TEHRAN – Iran’s Air Defense Force is ready to respond decisively to any mistake by the enemies, a senior Iranian general reiterated on Monday.

According to Mehr News, Alireza Sabahifard, commander of the Air Defense Force, pointed out that in the field of defense equipment, Iran has passed the stage of dependence and reached self-sufficiency.

Referring to Iraq’s war against Iran in the 1980s, Sabahifard said, “During the eight years of the Sacred Defense, we only had a few limited and non-domestic defense systems, but today we are one of the undeniable powers of air defense in the region.” 

Speaking at a morning ceremony of the Air Defense Force, the brigadier general said, “The addition of 100% indigenous systems in the fields of detection, conflict, information systems, detection and drones and the successful participation in two large exercises last year marked a fruitful year for the Air Defense Force, which brought joy to the hearts of the lovers of the establishment and the martyr-loving nation of Islamic Iran and created despair in the hearts of enemies.”

The general said such progresses will continue and “we will announce good news this year.”

The current Iranian year will end on March 20, 2024.

Citing an example, the commander said, “Increasing the range of the Bavar 373 system from 150 km to over 300 km in less than 18 months was one of the most important achievements.”

He stated, “According to the plan and order of the Commander-in-Chief, air defense is the first priority, and our first priority in the air defense force is to maintain and improve combat capability. All our systems and missiles are ready to give a decisive answer and an unforgettable lesson to the enemies if they make a mistake.”

IRGC tests rocket with new warhead

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Ground Force (IRGC) successfully tested a homegrown rocket equipped with a thermobaric warhead, Tasnim reported on Sunday. 

Experts at the Research and Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organization of the IRGC Ground Force have furnished the “Fajr-5” rocket with a thermobaric warhead.

Fajr-5 is a 333 mm rocket, whose guided version, dubbed “Fajr-5C”, had been already delivered to the IRGC Ground Force units.

The new thermobaric warhead, which uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion, has increased the Iranian rocket’s destructive power.

The new warhead’s destructive power is reportedly 1.5 times greater than that of trinitrotoluene (TNT), enhancing the rocket’s blast radius and thermal effect. The thermobaric explosive’s lower sensitivity than TNT has made it a safer option in comparison with conventional warheads.

Navy destroyers equipped with new missile

The Iranian navy destroyers have also been armed with cruise missiles called “Abu Mahdi”, Navy chief Rear Admiral Shahram Irani announced on Saturday.

The missiles are named after Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis, a senior commander with Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), who was assassinated together with General Qassem Soleimani in 2020. 

Abu Mahdi cruise missile is one of Iran’s Aerospace Industries products with a range of over one thousand kilometers which can destroy any target, according to Iran’s official news agency IRNA. 

Rapid reaction, management of target selection, and evading the enemy's defenses are among the characteristics of the Abu Mahdi cruise missile.

The addition comes after the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) announced that it was planning to display new achievements in the coming days.

The new capabilities will be in the field of both manned and unmanned aircraft, according to the IRIAF’s Commander Brigadier General Hamid Vahedi.

"The air force is growing (in power) and as I have stated before we must never stop for a moment because if we do, we will fall behind," Vahedi said in an interview with Mehr News agency.