The information, published in a number of mass media with reference to a foreign source, that "Israeli fighters deceived Russian radars in Syria and conducted reconnaissance at a high altitude," is sheer stupidity, the Russian Defense Ministry announced today, on March 30.
Any aircraft at high altitude becomes an easily detectable and vulnerable target for air defense systems in most countries, the ministry says in a statement. Since the time of the American U-2 spy plane downed over the Soviet Union territory, no one is trying to violate someone else's airspace at high altitude. Moreover, Syria's air defenses have repeatedly proved that not only they detect but also shoot down the missiles of the air-to-surface class, which have much smaller effective reflecting surface than that of the F-35.
As for the Russian air defense systems in the Syrian Arab Republic, they reliably cover Russian facilities in Tartus and Khmeimim, the Russian military said.
The information on Israeli F-35 flights was reported by the Kuwaiti Al-Jarida site the day before, with reference to its own informed source. The publication claims that Israeli fighters flew in the Syria and Iraq airspace, and then crossed the border with Iran, carrying out reconnaissance missions in the Bandar Abbas, Isfahan and Shiraz areas, flying at high altitude over probable nuclear facilities.