After several unsubstantiated claims of downing F-35s, Iran has now presented evidence of the shootdown of a Hermes 900 drone.
Iran has reportedly shot down its first Israeli aircraft since the beginning of the conflict, claiming the downing of a Hermes 900 Long-Endurance Tactical UAV over Isfahan Province on the night between Jun. 17 – 18, 2025. Footage released by Iranian state media appears to confirm the incident, showing wreckage that matches the distinctive shape and markings of the Israeli-made drone.
According to the Iranian media, the Hermes crash site is east of Isfahan, a city in central Iran, about 440 kilometers (270 miles) south of Tehran, in a province that is home to several nuclear facilities, where the Israeli Air Force conducted air strikes also in the afternoon on Jun. 17.
Iranian TV shows wreckage of a Hermes-900 UCAV shot down over Esfahan last night. Gear assembly looks a match to me, as do the flaps. pic.twitter.com/1LwCtGq99S
— Aᴍɪʀ (@AmirIGM) June 18, 2025
Here’s the transcript of the report aired by IRIB News according to Clash Report:
“This is one of the areas east of Isfahan. As you can see in the picture, around 5:00 AM this morning, the proud air defense of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army destroyed and shot down a highly advanced Hermes drone.
This drone was equipped with weapons for targeting, but it didn’t even get a chance to fire these weapons at its targets. This shows that our air defense forces are ready and they shot down this drone.”
The Hermes 900 is an Israeli-made, medium-altitude long-endurance UAV developed for tactical operations. Building on the legacy of the widely used Hermes 450 series, the drone is capable of flying for more than 30 hours and reaching altitudes up to 30,000 feet.
With a wingspan of 15 meters and a maximum takeoff weight of 970 kilograms, the platform supports a payload of up to 300 kilograms. It is primarily employed for reconnaissance, surveillance, and communications relay missions. The Hermes 900 can be equipped with a wide range of payloads, including EO/IR sensors, synthetic aperture radar with ground moving target indication, electronic warfare systems, COMINT/ELINT packages, and hyperspectral sensors.
Dealing with the payload, it’s worth of note that a Mikholit guided bomb was recovered on the wreckage site of the drone. Also known by variations such as Makholit or Mikcholit, the weapon is a compact, Israeli-developed precision-guided glide munition designed for deployment from UAVs. Although unpowered, the weapon is tailored for accurate strikes against small ground targets, including exposed personnel, individuals behind light cover or inside buildings with accessible openings, as well as lightly armoured or unarmoured vehicles.
Small Israeli-made guided glide bomb Mikholit, designed for UAVs, also spotted on wreckage site of Hermes-900 drone.
It is used for precision strikes on light targets such as exposed personnel or unarmored vehicles. https://t.co/MjXfbTA8kM pic.twitter.com/pHaXwp5ZiR
— Clash Report (@clashreport) June 18, 2025
NEW footage of shot down Israeli Hermes 900 drone in Isfahan. https://t.co/MjXfbTAGak pic.twitter.com/8evmZseud8
— Clash Report (@clashreport) June 18, 2025
The loss has also been acknowledged by the Israeli Air Force, which said in a statement on X that the UAV was shot down by a surface-to-air missile. The incident highlights that although Israel has demonstrated the ability to conduct deep strikes and maintain air superiority over Iranian airspace, pockets of effective air defense remain across the country. These can still pose a threat to slow-moving or loitering assets like drones.
במהלך פעילות מבצעית, נורה לעבר כלי טיס מאויש מרחוק של חיל-האוויר טילי קרקע-אוויר.
הכלי נפל במרחב איראן, אין נפגעים ואין חשש לדלף מידע.
— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) June 18, 2025
First confirmed downing
The Hermes 900 is the first confirmed downing of achieved by the Iranian air defenses against the Israeli Air Force, which has operated almost freely inside Iranian airspace since it launched the sustained air campaign dubbed Operation Rising Lion on Jun. 13. Israel disrupted Iranian air defenses to a point where Israel has claimed air superiority from Iran’s western border to Tehran.
In fact, despite claims that as many as five Israeli F-35I Adir jets have been shot down, Tehran has not provided any evidence to support the allegations. On the contrary, numerous AI-generated images, so clearly fake they sparked hilarious reactions online, have circulated and were said to show the wreckage of the downed stealth fighters.
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