Commander: Iran among World’s Top 5 in Drone Technology

“Today, 40 years after the victory of the Islamic Revolution we are witnessing hugs advancements in different areas and now we are among the top 5 countries of the world which possess the technology for manufacturing advanced Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV),” Brigadier General Hajizadeh said today.

He made the remarks on the sidelines of a ceremony in Northern Tehran where he inaugurated a museum of all drones and UAVs captured or manufactured by Iran. He said that it is the biggest collection of drones in the world.

Last week, India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, in a meeting with Iranian Ambassador to India Ali Chegeni, reiterated that New Delhi is determined to further expand defense and military cooperation with Tehran.

Referring to the historical and friendly relations between Iran and India, Singh welcomed promotion of defense relationships, specially in the fields of defensive science and education, exchange of experiences and information on counterterrorism, piracy and rescue in the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean, as well as exchange of delegations at various levels.

Late in July, reports emerged that India was impressed by Iran’s defensive capabilities which led to the downing of an American spy drone in the Strait of Hormuz.

Downing of the US Global Hawk drone by Iran in the Persian Gulf prompted a rethink within the Indian military establishment, led by the air force, over the acquisition of American-made armed drones on account of their cost and questions over their survivability.

India’s three services had planned to buy 30 drones from the United States at a cost of $6 billion. The plans were for the air force and the army to acquire 10 Predator-B drones each and the navy to buy long-distance surveillance versions.

Early in this month, Iran unveiled a new state-of-the-art drone named ‘Kian’ for combat and defensive missions.

“The combat and defensive Kian drone has been designed in two types and with the capability of flying at high speed for missions which need tracing, reconnaissance, high flight durability and pin-pointing power,” Commander of the Iranian Army’s Khatam ol-Anbiya Air Defense Base Brigadier General Alireza Sabahi Fard said, addressing the ceremony to unveil the drone.

He explained that Kian has been designed, produced and tested within nearly one year, and added, “The unmanned flying object, with high flight durability, can attack targets much farther from Iran’s borders and defend the country in enemy’s soil.”

The Iranian Army Ground Force in July received 3 new home-made combat drones, namely ‘Mohajer 6’.

“Three Mohaher 6 combat drones joined the drone fleet of the Ground Force and we will witness a new arrangement in the drone operations of this Force,” Commander of Vali-e Asr drone group of the Army Ground Force Brigadier General Shahram Hassannejad said.

He added that Mohajer is capable of destroying targets powerfully and with a high precision power, adding that it can also detect and monitor the regions under the control of the Ground Force.

General Hassanzadeh also said that high range, considerable flight durability up to 24 hours and capability to carry rockets with high-precision power for day and night missions are among other features of the drone.