An Iranian Shahed-139 drone was shot down by a U.S. F-35C because it approached the united statesAbraham Lincoln within the Arabian Sea.
An Iranian drone was shot down by the U.S. navy on Feb. 3, 2026, in line with a U.S. official cited by Reuters. The unmanned plane, a Shahed-139, was flying in the direction of the united statesAbraham Lincoln (CVN-72) because it was crusing within the Arabian Sea, prompting the intercept.
The official specified that an F-35 Lightning II was scrambled to intercept the drone, and later shot it down. The united statesLincoln is presently assigned Service Air Wing (CVW) 9, which incorporates amongst its squadrons the Marine Fighter Assault Squadron (VMFA) 314, flying the F-35C.
The Iranian Shahed-139 drone was flying in the direction of the Lincoln and was shot down by a F-35 U.S. fighter jet.
— Phil Stewart (@phildstewart) February 3, 2026
Particulars in regards to the shootdown are presently unknown, and it’s unclear how shut the drone got here to the ship and if it was carrying weapons.
Shahed-139
The Shahed-139 is a medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial car developed by Iran, which presents many visible similarities with the U.S.-made MQ-1 Predator. It encompasses a standard fuselage, rear-mounted pusher propeller, and straight wings optimized for long-endurance surveillance and strike missions.
Not one, however 2 new Shahed UAVs had been unveiled
• Shahed-139 (pic 1-2): New MALE UAV, presumably MQ-1 derived. Much like Kaman-22 design clever
• Shahed-147 (pic 3): New jet powered HALE UAV. 26 meter wingspan & can fly as much as an altitude of 18km. Observe SAR radar too pic.twitter.com/hUyGGVPgff
— Iran Protection commentary (unofficial) (@IranDefense) November 19, 2023
Pictures launched by state media have proven the drone of carries an electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor and presumably a small radar. There are not any pictures of the plane carrying weapons, nonetheless, contemplating that the plane is an extra growth of the Shahed-129 armed drone, it’s believed that the Shahed-139 would possibly be capable of carry a weapon payload of 4 missiles.
Lincoln CSG
Following the rising tensions after the violent crackdown on protests in Iran, the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) Service Strike Group (CSG) has been retasked from operational cruise within the Indo-Pacific to rapidly transfer to the CENTCOM Space of Duty (AOR). The CSG arrived within the Center East in late January, with CENTCOM saying it “is presently deployed to the Center East to advertise regional safety and stability.”
Along with the united statesLincoln are Service Air Wing (CVW) 9, launched into the service, and destroyers USS Frank E. Petersen, Jr. (DDG-121), USS Spruance (DDG-111) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112). CVW 9 consists of eight squadrons flying F-35C Lightning II, F/A-18E/F Tremendous Hornets, EA-18G Growlers, E-2D Hawkeyes, CMV-22B Ospreys and MH-60R/S Sea Hawks.
It is a creating story, we are going to replace the article as extra particulars emerge.
