Iran has developed and deployed a cruise missile with a range of 1,650 kilometres; a senior Revolutionary Guards commander announced on Friday, a development that is sure to stir Western fears in the wake of Russia’s deployment of Iranian drones in the Ukraine conflict.
The head of the IRGC Aerospace Force, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, made the announcement on Iranian state television that this missile has been added to the arsenal of missiles that the Islamic Republic of Iran possesses. The very first video footage of this missile was broadcast on Iranian television.
The Paveh ground attack cruise has several alternative options for how to arrive at its destination. It is able to make the necessary adjustments to the route. This missile is capable of attacking the targets in a 360-degree manner; that is, it makes a small amount of forward progress after reaching the target and then attacks the target from another side, specifically, the side where the target is vulnerable in terms of defence or has radar blind spots and angles.
The Paveh rocket is propelled forward from the launcher by means of a solid fuel booster. Once this booster has been disengaged from the main body of the rocket, its wings are opened, and the main engine is activated.
Iran’s other Cruise missiles
Before this recent advancement, the Hoveyzeh cruise missile was the Iranian cruise missile with the longest range. It can go a distance of 1,350 kilometres (839 miles). The Hoveyzeh cruise missile is a member of the Soumar family. The Soumar family was introduced in 2015, and the first cruise missile in the family was called the Soumar. The Soumar has a range of 700 kilometres. Although this claim is being contested by a number of media outlets, it is being maintained that the Soumar missile has a range between 2,000 and 3,000 kilometres because of the missile’s resemblance to the Kh-55, which was purchased from Ukraine in the year 2001. In 2005, Ukraine admitted that a black market counterfeiting operation had resulted in the unlawful sale of 12 Kh-55s to Iran in 2001. These Kh-55s did not include any nuclear warheads. It is generally accepted that the Hoveizeh is either an improved version of the Soumar or that it evolved from the Soumar.
Iran possesses Turbofan (some sources dispute that Iran can build turbofans) powered Soumar and Turbojet powered Hoveyzeh and Abu Mahdi cruise missiles. Nasim is the name for Iran’s naval cruise missile. According to the information provided by Iranian sources, the martyr Abu Mahdi cruise missile has an effective range of approximately 1,000 kilometres. Prior to the introduction of the Abu-Mahdi, the most long-range Iranian cruise missiles were the Raad missile, which had a range of 350 kilometres, and the Qadir missile, which had a range of 300 kilometres.
The “Asif” is the name given to the Iranian airborne long-range cruise missile. According to the official Iranian media, this missile is able to destroy targets from long ranges and outside of the enemy’s protective ring. It is installed on the Sukhoi-24 fighter that is used by the Air Force.
Paveh Missiles threatens Israeli landmass
According to reports in Israeli media, the new Paveh cruise missile has a range of 1,650 kilometres, which is equivalent to 1,025 miles, and could potentially reach Israel. The shortest distance between Iran and Israel is 1558 kilometres and 593.2 metres (968.5 miles), which is the complete distance in a straight line.
The duration of an aeroplane ride on a commercial airline from Tehran, Iran, to Tel Aviv, Israel, is approximately 2 hours and 29 minutes. This is based on the assumption that a commercial airliner travels at an average speed of flight of 500 miles per hour, which is equal to 805 kilometres per hour or 434 knots. This could be true for a subsonic cruise missile too.
The media in the United States of America has reported that the cruise missile has the capability of hitting US ships up to 1,500 kilometres distant. This may be bluster, as Iran has been practising its capacity to strike moving ships with ballistic missiles of the 1500-kilometre class for many years.
Despite the resistance of the United States and the concerns expressed by European countries, Iran has increased the scope of its missile programme, particularly its ballistic missiles. Tehran insists that the main purpose of this programme is defence and deterrence.
Iran has done a good job of making the most of the strategic geographical depth it possesses in the Strait of Hormuz. In addition, it is armed with anti-access, precision-guided drones and missiles, small boats, mines, stealth submarines, and missiles, all of which are capable of endangering the United States.
