Iran launches Saeqeh fighter-bomber squadron

The Iranian military has introduced a new squadron of domestically-manufactured Saeqeh fighter-bombers to the country’s Air Force to strengthen its deterrence power.

“This fleet is the first fighter-bomber squadron made up of domestically manufactured aircraft,” a top Air Force officer, Seyyed Mohammad Alavi, explained on Wednesday.

“The plane’s parts have all been produced inside the country in a joint project between the Defense Ministry and the Air Force,” he added.

Alavi did not elaborate on the number of aircraft in the squadron, but said that several new Saeqeh fighters would be added at a later date making a full fleet of 24 aircraft.

The senior Air Force officer also said that all the pilots that were to fly the planes had been trained in Iran.

Alavi went into further detail about the Saeqeh aircraft, pointing out that the fighter-bomber had the ability to track down enemy aircraft, engage in combat, target locations on the ground, and carry an assortment of weapons and ammunition.

Finally, Alavi said that in the coming years, the Air Force also plans to produce new generations of the Saeqeh with enhanced features.