An aircraft flown by coalition forces and carrying about 100 Americans from Bagram air base in Afghanistan en route to Dubai was escorted by Iranian fighter jets to land in Iran on Friday, according to the Washington Post.
The Post reported that Iranian air traffic controllers disputed the Western military coalition aircraft’s flight plan and instructed the pilots to turn around and fly back to Bagram.
The plane lacked the fuel to return to Afghanistan and was directed down by Iranian fighter jets in the port city of Bandar Abbas, one U.S. official told the newspaper.
Another official said the aircraft landed in Iran on its own.
This is not good. Nor does it bode well for us. Ya think they’ll let bygones be bygones???
Reports from U.S. officials are the issue is pretty much resolved and the plane should take off soon. They filed a flight plan over Iranian airspace and then took off late, so technically the flight plan wasn’t kosher and the Iranians asked them to turn around. They didn’t have enough fuel to return to Bagram, so they landed in Iran. It wasn’t like the Iranians forced them down. Things aren’t like they were in '79 but I’ll be glad when the plane leaves.
President Obama better get tough very quick or everyone in the world will soon take potshots at us. This is just the beginning.
And, contrary to the headline, it wasn’t a military plane flown by coalition forces. It was a charter plane owned and flown by Fly Dubai. Probably taking troops to R&R in Dubai
CNN is reporting its a contractor’s plane. Not military. But there are 100 American citizens on board. You’d think this would be a bigger story than the single engine plane that went down today as breaking news that has been on all day. But CNN is reporting they want to get this situation in Iran resolved quietly and quickly because according to Barbara Starr, “the administration doesn’t want to have to deal with yet another crisis abroad”. As if its Obama’s fault some American contractor doesn’t know enough to stay out of fucking Iranian airspace. Good lord…why I can barely watch CNN either these days. Always with the added unwarranted commentary.