Reports say the US is to get its top secret surveillance drone back from Iran. The catch is, the device, intercepted in December, has been reduced to 1:80 of its original size and is being marketed as a popular toy. Iranian state radio was quoted by Associated Press as saying on Tuesday that the US RQ-170 Sentinel stealth drone toy models would soon be on sale in Tehran.
They are expected to sell for 70,000 rials – around US$4. One of the models will even make it to the White House in response to a formal request from Washington last month asking Iran to return the top-secret device.
They are expected to sell for 70,000 rials – around US$4. One of the models will even make it to the White House in response to a formal request from Washington last month asking Iran to return the top-secret device.
State radio reports that the model will be of the original aircraft, but one eightieth of the actual size. The top secret US drone was intercepted over the Iranian town of Kashmar, some 225 kilometers from Iran’s border with Afghanistan, in early December. Engineers with the Iranian military confirmed they had managed to hijack the system inside the craft with ease and bring it to a safe landing without incident. Since then, the Obama administration has asked Iran to return the drone, but Tehran has refused, claiming that its incursion into Iranian airspace had rendered it Iran’s property. Reports also suggest the trophy might be put on public display after a thorough examination, and in a year or two it may be put up for auction. Source
Angelo: 70,000 rials, more like UK£4, €5 or US$6;)
Additional:
TEHRAN — For the American government, the crash of the RQ-170 drone in Iran was an embarrassment. For the Iranian government, it was a propaganda victory. And for at least one company, according to state radio, it could be a windfall. An Iranian firm, seeking to capitalize on the frenzy that followed the crash of the drone — and American calls to have it returned — is now producing miniaturized toy versions of the craft. Most of the toys, which come in several colors and are made of Iranian plastic, have already been snapped up by Iranian government organizations, according to the group that manufactures them. At least one model — a pink one — has been reserved for President Obama. “He said he wanted it back, and we will send him one,” said Reza Kioumarsi, the head of cultural production at the Ayeh Art group. Ayeh Art group designs “cultural products” — mugs with verses of the Koran printed on them, for instance, and small buttons picturing mosques. This month, the firm began producing a 1:80 scaled model of the RQ-170, the sophisticated drone that was being operated by the CIA when it crashed in eastern Iran. The firm is now making 2,000 of them a day. “This is not made in China,” Kioumarsi stressed. The toys come with a transparent plastic stand emblazoned with a quotation from Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic: “We will put America under our feet.” The products made by Ayeh Art Group are not widely known in Tehran, but Kioumarsi said he was confident that the model drones would sell like hotcakes. The Iranian government, meantime, has shown no indication that it will be returning the real RQ-170 to the United States. Last week, the Foreign Ministry demanded an apology first. Source
Angelo: 70,000 rials, more like UK£4, €5 or US$6;)
Additional:
TEHRAN — For the American government, the crash of the RQ-170 drone in Iran was an embarrassment. For the Iranian government, it was a propaganda victory. And for at least one company, according to state radio, it could be a windfall. An Iranian firm, seeking to capitalize on the frenzy that followed the crash of the drone — and American calls to have it returned — is now producing miniaturized toy versions of the craft. Most of the toys, which come in several colors and are made of Iranian plastic, have already been snapped up by Iranian government organizations, according to the group that manufactures them. At least one model — a pink one — has been reserved for President Obama. “He said he wanted it back, and we will send him one,” said Reza Kioumarsi, the head of cultural production at the Ayeh Art group. Ayeh Art group designs “cultural products” — mugs with verses of the Koran printed on them, for instance, and small buttons picturing mosques. This month, the firm began producing a 1:80 scaled model of the RQ-170, the sophisticated drone that was being operated by the CIA when it crashed in eastern Iran. The firm is now making 2,000 of them a day. “This is not made in China,” Kioumarsi stressed. The toys come with a transparent plastic stand emblazoned with a quotation from Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic: “We will put America under our feet.” The products made by Ayeh Art Group are not widely known in Tehran, but Kioumarsi said he was confident that the model drones would sell like hotcakes. The Iranian government, meantime, has shown no indication that it will be returning the real RQ-170 to the United States. Last week, the Foreign Ministry demanded an apology first. Source