AFP/Tehran

Iran said yesterday that a copy of an American drone downed over its territory in 2011 had successfully completed its first test flight, promising to release footage of the experiment.  
Tehran captured the US RQ-170 Sentinel in December 2011 while it was in its airspace, apparently on a mission to spy on the country’s nuclear sites, media in the United States reported.
Iran said it had taken control of the ultra hi-tech drone and forced it down in the desert where it was recovered nearly intact.
Washington says the drone crashed after experiencing a technical glitch.
In May, a military official said Iranian engineers had successfully built a replica of the American drone and that it would soon take a test flight.
Images broadcast by state television at the time appeared to show two near-identical drones.  
“As promised, we have conducted the flight and a film of it will be broadcast shortly,” General Amir-Ali Hadjizadeh, commander of the Revolutionary Guards air wing, was quoted as saying by the corps’ own website.  
Apart from a fast-moving ballistic weapons programme, Iran has been producing drones since 2010 which the defence ministry says are capable of firing missiles with a range of 1,000km.
Tehran says its weapons programmes are purely for defensive purposes, but the United States has often voiced concerns.