Iran unveils new missile of composite engine blocks, adjustable nozzle

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) unveiled a new missile with a composite engine as well as the new generation of engines for propelling missiles and satellite carriers.

During a ceremony attended by the chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Major General Hossein Salami, on Sunday, it was announced that the new missile takes advantage of two types of composite engine blocks and adjustable nozzle.

#Iran unveils 'Raad-500' missile https://t.co/TYVXMAlKrS pic.twitter.com/rl3n9ssGgR

— IRNA News Agency (@IrnaEnglish) February 9, 2020

The event was also attended by commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Division Brigadier General Amirali Hajizadeh.

The new missile’s composite engine block, which contains carbon fibers, can withstand pressures as high as 100 bar and a temperature of 3,000 degrees Centigrade, while the composite component has allowed Iranian engineers to reduce the weight of the missile to a large extent.

Compared to Fateh-110 missiles, the new Ra’d-500 missile’s weight has been cut by half while its range has been increased by 200 kilometers.

The new Iranian missile paves the way for the production of new satellite carriers operating on solid fuel and allows Iran's surface-to-surface missiles to penetrate various kinds of missile shields by projecting a small cross-section on the radar screen.

Addressing the ceremony, the commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace Division said by developing the adjustable nozzle technology, it is possible to control solid-fuel missiles beyond the atmosphere in spacecrafts, satellite carriers and anti-armor missiles.

He added that expenses of Iran's Armed Forces are far lower than those of other countries, saying that the composite body of the new missile has been designed in a way that it can be used in surface-to-surface and air defense missiles.