Global General
Iran begins production of anti-aircraft missile
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-11 19:38
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 The Shaheen missile, part of Iran's medium range anti-aircraft air defence system Mersad (Ambush), is seen on its launcher during its unveiling ceremony in Tehran April 11, 2010. [Agencies] |
TEHRAN - Iran's Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi said Sunday that the country has started to produce a domestically-built medium-range air defense missile system, the local satellite Press TV reported.
Vahidi said that the anti-aircraft missile, dubbed Mersad (Ambush), features cutting-edge technology that makes it able to "destroy modern aircraft at low and medium altitudes," according to the report.
"The state-of-the-art technology used in Mersad links it to other anti-aircraft batteries and provides it with the unique ability to combat electronic warfare," Vahidi said, adding that its dynamic system features capabilities that are superior to those US-made Hawk missile, which Iran purchased in the 1970s.
He announced that the country has begun mass-production of the medium-range missile and plans to deliver a sizeable number to its armed forces by the end of the year, according to Press TV.
The production of Mersad marks a technical breakthrough in Iran's defense capabilities and proves that the country's armed forces have achieved high levels of self-sufficiency, Vahidi was quoted as saying.
Earlier in March, the Iranian navy successfully test-fired a new missile from its first indigenously-built Jamaran destroyer in the water of the Persian Gulf, Press TV reported.
In a footage shown on Press TV, the surface-to-surface Nour missile successfully hit its target at a distance of 100 km in the test-fire on Tuesday.
Over the past years, Iran has made considerable progress in producing home-made multiple-range missiles.
