Iran's Indigenous Weapons: Shahed Drones, Missiles Drain US Resources, Shift Mideast Power
Iran's Indigenous Weapons: Shahed Drones, Missiles Drain US Resources, Shift Mideast Power
- •Iran's low-cost Shahed-136 drones ($20k-$50k) are effectively draining US resources, forcing the use of multi-million dollar interceptors like Patriot and THAAD missiles.
- •Advanced Fateh-series and Khorramshahr-4 missiles, with ranges up to 2,000 km and underground basing, enable salvo strikes against distant US and Israeli assets.
- •The Bavar-373 long-range air defense system, comparable to S-300/S-400, creates no-fly zones and reportedly intercepts stealth aircraft, limiting Western operations.
- •IRGC imagery reveals vast underground tunnels housing drones and missiles, supported by a Decentralised Mosaic Defence strategy to complicate invasion.
- •Iran's Shahid Mahdavi warship, equipped with long-range cruise missiles and Qadr-380 anti-ship missiles, expands its naval reach in the Persian Gulf.