Iran introduced one of its new unmanned drones, Hamaseh (meaning 'Epic'), at the war drills conducted by the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Ground Force on Tuesday, Fars News Agency reported. The IRGC conducted military exercises from April 12-14 in the Southeast part of the country.
According to Iran's state media, Fars News Agency, Hamaseh made its debut at the drills. Other indigenous drones from the country, like Mohajer, Ababil and Shahed, were also a part of the exercise.
The Hamaseh, according to the report, is a "state-of-the-art reconnaissance and combat drone" and is supposed to be a high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) platform. It was also claimed that the aircraft is able to avoid enemy detection due to its stealth features. This unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) reportedly carries indigenous missiles and bombs.
However, military website IHS Jane's 360 was critical of its HALE classification. Based on the media images it argued that the drone could either belong to the "tactical" or the "medium-altitude, long-endurance" class and may not be of the HALE class.
Hamaseh was unveiled in 2013 in a public ceremony that was attended by the then Defence Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi.
The report also noted that Iran was marketing Shahed 129 unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) as an export potential to international customers.
Iran also announced on Monday that the first of the Russian S-300 air defence missile systems is on its way to Iranian military. The missiles will enable Iran to have both defensive and offensive capabilities against any potential airborne threat.
