The Khordad 15 () is an Iranian designed and built

surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground or the sea to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-ai ...

(SAM) system. The system was unveiled to the public on 9 June 2019 in an address made by Iranian Defence Minister

Amir Hatami Amir Hatami (born 1966) is an Iranian military officer who is currently serving as the commander-in-chief of the Iranian Army. Having the rank of major general, Hatami was made commander-in-chief following the permuting of Abdolrahim Mousavi to ...

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

, Iran. The system was developed by the

Iran Aviation Industries Organization The Iran Aviation Industries Organization (IAIO) (, ''Sazman-e Sânai'-ye Havaii-ye Iran''), also known as the Aerospace Industries Organization, is an Iranian state-owned corporation established in 1966 for the purpose of planning, controlling, ...

(IAIO). It has the capability to detect and intercept

fighter jets Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the air ...

, stealth targets,

unmanned combat aerial vehicle An unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), also known as a combat drone, fighter drone or battlefield UAV, is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that is used for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance and carries aircra ...

s (UCAV) and

cruise missile A cruise missile is an unmanned self-propelled guided missile that sustains flight through aerodynamic lift for most of its flight path. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large payload over long distances with high precision. Modern cru ...

s. It operates in conjunction with

Sayyad-3 Sayyad (, Hunter) is a series of solid fuel surface-to-air missiles (SAM) manufactured by Iran. Sayyad-1 Sayyad-1 is an Iranian variant of the Chinese HQ-2 SAM using some domestic components. Sayyad-2 The Sayyad-2 is a canister-launched, ...

missiles. The surface-to-air missile system was developed in order to counter missiles and other aerial threats presented by the presence of extra-regional forces at military bases in countries around Iran. It was unveiled amid escalating tensions with the United States and Europe's failing attempts at upholding its commitments to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

Name

The Khordad 15 air defense system is named in honor of the

1963 demonstrations in Iran The demonstrations of June 5 and 6, also called the events of June 1963 or (using the Iranian calendar) the 15 Khordad protests (), were protests in Iran against the arrest of Ruhollah Khomeini after his denouncement of Iranian Shah Mohammad Reza ...

, which according to the

Iranian calendar The Iranian calendars or Iranian chronologies (, ) are a succession of calendars created and used for over two millennia in Iran, also known as Persia. One of the longest chronological records in human history, the Iranian calendar has been modi ...

is known as the 15 Khordad uprising. It was a series of protests in Iran against the arrest of

Ayatollah Ayatollah (, ; ; ) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy. It came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Originally used as a title bestowed by popular/clerical acclaim for a small number of the most di ...

Ruhollah Khomeini Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (17 May 1900 or 24 September 19023 June 1989) was an Iranian revolutionary, politician, political theorist, and religious leader. He was the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the main leader of the Iranian ...

after his denouncement of Iranian

Shah Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last List of monarchs of Iran, Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the ...

and

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. The Shah's regime was taken by surprise by the massive public demonstrations of support and it was these events which established the power of religious opposition to the Shah, and Khomeini as a major political and religious leader.

Design

The Khordad 15 air defense system was designed and is manufactured by the

(IAIO). The system is equipped with a

passive electronically scanned array A passive electronically scanned array (PESA), also known as passive phased array, is an antenna in which the beam of radio waves can be electronically steered to point in different directions (that is, a phased array antenna), in which all the ...

radar and independent launch pads which work in conjunction to detect, intercept and destroy potential threats. The setup of the SAM system includes two military trucks. One with a rotating, rectangular launcher on the bed which contains four missile canisters in two rows of two canisters each but is capable of utilizing only one row of two canisters. Another with a mounted rotating slab-shaped radar antenna.

Capabilities

The Khordad 15 is capable of detecting, intercepting, and destroying six targets simultaneously. The system is capable of detecting

cruise missiles A cruise missile is an unmanned self-propelled guided missile that sustains flight through aerodynamic lift for most of its flight path. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large payload over long distances with high precision. Modern cru ...

and

s (UCAV) from away and is able to track them within a range of and the

missile, used by the SAM system, has a range of . The system can also detect stealth targets from a distance of and can intercept and destroy them within a range of .

Operators

* : At least 9 SAM launchers have been seen, more likely in service.

References

External links