Iran Releases First Flight Footage Of New Shahed-149 ‘Gaza’ Combat Drone
On February 25, the Aerospace Force of the Iranian The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) released first flight footage of its new Shahed-149 “Gaza” drone.
The Shahed-149, which was developed by the Shahed Aviation Industries, is a high-altitude long-endurance combat drone similar in size, shape and role to the American MQ-9 Reaper. The drone was unveiled and named after the Gaza Strip in honor of the Palestinians’ struggle against Israel amid the May 2021 Palestinian-Israeli crisis.
The new footage shows an unarmed Shahed-149 drone taking off from an unspecified air base in Iran, and flying at low altitude.
The Shahed-149 has a flight duration of 35 hours, an operational range of 2,000 kilometers and a cruising speed of 350 kilometers per hour. The drone is capable of carrying 13 bombs and 500 kg of electronic equipment. It is the first Iranian UAV powered by a turboprop engine.
The combat drone passed its flight tests in April 2022 and was accepted for service in the IRGC Aerospace Force the same month.
The long endurance and range of the Shahed-149 should allow it to operate all the way from western Iran to over Israel. The drone can also operate over the entire Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman from Iran’s southern region.
Iran expanded its drone programme in recent years in defiance of threats by Israel as well as sanctions by the United States and the European Union. Tehran says the programme, which develops reconnaissance, combat and suicide drones, is purely defensive and of a deterrent nature.
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