Message posted by Griffon_314 on December 14, 2011 at 11:57:48 PST:
The Liberation magazine photos (most of which are not available online) did show the grate, but as was mentioned not in high detail. The speculation that the craft displayed by the Iranians is not a real RQ-170 is groundless. There are too many fine details visible that could not have been mocked up on such short notice (watch the full video - some terrific detail is available during the 'walkaround' - including accessing what appears to be a wing fence that has never been depicted in photos). The Iranians hiding of the lower (presumably damaged) surface of the craft is also significant - if you were going to build a fake RQ-170, why would you hide the lower half? Why show a damaged leading edge? Contrast enhancement of a high-resolution still photograph from the Iranian display shows the actual turbine face behind the grill - that would have to be one hell of a mockup. The US admits losing an RQ-170 over Iran. The Iranians display one a few days later, that matches all available photos of the craft, with obvious and significant damage. The Americans ask for it to be returned.
There is simply no evidence that what the Iranians displayed is anything but a real RQ-170 that has suffered damage.
In Reply to: Re: RQ-170...ABC news piece posted by OldThudMan~!!~ on December 14, 2011 at 9:40:15 PST:
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