TEHRAN -- The chief
commander of Iran’s Air Defense Force has hailed his forces as the best in defense capability in the region, saying any flying object can be tracked and downed by the Islamic Republic’s homegrown radars.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force (IRIADF) is at the forefront of defensive power in the region, and any airborne object irrespective of the altitude at which it flies can be detected, tracked, and even dealt with by our radars,” said Brigadier General Alireza Sabahifard, addressing a group of Iranian military commanders and cadets at Imam Ali University in Tehran.
Sabahifard said the young experts of the Iranian army are developing indigenous three-dimensional radar systems and trying to bring them into service.
“Our combat and defense capabilities are expanding continuously. All of the military equipment in our inventory are homegrown and are produced by Iranian youths,” he added.
Last September, the IRIADF unveiled a homemade state-of-the-art 3D radar dubbed Alborz, which is capable of intercepting and detecting long-range stealth flying objects designed to have a low radar cross-section.
The system has a range of 450 kilometers (248 miles) and can detect 300 targets simultaneously.
A few days later, the IRIADF unveiled a 3D phased-array radar system called Kashef-99 (Discoverer-99), which is capable of detecting small flying objects.
Kashef-99 is said to be able to detect dozens of targets at the same time within a range of 12 kilometers (7.4 miles).
Last April, Iran unveiled two homegrown strategic phased-array radar systems dubbed Khalij-e Fars (Persian Gulf) and Moraqeb (Observer) in a ceremony attended by Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, the chief commander of Iran’s Army, and Brigadier General Sabahifard.
The long-range and strategic Khalij-e Fars radar is a 3D phased-array system. It covers a range of over 800 kilometers (497 miles) and can detect all
 conventional and radar-evading targets and ballistic missiles.
Moraqeb has an operational range of 400 kilometers (248 miles) and can trace micro-size targets in low- and mid-altitude as well as drones and radar-evading flying objects.
In recent years, Iran has made major breakthroughs in its defense sector and attained self-sufficiency in producing important military equipment and systems amid Western sanctions.