Iran tests kamikaze drones as a show of power toward the US

During a recent drill, Iran tested out its latest addition to the battlefield. A set of kamikaze or suicide drones as a show of power toward Trump and the US. The tension between the two countries has risen recently due to the anniversary of the death of one of Iran’s top generals caused by a US drone strike.

The kamikaze drones flew around 870 miles above the Gulf of Oman but have a maximum range of 2,485 miles. Along with the kamikaze drones, Iran had hundreds of other drones on display, including a quadcopter that dropped cluster bombs.

Photos from the Iranian government also show the standard military drones that carry missiles and bombs under the wings. The two-day-long drills saw many Iran officials attend and many drones in the air to show off what they are capable of.

This type of drone-focused drill is the first of its kind we have seen from Iran so far and truly shows the work it is putting into its armed drones. While drills played a practical role for the soldiers involved, it also likely doubled as a “gun show” of sorts to intimated the US and its other enemies.

In October of last year, Iran ran its annual Defenders of Velayat Skies drill, which for the first time, included drones. If you are interested in seeing the full gallery of images captured on the day, be sure to check out this link.

Iranian-made drones

While the exact drone model being flown at the drill is unknown, we know Iran has four locally made drones. The oldest is the Shahed-129, unveiled back in 2012 with a flight time of up to 24 hours. It has been deployed in Syria and along the Iran-Pakistan border.

Iran also has the Fotros drone released in 2013 with a flight time of up to 30 hours but has no known operational uses at this point. Unveiled in 2016 is the Saeqeh-2 drone with a flight time of up to 24 hours and is deployed in Syria.

The latest drone added to the fleet is the Mohajer-6 once again, with a flight time of up to 24 hours. This drone is only used for domestic counterterrorism efforts at this point. It isn’t known if Iran was testing out any new drones during the drills.

Photo: Iranian government