The incident occurred on April 9, which US authorities have classified as a Class A incident . This classification includes accidents that result in more than $2 million in damage or the complete loss of the aircraft.
According to a report by the US agency United States Naval Safety Command, the drone was on a routine surveillance flight over the Strait of Hormuz when it began sending distress signals, after which contact was lost.
According to flight data, the drone, flying under the call sign VVPE 804, suddenly dropped from an altitude of 50,000 feet to below 10,000 feet and then disappeared completely.
Initial reports claimed that Iran had shot it down, but US officials have clarified that the drone was not the victim of an attack but an accident.
This drone is a modern high-altitude, long-endurance aircraft manufactured by the American company Northrop Grumman, which is capable of flying for more than 24 hours at an altitude of more than 50,000 feet and can monitor for approximately 7,400 nautical miles.
The MQ-4C Triton is equipped with advanced sensors that enable wide-area surveillance and immediate threat identification, and it is also capable of transmitting data to other military units in real time.
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On the other hand, according to a report by the Chinese news agency Xinhua News Agency, since April 1, the United States has also lost 24 of its MQ-4C Triton drones, worth a total of about $720 million, during the escalating tensions with Iran.
The MQ-4C Triton drone is manufactured by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. It is not only capable of surveillance but also of carrying out precision strikes.
