Syrian Drones Spotted in Satellite Images

U.S. military drones may rule the skies worldwide, but Iran has also built its own flying robots for its military and for sale. Satellite images recently confirmed that Iranian-made Mohajer 4 drones have been flying missions out of airfields in Syria to spy on rebels who have been fighting government forces.

The satellite imagery was highlighted on the Open Source Geointelligence blog after a tip from one of its readers. They showed several of the Iranian-made drones flying out of a base 18 miles southeast of Homs — a city that has endured some of the bitterest fighting between rebels and government troops.

Such a short distance between the airport and city suggests the drones may have a shorter flying range than previously thought, said George Kaplan, founder of the Open-Source Geointelligence blog. David Axe, Wired reporter, suggested that the limitations of the drone's direct communications with ground stations may limit the drone's useful range to just 40 miles.

Source: Open Source Geointelligence via Wired

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