Iran announced on Monday that it had begun the mass production of its new Fakour air-to-air missile.
“Fakour is a radar-equipped mid-range air-to-air missile which has been designed and built with the help of the latest state-of-the-art world technologies,” Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami, addressing the inauguration ceremony in Tehran.
He added that the missile can be fired from fighter jets, and engage different hostile warplanes within the operational range.
The Fakour-90 is based on the AIM-54 Phoenix, a radar-guided, long-range air-to-air missile (AAM), carried in clusters of up to six missiles on the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, and used to intercept and destroy air-to-air targets. The missile was created by the Iranian Army, Defense Ministry, Armed Forces Logistics, and the Air Force.
General Hatami said that the missile, which is the longest-range air-to-air missile produced by Iran to date, will increase the country’s defense and deterrence: “Today, the Islamic Republic of Iran joined the club of air-to-air missiles manufacturers,” he cheered.
Iran announced in 2013 the completed production of air-to-air Fakour missiles, and the start of the development of a new long-range air-to-air missile system named Maqsoud.
Back in 2013, Deputy Head of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces General Mohammad Hejazi said the Iranian Armed Forces were working on 11 top-level projects in the aerospace industry as well as 17 air-based weapons system production projects.