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Syria-Lebanon-Iran
German Newsflash: Plane fires missile near Iranian Busheir plant
2005-02-16
Eyewitnesses report huge explosion Iranian TV reports, no official confirmation yet
Posted by:True German Ally

#44  Frank - How come we NEVER post articles? I mean, how do we explain the dozens we did post? It's a conundrum.
Posted by: .com   2005-02-16 11:38:56 PM  

#43  BTW - no searching or we'll know...heh heh
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-16 11:37:16 PM  

#42  ahhh the sound of ITYS - nice pickup off the riffs - do you know who Lucky is?
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-16 11:35:26 PM  

#41  hmmm - I hear a low buzzzzzz
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-16 11:24:39 PM  

#40  Lol! The guy wearing the Kick Me sign is complaining, heh.

You're deep.
Posted by: .com   2005-02-16 10:54:38 PM  

#39  Hey! Abusive comments - especially from human-wallpaper who NEVER post articles because they mistake Rantburg for a Yahoo wank-forum - are prohibited by Fred and Ethel. Deliquency detracts from the security-focus of this forum. You sk8r trolls should pop your pimples elsewhere.
Posted by: IToldYouSo   2005-02-16 10:40:22 PM  

#38  Did ITYS say something? I wasn't listening
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-16 10:32:05 PM  

#37  Wow, I think I recall you predicted this event. Good show, DoomSayer. You're the bees knees, groovy, rad, da bomb, and blitzin' d00d.
Posted by: .com   2005-02-16 10:30:19 PM  

#36  The tyrants who misrule the Persian terrorist entity, attribute the explosion to construction crews, who were using dynamite. SAY DOOM!

http://www.irna.ir/?SAB=OK&LANG=EN&PART=_HOME&TYPE=HP&id=200502162020540
Posted by: IToldYouSo   2005-02-16 10:24:44 PM  

#35  Wouldn't it be neat if the opposition or some clando group made a big-assed explosion out in the middle of the desert, just to make a Big Bang and sow a bit of confusion amid the MMs? Just whipped out that theory for s & g.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2005-02-16 10:04:56 PM  

#34  Could have actually been a drop-tank off a fighter. The Iranians do have (old and shabby) F-4s and F-14s. If the Iranians were flying CAP, and somehow thought they had an inbound target for intercept (nervous ATC spooking at drones/weatherballons/UFOs?), the first thing the pilot should do is punch off the centerline tank (reduces drag for the furball).
Posted by: scotty   2005-02-16 9:58:22 PM  

#33  My vote is for Flying Saucer attack. Remember all those recent reports of UFO activity?

Gort, Klaatu Barada Niktu!
Posted by: SteveS   2005-02-16 4:44:43 PM  

#32  Could the boom be "sounding" looking for underground facilities?
Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom   2005-02-16 3:23:35 PM  

#31  It does not say there was an attack on the atomic power plant in the province of Buschehr

Then again, it doesn't say that there wasn't.
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 1:27:57 PM  

#30  Crude Babelfish and grammar correction fromn the original report.

i.e. Nobody know nothing.

Official Iranian statement

There was an explosion close to the atomic power plant under construction according to official Iranian News Agency. The explosion was close to the south Iranian port Dailam, where Iran operates an atomic power plant. This was communicated by a representative of the national security council Iran to the Iranian press agency ISNA. Before the press release, Iranian revolution guards had already disclaimed a report of the national Iranian television, according to which, in the morning, an unknown airplane was reported to have fired a rocket close Dailam.

Eye-witnesses, had according to the TV report, had seen and heard the explosion from as far as approximately 20 kilometers from Dailam.

Also the report, which is explosion released by a tank, which dropped from an Iranian airplane, was disclaimed.

The message provided for much excitement. Briefly after becoming known,Israeli safety circuits announced that the Israeli military was not involved in the explosion in Iran. The Russian report in Teheran disclaimed the TV report. It does not say there was an attack on the atomic power plant in the province of Buschehr. The Interior and State Department in Teheran had explained likewise after the report, they would not know anything about an explosion.

Posted by: BigEd   2005-02-16 1:18:00 PM  

#29  Russia hasn't delivered the fuel, yet. Recall a couple of months ago there were a few stories on how that was to be accomplished - and that Russia would expect to have all outstanding bills paid before that happened, heh.
Posted by: .com   2005-02-16 10:43:41 AM  

#28  BBC's interesting closing line on their report:

Russia has completed construction work at the Bushehr reactor, but it is not yet operational.
Posted by: Jules 187   2005-02-16 10:40:41 AM  

#27  Could be Iranian ordnance falling back to earth - a lot of this kind of thing happened in Iraq before the invasion and the damage was blamed on the US. I can't imagine a pinprick attack by Uncle Sam. Massed attacks against individual targets work better because they overwhelm the static local air defenses.
Posted by: Zhang Fei   2005-02-16 10:23:32 AM  

#26  Note to Iranian Defense Minister: Have some "drone debris" ready for future use

I like Bossman's reference: show Gunga Dan's head on live TV
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-16 10:00:41 AM  

#25  Note to Iranian Defense Minister: Have some "drone debris" ready for future use.
Posted by: True German Ally   2005-02-16 9:56:05 AM  

#24  heh! Their big moment to light off their announcement of a common front with Syria and utter failure. Should raise the hair on the back of their be-turbaned necks as they get some inkling of how this war is inclined to go.
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:55:30 AM  

#23  DEBKA reporting: Mystery deepens over big explosion above S. Iranian town of Deylam south of Bushehr Wednesday. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards now deny any attack or even a falling aircraft fuel tank.

This makes me feel the "fired SAM at drone and missed" theory is correct. They don't want to look foolish so it didn't happen.
Posted by: Steve   2005-02-16 9:53:24 AM  

#22  Some drones look like Dan Rather, but most look like aircraft. A dropped fuel tank causing any explosion is extremely unlikely. I like the theory that this was a large SAM trying to kill a small drone, and missing completely. Maybe we sold Iran some of our old Gulf War model Patriots.
Posted by: Bossman   2005-02-16 9:52:19 AM  

#21  I don't know enough about these things. Does a drone look like an aircraft? Aren't they tiny, like toy planes?
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:41:45 AM  

#20  My guess is that they tried to swat a drone with something a bit oversized for the job. They'd really like to have some drone parts to show off right now.
Posted by: Tom   2005-02-16 9:37:34 AM  

#19  From MSNBC:

Iran's Interior Ministry spokesman said he could not confirm earlier television reports there had been an explosion in the area nor confirm anti-aircraft fire in the region, which is about 60 miles north of the Bushehr nuclear facility.


Reports of anti-aircraft fire followed by an explosion, followed by a cock-and-bull story about a discarded fuel tank exploding.

Somebody's awfully nervouse over there, and somebody else is horribly embarassed.
Posted by: Robert Crawford   2005-02-16 9:35:10 AM  

#18  tick tock
Posted by: Frank G   2005-02-16 9:31:06 AM  

#17  makes sense.
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:29:46 AM  

#16  A SAM missing its target and hitting the ground seems the most likely explanation.
Posted by: Robert Crawford   2005-02-16 9:27:54 AM  

#15  well...it's not like the Germans, Americans and Israeli's don't know what happened already. Come on guys...don't keep us in suspense!
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:27:11 AM  

#14  Maybe the "empty" hit something "full"? :-)
Posted by: True German Ally   2005-02-16 9:25:41 AM  

#13  empty fuel tank?
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:24:45 AM  

#12  Hey Joe, you seen my wrench?

Yeah, Bob, I just finished a little adjustment on that guest plane...
Posted by: Jules 187   2005-02-16 9:24:08 AM  

#11  This from Reuters:

A fuel tank falling from an Iranian plane could have caused an explosion in Iran's Bushehr province, where the country is building a nuclear power plant, Iran state television said on Wednesday.

"A local source said the explosion could have been the result of the falling of an empty fuel tank from an Iranian plane," Al-Alam said.

The Arabic-language channel also quoted other witnesses as saying that an unknown aircraft fired a missile on Wednesday in a deserted area near the southern city of Dailam, which is in Bushehr province.
Posted by: True German Ally   2005-02-16 9:22:10 AM  

#10  Does this have the old Roosevelt North Atlantic (circa 1940-41)strategy feel to it? Slowly increase the number of craft in the area to provoke the other side to do something stupid?
Posted by: Uneagum Wheremp9442   2005-02-16 9:21:54 AM  

#9  Fox News is reporting that Iranian State TV is reporting this.
Posted by: eLarson   2005-02-16 9:20:25 AM  

#8  what's the deal with a model power station

yeah! It's not like there aren't plenty of satellite photos available.
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:20:03 AM  

#7  Iran has announced to shoot down drones. But you have a point Anonymoose. The strategy could be "death by a thousand cuts" unless the Iranians lose their nerves and attack US installations.
Posted by: True German Ally   2005-02-16 9:19:18 AM  

#6  What if, instead of destroying the entire Iranian nuclear infrastructure at one, it was destroyed a piece at a time. They couldn't possibly protect all 350 sites at once. And it you went after particularly hard to replace components, it would put a major crimp in their operations.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2005-02-16 9:17:34 AM  

#5  yeah....riiiight.
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:17:14 AM  

#4  Spiegel online now says that the explosion might have been caused by a plane that lost its fuel tank.
Posted by: True German Ally   2005-02-16 9:16:02 AM  

#3  Translating the text it says 'near' the city of Dailam which itself is near Buscheir - so the explosion could be at the installation.

BTW TGA - what's the deal with a pic of a model power station at the link.
Posted by: Bulldog   2005-02-16 9:15:26 AM  

#2  good point, TGA...otherwise it wouldn't be "near", unless it's too soon to tell.
Posted by: 2b   2005-02-16 9:13:01 AM  

#1  Maybe that should be Page One.
My take: The Iranians tried to shoot down a drone.
Posted by: True German Ally   2005-02-16 9:09:38 AM  

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