> and yet not having equipment to monitor civilian air traffic control in the area? I'm not sure. Did you not read the linked article in the thread you’re repl

> and yet not having equipment to monitor civilian air traffic control in the area? I'm not sure. Did you not read the linked article in the thread you’re replying to? The US did have an IFF detection system, it was a core part of how it worked. The issue was a UI failure which confused identification by mixing up two different (real) IFF indicators one from military and one from civilian and made it seem to the captain that the military one was flying towards them. That’s a legit honest mistake. They had 4 minutes from the “take off” to when it was almost overhead. Navigating Iranian air traffic control radio isn’t exactly a solution in tense situations. > We don't know how the US military would've reacted if Iran Air 655 would've overflown restricted airspace above the US. Restricted US airspace has been violated many times in history. As have Russians. And many other countries.