An unknown number of civilian passengers on Mahan Air flight 1152 were injured on Thursday when a pair of US fighter jets approached it over Damascus, forcing the airliner to change direction to avoid colliding with the warplanes.
The abrupt change tossed passengers around, and several were injured in the process. The plane landed in Beirut, and after a stop-off returned to Tehran without incident. There is no word on the condition of the injured.
Reported earlier this afternoon, the US interception was initially reported as a single Israeli warplane, which would’ve been the latest in a string of Israeli incidents against Iranians. The airliner pilot, however, said he contacted the jets in question, and that they were Americans.
CENTCOM has confirmed as much, saying they intercepted the airliner “in accordance with international standards” to ensure the safety of US ground troops at the al-Tanf base inside Syria. They confirmed it was identified as a Mahar Air flight, but did not specify any contact.
The US has blacklisted and sanctioned Mahar Air, accusing them of smuggling arms. There was no indication this played a factor in the US intercepting the plane.
Nonsensical excuse from Centcom, they know full well the aircraft is an A340.
It appears to be a simple case of harassment.
We sanctioned that airline for a reason. The fault lies with an inept Iranian pilot. No real surprise there.
In whose airspace did this happen?
Playing chicken in the sky with a civilian airliner seems like it should be illegal, and wrong, especially if one of the planes involved did not receive permission to enter the airspace where the event occurred. Or are such niceties alien to rogue states? Sounds like a case for the ICC to sort out.
Since none of the three regimes involved (US, Syrian, or Iranian) are party to the Rome Statute, the ICC has no jurisdiction to “sort it out.”
We do not under any circumstances adhere to any ICC jurisdictions, decrees, warnings, charges, trials or even acknowledge their existence. Once again international law does not apply to us.
We will need to institute a no fly zone with our next batch of sanctions. Only when we grant permission will any flights be allowed to go in and out of there.
The no fly zone was pushed by Kerry as far back as the Obama administration.
In terms of flight safety, perhaps not a bad idea, if coordinated with the Russians, who actually control the airspace over Syria.
Imposing it unilaterally, well playing that card seems a bit desperate, not dominative. Its no big deal for the Syrians to switch entirely to transport by road and rail.
How’s the weather in Tel Aviv, you goddamn Israeli troll ?
Vic, he’s not limited to being an Israeli troll. He’s a well rounded troll. But really not very good.
Sounds like you just got turned down for line of credit from the Rothschilds. I could put in a good word for you but I won’t.
Good move…
The plane landed without further incident; the Iranian pilot did OK.
The American pilot…. well, if interdiction was the mission, he succeeded without inflicting undue civilian casualties.
Intimidating civilian airliner is criminal. It is air piracy. No sanctions can justify risking civilian flight. And if they could not verify the flight and its itinerary — there is a dangerous incompetence we are witnessing.
US known to have shot down Iranian passenger Jet in Iranian waters, so it could be the Pilot’s reflex action.
Or it could be Iran’s deficient air traffic controllers who don’t know east from west or south from north. A bunch of boobs are running that country.
Naw, a flyby is deliberate and calculated.
We are the uber lawless/gangster nation. Praise Jesus, we are on the way down…
“Captain Bill Urban, the senior Central Command spokesman, said the F-15 “conducted a standard visual inspection of a Mahan Air passenger airliner at a safe distance of about 1,000 metres (3,280 feet) from the airliner this evening”.
Yo, Cap’n, just how many nano seconds does it take for an F-15 to cover 1K meters? Freakin moron in uniform.
Fucking thugs ..
C0WARDS!!!!
“to ensure the safety of US ground troops at the al-Tanf base inside Syria”
Al-Tanf base is illegally occupied land by the US, here they train former ISIS and members of various terrorist groups in assassination and sabotage against the Syrian people and its government.
The US uses a nearby refugee camp that is run by it`s trained terrorist, as a cover and at the same time blocks a vital trade road that connects Baghdad with Damascus.
Even a US news site gets it right.
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/state-of-the-union/a-near-miss-over-syria-and-our-illegal-military-presence/
“The visual inspection occurred to ensure the safety of coalition personnel at At Tanf garrison. Once the F-15 pilot identified the aircraft as a Mahan Air passenger plane, the F-15 safely opened distance from the aircraft,” he added. “The professional intercept was conducted in accordance with international standards.”
Ah yes, “international standards”. Never mind the tidbit about being unwelcomed guests in a sovereign country. We’ve become so brazen about our disregard for other country’s sovereignty that we don’t even pretend it exists.
Why not just shoot it down. They’ve done that before and gotten away with the war crime.
State terrorism, pure and simple.
illegal occupation of Syria at al-Tanf area; illegal occupation and seizure of syrian oil in north-eastern Syria; illegal support and funding for terrorist militias; illegal harassment of airliners over Syria :
an outlaw nation terrorizing Syria and her neighbors, again
Iran 655, USS Vincennes. 1988. One of the most despicable actions
ever taken by the US military, and not even for the fact that they shot
it down, but for the refusal of the US government to take responsibility
for the tragedy. Iran had to sue the US in ICJ to get any compensation EIGHT YEARS LATER. As well, the crew received medals at the end of their
tours. It is sometimes inaccurately claimed that these medals were
due to this incident. This is false, they were merely the medals
given to all navy personnel at the end of their tours. But it is still
outrageous that they were given medals at all after what they did.
Footage from the bridge shows they truly believed they were under
attack. This incident is most fittingly attributed to Scenario
Fulfillment, a form of mass hysteria, where it does not matter that
their instruments were showing a climbing commercial jet, they had
psychotic break in unison, and saw a diving threat.
Let me get this right. US AF in syria without permission to be there, intercepted a legal civilian plane and bullied it because it was Iranian. Did they want another 655? Assholes… https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/20bcc0366964fa568d2a844e54544272c2047b6783ca007881fdea15bb34a793.jpg
This is more and more looks to be a US terrorist act to provoke Syrian air defense as if Israeli jets are present while the US fighter jet hides behind the Jet liner…! ___ Remember, an Israeli stunt deja vu with a Russian reconnaissance plane…!
Good observation.
Still, the Syrians would never knowingly shoot down a U.S. fighter plane, thus igniting a greater conflict.
They might shoot down an Israeli warplane… but they Russians (moreso than the Syrians) may have feared just such a mixup,
I guess that’s why Syrian air defenses have been so soft on Israeli aggression; the threat of a bait and switch sacrificing an American plane and pilot.
netman may be onto something with his Israeli decoy idea. At the very least, the ease with which Israel strikes at Syria, suggests the Russians and Syrians have long guarded against such a mixup at cost of Israeli airstrikes with impunity.
If the U.S. planes were mistaken as an Israeli fighters and shot at, either the civilian airliner would be hit or U.S. fighters would be hit/fired upon.
For Syria to fire upon a U.S. fighter even by mistake, would definitely dash any Syrian pullout hopes.
It doesn’t matter who has right of way; the War Machine and American public would latch on the way crocodiles bite on instinctive reaction.
There’s not much point to interdicting civilian air liners, though. Any valuable cargo would not likely be shipped by air, though perhaps there were Iranian VIPs aboard. However, the airliner landed without incident in Beirut without being searched further.