Iran Military Forum

Commander: Iran's Air Defense Fully Prepared to Repel Enemy Threats

TEHRAN (FNA)- A senior Iranian commander underlined that the country's air defense unit is fully capable of detecting and repelling all aerial threats.
   

"The country's air defense, including that of the northeastern region, is at high readiness to counter any potential enemy threat," Commander of Northeastern Air Defense Unit Colonel Abdollah Reshadi said on Thursday.

The advanced missile sites of the northeastern air defense monitor all the activities of foreign forces and they are able to target any enemy aircraft that plans to invade the country, even far away from Iran's borders, he added.

Reshadi pointed to the sensitivity of the northeastern region due to its proximity to Afghanistan and Turkmenistan and the presence of foreign forces in those countries and insisted that because of such conditions Iran pays special attention to enhancement of its air defense capabilities in that region.

Tehran has augmented its efforts in recent years to boost its air defense power. The Iranian Army in June announced the "successful" test-firing of a new home-made air defense system, called Mersad.

Commander of Khatam ol-Anbia Air Defense Base Brigadier General Farzad Esmayeel said at the time that Mersad air defense system and Shahin missiles - fired by Mersad systems - had been successfully test-fired and supplied to the country's air defense unit.

The ground-to-air Shahin missile is able to hit enemy jet fighters and helicopters at supersonic speed. The Mersad system is equipped with sophisticated radar signal processing technology, an advanced launcher, and electronic targeting and guidance systems.

In April, 2011, Iran successfully test-fired two mid-range Hawk missiles named 'Shahin' capable of tracing and targeting aggressive aircraft at low and medium altitudes.

The two Shahin missiles were launched from the Mersad air defense system.

The Mersad air defense shield is a completely indigenized system developed by the Iranian experts and technicians to promote the country's combat power. The system was deployed in all Army air-defense units on Sunday to boost the country's air-defense power.

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