beyond. Over the past ten years, Iran has increased its inventory of both armed and unarmed UAVs, whose low cost, simplicity of production, and ease of use make them appealing to entities and
countries of concern to which Iran may transfer them, including but not limited to:

Russia: Since at least late August 2022, Iran has transferred hundreds of Shahed- and Mohajerseries UAVs to Russia. Moscow has used these UAVs extensively to strike critical infrastructure during its brutal war of aggression against Ukraine. In October 2022, the United States joined the United Kingdom and France in raising our grave concerns about these transfers from Iran in violation of United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 2231. Since then, the United States has continuously worked to expose and disrupt Iran’s growing military partnership with Russia, which has helped enable Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The European Union and United Kingdom have also sanctioned multiple Iranian individuals and entities involved in Iran’s supply of UAVs to Russia.

Houthis: Iran has continued its destabilizing activities in Yemen, including sending illicit shipments of UAVs and other weapons to the Houthis, who have used them to conduct strikes inside Yemen and on neighbouring countries, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Overseas Production Facilities: Reports indicate Iran has offered to provide UAV production technology and facilities to Tajikistan and Russia. With these efforts, Tehran may be seeking to strengthen bilateral relationships, boost the profits of its export sector, and complicate efforts to constrain its UAV activities through export controls and other measures.