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US Forces Smash Iran’s First Naval Drone Carrier in Major Naval Strike
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![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
Iranian state media claims that a US aircraft carrier has been sunk are false, US Central Command said, countering what it described as a deliberate disinformation campaign while confirming that American forces struck an Iranian drone carrier at the start of Operation Epic Fury.
CENTCOM said “the Iranian regime’s false messaging machine continues to falsely claim that it has sunk a US aircraft carrier,” in a statement posted March 2.
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It added: “The TRUTH: The only carrier that has been hit is the Shahid Bagheri, an Iranian drone carrier. US forces struck the ship within hours of launching Operation Epic Fury.”
The vessel identified by US officials is the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy–operated IRIS Shahid Bagheri, a converted commercial vessel that Tehran commissioned last year as a sea-based platform for unmanned systems.
Two days ago, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman, today they have ZERO. The Iranian regime has harassed and attacked international shipping in the Gulf of Oman for decades. Those days are over. Freedom of maritime navigation has underpinned American and global… pic.twitter.com/nzdkMVMqZC
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 2, 2026
Unlike traditional aircraft carriers that deploy fast jets, the Shahid Bagheri was reconfigured to launch and recover drones and helicopters.
Iranian state media previously showcased the ship’s long, flat deck adapted for UAV operations, along with onboard command, control, and maintenance facilities designed to extend Iran’s unmanned reach beyond its coastline.
🚫The Iranian regime’s false messaging machine continues to falsely claim that it has sunk a U.S. aircraft carrier.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 2, 2026
✅The TRUTH: The only carrier that has been hit is the Shahid Bagheri, an Iranian drone carrier. U.S. forces struck the ship within hours of launching Operation… pic.twitter.com/6npT8nJcAt
The strike reportedly occurred within hours of the launch of Operation Epic Fury, though US officials have not disclosed details regarding the method of attack or the extent of damage inflicted on the vessel.
CENTCOM said further operational information would be released as it becomes available.
Earlier, authorities in Cyprus reported a second drone attack on the same day targeting the British Royal Air Force base at Akrotiri, one of the United Kingdom’s most important overseas military installations.
Two unmanned aerial vehicles launched toward RAF Akrotiri were “neutralized in time,” government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said only hours after an earlier security incident at the same base.
-c439b7bd9030ecf9d5a4287dc361ba31.jpg "Photo of Katherina Popilnichenko")
