Iran fighters force US aircraft down, Pentagon denies report

[UnderEstimated]

TEHRAN: Iranian fighter jets have forced a US aircraft to land in Iran after it entered its air space without permission, the Iranian news agency said Tuesday. "The plane had five soldiers and three civilians on board who were subjected to questioning," it said. "After a day''s interrogation, it emerged that the aircraft did not enter Iran intentionally and it was allowed to leave for Afghanistan." A spokeswoman for the US Fifth Fleet Lieutenant Stephanie Murdock told reporters by telephone from its base in Bahrain that she had "no information right now" about the Iranian report. Meanwhile, a Pentagon spokesman said no US aircraft were missing. “The United States has no reports that any of its aircraft are missing”, a Pentagon spokesman said Tuesday, denying an Iranian report that a US warplane was forced to land in Iran. "According to the combined air operations center, all our aircraft are accounted for and we have no reports of any aircraft landing in Iran," said Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Ryder.

Powered by GEO