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RAAD (anti-tank guided missile)

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Not to be confused with other military uses of "Raad" at Raad (disambiguation).
RAAD
RAAD-T
TypeAnti-tank missile
Place of originIran
Service history
In service1988–present
Used bySee Operators
Wars2006 Lebanon War
Syrian Civil War
Iraqi Civil War
Production history
DesignerKBM
ManufacturerParchin Missile Industries[1]
No. built4,500 (2015)[2]
VariantsSee Variants
Specifications
Mass10.9 kg (RAAD/I-RAAD)
23 kg (guidance System)
Length83 cm (RAAD/I-RAAD)
98 cm (RAAD-T/I-RAAD-T)
Effective firing range400–3,000 m[3]
WarheadHEAT
Blast yield400 mm RHA (I-RAAD-T)
Maximum speed 120 m/s
Guidance
system
MCLOS or SACLOS

The Raad (Persian: رعد, 'thunder') or RAAD is an Iranian wire-guided anti-tank guided missile based on the Soviet 9M14M Malyutka (AT-3b Sagger) missile.[4][5] The Raad began mass production in 1988 and was publicly unveiled in 1997. It is manufactured by Parchin Missile Industries, a subsidiary of Iran's Defense Industries Organization.[6]

The Raad family comes in four variants: the base RAAD missile, a clone of the 9M14M Malyutka-M (AT-3b Sagger); the I-RAAD, with SACLOS guidance, the RAAD-T, with a tandem warhead, and the I-RAAD-T, with both a tandem warhead and SACLOS guidance.

RAAD means thunder in Persian. It is not an acronym and many sources do not capitalize the name.

History

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During the Iran-Iraq War, Iran had an acute need for anti-tank missiles, necessitating the country to buy AT-3 Sagger missiles.[4] Indigenous manufacturing work began in the tail end of the war[7] and mass production began in 1998,[8] with the Raad being the first anti-tank guided weapon to be built by Iran.[4] The RAAD was obtained with Russian assistance.[9]

The weapon was unveiled on April 30, 1997.[10] The RAAD has almost identical components with 9M14 Malyutka, from the battery to the guidance unit.[11]

According to SIPRI, 1500 RAAD/Sagger missiles were built or imported by Iran between 1996 and 2001[12] and 2,250 from 1996 to 2004.[13]

As of 2015, 4,500 RAADs were made in Iran.[2]

Combat use

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Iran supplied Hezbollah with the Raad in the early 2000s and Hezbollah used Raad missiles in the 2006 Lebanon War.[14] Israel captured ten baseline RAAD missiles on the Karine A in January 2002.[15]

The Raad has been used in the Syrian Civil War by Hezbollah fighters, and the Syrian Army.[16] I-RAAD missiles have been used by ISIL fighters in Iraq.[17]

On October 7, 2023, Al-Quds Brigades militants used a RAAD-T during the raid on Israel from Gaza.[18]

Variants

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RAAD

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The RAAD is an identical copy of the Russian 9M14M Malyutka-M (NATO AT-3b "Sagger").[4]

RAAD-T

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The first improvement of the RAAD missile, the RAAD-T has a tandem warhead to defeat explosive Reactive Armor.[19] However, the RAAD-T still uses the obsolete MCLOS guidance of the original RAAD.[7] According to its export material, the RAAD-T has improved maneuverability over the base RAAD[3] and has 400 mm RHA penetration after reactive armor.[20]

I-RAAD

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For Improved RAAD, the I-RAAD has a different launcher with a tripod-mounted SACLOS guidance system that makes the missile much easier to aim.[4] The specific SACLOS method is a TV differential tracker.[4] The guidance unit is similar to that of the Chinese HJ-73 system,[4] and possibly the HJ-73C model in particular. First seen in 1998.[11] RAAD missiles can be used by I-RAAD launchers.[4]

It's used to defeat ERA armor.[21]

I-RAAD-T

[edit]

The I-RAAD-T system combines the tandem-warhead of the RAAD-T missile with the SACLOS guidance system of the I-RAAD launcher.[4] RAAD and I-RAAD missiles can be retrofitted to the I-RAAD-T standard.[3] The I-RAAD-T also includes a simulator that allows operators to be trained on the system without actually firing a missile.[4] 400 mm RHA penetration after reactive armor.[3]

Operators

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Non-State actors

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References

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  1. ^ "Parchin". 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  2. ^ a b "Iran to continue local production of Russian anti-tank missiles 9M11 and 9M113 TASS 10603161 | March 2016 Global Defense Security news industry | Defense Security global news industry army 2016 | Archive News year".
  3. ^ a b c d e Parchin Missile Industries, I-RAAD-T brochure
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "AIO Raad Anti-Tank Guided Weapon (Iran), Vehicle-mounted anti-tank guided weapons". Jane's Information Group. 2008-07-02. Archived from the original on 2009-02-27. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  5. ^ "This Iranian Missile Launcher is a World of Trouble". 28 July 2021.
  6. ^ Iran missile nti.org September 2021
  7. ^ a b "آشنایی با موشک‌های ضد زره ایران". hamshahrionline.ir. 16 July 2012.
  8. ^ "Arms Deliveries to Iran and Self-Sufficiency". Defense Intelligence Agency. 24 February 1988. Archived from the original on 2018-06-21.
  9. ^ Anthony H. Cordesman; Michael Peacock (19 October 2015). "The Arab-U.S. Strategic Partnership and the Changing Security Balance in the Gulf". CSIS. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  10. ^ "Missile Chronology, 1997". Nuclear Threat Initiative. February 2006. Archived from the original on February 27, 2009. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  11. ^ a b "RAAD series anti-tank weapon systems (Iran), Anti-tank weapons". Jane's Information Group. 2008-12-31. Archived from the original on February 27, 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
  12. ^ Ракетная промышленность, Военная промышленность Ирана (in Russian). War Online. 2002-12-19. Archived from the original on 2003-02-04. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  13. ^ "Transfers and licensed production of major conventional weapons: Imports sorted by recipient. Deals with deliveries or orders made 1994-2004" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-01-11. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
  14. ^ Riad Kahwaji (2006-08-20). "Arab States Eye Better Spec Ops, Missiles". Ocnus.Net. Archived from the original on 2009-02-27. Retrieved 2009-01-12.
  15. ^ Kirill & Oleg Granovsky (2002-07-20). "Weapons Found on 'Karine-A' and 'Santorini'". Archived from the original on 2003-02-10. Retrieved 2009-02-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  16. ^ a b Yiftah S. Shapir. "Observations on Hizbollah Weaponry" (PDF). INSS.
  17. ^ a b "As ISIS Continues to Gain Ground, Here's What the Militants Have in Their Arsenal". Business Insider.
  18. ^ a b "Al Quds Brigade Deploys from Gaza Iranian-made RAAD-T Anti-Tank Missil". 21 October 2023.
  19. ^ "AT - 3 SAGGER / HJ-73 Hongjian (Red Arrow) Anti-Tank Guided Missile".
  20. ^ Terrorism: Documents of International and Local Control, Volume 92. Oceana Publications, 2008. p. 211
  21. ^ "ODIN - OE Data Integration Network".
  22. ^ The Military Balance 2019. International Institute for Strategic Studies. February 2019. p. 341. ISBN 978-1857439885.
  23. ^ "Common ATGMs in the Syrian Civil War". Medium. 17 August 2016. Archived from the original on 26 March 2018.
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