New Combat Drone Unveiled

Islamic Revolution Guards Corps unveiled a new domestically-manufactured combat unmanned aerial vehicle named Saeqeh.

The drone was displayed on Saturday at an expo showcasing the latest achievements by the IRGC’s Aerospace Division in the UAV industry, Press TV reported.

Saeqeh is a long-range drone capable of carrying four precision-guided bombs.  It is one of the Simorgh family drones, which is the Iranian version of the US RQ-170 Sentinel stealth aircraft. In December 2011, Iran downed a US RQ-170 drone with minimal damage.

The drone was flying over the Iranian city of Kashmar, near the Afghan border, when it was brought down. Almost three years later, Iran produced its version of RQ-170.

Commenting on the latest achievements of IRGC, Commander of the Aerospace Division Lieutenant General Amirali Hajizadeh said Iran is among the top four countries in the drone industry.

Hajizadeh said Saeqeh is the latest Iranian UAV capable of hitting targets and returning to base intact.

The commander noted that Iran will not halt its development of drones, saying, “The enemy is going down the path of hostility and we should stay on course for reinforcing our might for defense against the enemy.”

In recent years, Iran has made major breakthroughs in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in producing critical military equipment and systems.