MOSCOW, August 15. /TASS/. US military transport aerial refueling aircraft and a vertical-takeoff drone have once again been spotted over the neutral waters of the Persian Gulf, a source in Middle Eastern air traffic control services told TASS.

"At least three US military transport aerial refueling aircraft Boeing KC-135R Stratotankers and Boeing KC-46A Pegasus have been spotted over the neutral waters of the Persian Gulf, circling in the immediate vicinity of the airspace controlled by Iranian air traffic controllers," the source said, adding that the aircraft are at an altitude of around 6 km, and their flight path intersects corridors designated for civil aviation.

Moreover, a Shield AI V-Bat vertical take-off reconnaissance UAV is also operating near the edge of the airspace controlled by Iran, he noted. The source explained that flights by the UAV, which is currently at an altitude of about 1.5 km, are rarely detected over the Persian Gulf. As for military transport aircraft, their flights were also tracked over the Gulf of Oman during the day where they too followed a circular flight path.