An Iranian Shahed-139 drone was shot down by a U.S. F-35C as it approached the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea.
An Iranian drone was shot down by the U.S. military on Feb. 3, 2026, according to a U.S. official cited by Reuters. The unmanned aircraft, a Shahed-139, was flying towards the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) as it was sailing in the Arabian Sea, prompting the intercept.
The official specified that an F-35 Lightning II was scrambled to intercept the drone, and later shot it down. The USS Lincoln is currently assigned Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9, which includes among its squadrons the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 314, flying the F-35C.
The Iranian Shahed-139 drone was flying towards the Lincoln and was shot down by a F-35 U.S. fighter jet. https://t.co/M9t5tWsMjl
— Phil Stewart (@phildstewart) February 3, 2026
Details about the shootdown are currently unknown, and it is unclear how close the drone came to the ship and if it was carrying weapons.
Shahed-139
The Shahed-139 is a medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle developed by Iran, which presents many visual similarities with the U.S.-made MQ-1 Predator. It features a conventional fuselage, rear-mounted pusher propeller, and straight wings optimized for long-endurance surveillance and strike missions.
Not one, but 2 new Shahed UAVs were unveiled
• Shahed-139 (pic 1-2): New MALE UAV, possibly MQ-1 derived. Similar to Kaman-22 design wise
• Shahed-147 (pic 3): New jet powered HALE UAV. 26 meter wingspan & can fly up to an altitude of 18km. Note SAR radar too pic.twitter.com/hUyGGVPgff
— Iran Defense commentary (unofficial) (@IranDefense) November 19, 2023
Images released by state media have shown the drone of carries an electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor and possibly a small radar. There are no photos of the aircraft carrying weapons, however, considering that the aircraft is a further development of the Shahed-129 armed drone, it is believed that the Shahed-139 might be able to carry a weapon payload of four missiles.
Lincoln CSG
Following the rising tensions after the violent crackdown on protests in Iran, the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) Carrier Strike Group (CSG) has been retasked from operational cruise in the Indo-Pacific to quickly move to the CENTCOM Area of Responsibility (AOR). The CSG arrived in the Middle East in late January, with CENTCOM saying it “is currently deployed to the Middle East to promote regional security and stability.”
Together with the USS Lincoln are Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9, embarked on the carrier, and destroyers USS Frank E. Petersen, Jr. (DDG-121), USS Spruance (DDG-111) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112). CVW 9 consists of eight squadrons flying F-35C Lightning II, F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, EA-18G Growlers, E-2D Hawkeyes, CMV-22B Ospreys and MH-60R/S Sea Hawks.
This is a developing story, we will update the article as more details emerge.
