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Iran has been using civilian airlines to transport military weapons such as attack UAVs and ballistic missiles to Syria for years, through the Iraqi skies. Is it any surprise that it has been using its civil fleet to transfer armed drones to Russia?

For years it has been quite common knowledge among military personnel in the Middle East that Iran utilizes civilian aircrafts to transfer its weaponry, and it has served it well since any country attempting to intercept a commercial airplane will be heavily penalized. But now this is happening internationally as well, as Iran has backed up Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has been supplying it with weapons for quite a while. CNN reported that Iran was preparing to send 1,000 more weapons to Russia shortly after completing a shipment of 450 drones. This shipment might include the first delivery of SRBMs, which could mark another significant escalation in that brutal war.

Israel has been attacking and disrupting these cargo aircrafts for several years, with the latest attack targeting the aircraft before landing at Damascus International Airport on September 17th. The US has sanctioned Iran’s civil air fleet over such illicit activities. Years before Russia invaded Ukraine, Iran used these airliners to help prop up Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Mahan Air, in particular, regularly flew fighters and weaponry to Damascus. The airline’s fleet was also used “for providing financial, material, or technological support for or to the IRGC Quds Force”, according to the US Treasury Department.

According to juancole.com, the most important recent development, which could cause a shift in the balance of regional military power, is represented by Iran’s announcement of its success in developing and manufacturing a hypersonic missile. If true, this will put Iran in a highly dangerous position for countries such as the US, Israel, and other western allies.

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