The Sevom Khordad or 3rd Khordad is an Iranian road-mobile medium range air defense missile system that was first unveiled on 11 May 2014. It is believed to be an upgraded version of the Ra'ad air defense system and somewhat superior to the other version of Ra'ad,

Tabas (air defense system) The Tabas () missile system is an Iranian medium range road-mobile aerial defense system that was first revealed on 11 May 2014. It is believed to be another version of the Ra'ad air defense system along with Sevom Khordad. The name of the air ...

, although it is more similar to the Ra'ad than the

Tabas Tabas () is a city in the Central District of Tabas County, South Khorasan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History Early history The history of Tabas dates back to pre-Islamic times. It was an im ...

is. Its operational capabilities were confirmed when it shot down an

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk The Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk is a high-altitude, Unmanned aerial vehicle, remotely-piloted surveillance aircraft introduced in 2001. It was initially designed by Ryan Aeronautical (now part of Northrop Grumman), and known as Tier II+ d ...

near the

Strait of Hormuz The Strait of Hormuz ( ''Tangeh-ye Hormoz'' , ''Maḍīq Hurmuz'') is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world's most strategica ...

. It is named after the

Liberation of Khorramshahr The Second Battle of Khorramshahr, also known in Iran as the Liberation of Khorramshahr () was the Iran, Iranian recapture of the city of Khorramshahr on 24 May 1982, during the Iran–Iraq War. The city had been Battle of Khorramshahr (1980), ...

which occurred on 3rd

Khordad Khordad (, ) is the third month of the Solar Hijri calendar. Khordad has thirty-one days. It begins in May and ends in June by the Gregorian calendar. Khordad is the third month of the spring season ( Bahar). It is followed by Tir. The Afghan P ...

on the Persian Calendar.

Characteristics

It shows somewhat resemblance to the Buk-M2. In terms of performance, it is "often compared to the Russian Buk family." Each Sevom Khordad

TELAR A transporter erector launcher (TEL) is a missile vehicle with an integrated tractor unit that can transport, elevate to a firing position and launch one or more rockets or missiles. History Such vehicles exist for both surface-to-air missiles ...

can carry 3 Taer-2B missiles which have range of 50–105 km and can engage targets at altitudes of 25–30 km. The Sevom Khordad utilizes an

X-band The X band is the designation for a band of frequency, frequencies in the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of the X band is set at approximately 7.0� ...

Active Phased array engagement radar, each 3rd Khordad

can simultaneously detect 100 targets, engage 4 and guide 2 missiles on a target. Each battery of Sevom Khordad Battery consists of one

and two TELs and hence has 9 ready-to fire missiles, each battalion has four batteries and hence can engage 16 targets simultaneously. Each battalion also includes a Bashir 3-D

S-band The S band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum covering frequencies from 2 to 4 gigahertz (GHz). Thus it crosses the convention ...

Phased array In antenna (radio), antenna theory, a phased array usually means an electronically scanned array, a computer-controlled Antenna array, array of antennas which creates a radio beam, beam of radio waves that can be electronically steered to point ...

Surveillance radar which has a detection range of 350 km. The battalion also has a Command and Control (C2) Unit which provides communication with other air defense systems and hence establishes a network of air defenses. It can also provide additional

Data link A data link is a means of telecommunications link, connecting one location to another for the purpose of transmitting and receiving digital information (data communication). It can also refer to a set of electronics assemblies, consisting of a t ...

in case of

Radar jamming Radar jamming and deception is a form of electronic countermeasures (ECMs) that intentionally sends out radio frequency signals to interfere with the operation of radar by saturating its receiver with noise or false information. Concepts that blan ...

. In addition to the Taer-2B, the Sevom Khordad can also be equipped with eight Dey 9 short-range missiles to engage fighters and drones.

Operational history

On June 20, 2019, A 3rd Khordad Air defence system shot down a

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Global Hawk surveillance drone with a

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 ...

over the

. According to Iranian officials the drone was shot down off the Iranian coast. While

deny it and says the closest the drone got to iran's border was . On June 17, 2025, the Israeli army released a video of an attack on a Sevom Khordad air defense system .

Operators

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force, officially known as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Air and Space Force (IRGCASF; , acronymed in Persian as NEHSA), is the Iran's ballistic missiles program, strategic missile, air forc ...

Syrian Air Defense Force The Syrian Air Defence Force (SyADF or SADF; ), was an independent command within the Syrian Armed Forces. It was responsible for protecting the Syrian airspace against any hostile air attacks. The SyADF was one of the most powerful and combat- ...

References

{{Weapons of Iran Surface-to-air missiles of Iran 21st-century surface-to-air missiles Weapons and ammunition introduced in 2016 Guided missiles of Iran