Iranian attack on Saudi air base heavily damages key US surveillance aircraft
The Times of Israel • • world
Key Points:
- An American Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft was heavily damaged in an Iranian missile and drone attack on Saudi Arabia's Prince Sultan Air Base, wounding 12 US service members and damaging other planes.
- The E-3 Sentry fleet, vital for airborne early warning and control, had only 16 operational planes before the attack, with no immediate replacements available; the planned successor, the E-7 Wedgetail, is estimated to cost $700 million.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of providing Iran with satellite intelligence on the airbase prior to the attack, citing multiple Russian satellite images taken days before the strike.
- The airbase had been previously targeted by Iran in mid-March, damaging US refueling planes but not causing destruction as severe as in the recent attack.
- Former US President Donald Trump downplayed concerns over Russia sharing intelligence with Iran to target US forces, suggesting that even if true, Iran gained little from such information.
