Iranian missiles will soon be in Russia: what is known about them and which Ukrainian cities are under attack?
9 September 2024 18:17
Russia received Fateh-110, Ababil, and possibly Fath-360 ballistic missiles from Iran, as reported by a number of Western media in September 2024. What are the characteristics of these missiles and which cities in Ukraine will be under attack?
Characteristics of the Fath-360 (or BM-120)
- type – ballistic missile of the operational and tactical level,
- launch weight – 787 kilograms,
- warhead weight – 150 kilograms,
- flight speed – Mach 4,
- inertial and satellite guidance system.
Military analytical project Defense Express explained how this threatens Ukraine. According to analysts, the Fath-360 missile, which has allegedly already been handed over to the Russians, is essentially a smaller copy of the longer-range Fateh-110 missiles.
“Based on the characteristics of the Fath-360, we can assume that these missiles can be used by the Russians in the battles in the East, to strike at the positions of our troops, or to strike at frontline cities such as Pokrovsk, Sumy and Kharkiv,” writes Defense Express
At the same time, analysts do not rule out that the Russians and Iranians could have leaked disinformation to the West, and in fact, it was not Fath-360s that were transferred, but more powerful Fateh-110s. These missiles have a range of up to 300 km.
Characteristics of the Fateh-110
- type – ballistic high-precision missile (satellite navigation, possibly using the Russian GLONASS),
- class – surface-to-surface,
- launch speed – Mach 3 (3704 kilometres per hour),
- speed at the time of impact – 4 Mach (up to 5000 kilometres per hour),
- length – 8.86 metres,
- diameter – 0.61 metres,
- weight – 3,450 kilograms,
- weight of the warhead – 400 – 650 kilograms (depending on the generation of missiles, currently there are at least 4 of them),
- range – up to 300 kilometres (the 4th generation has a range of 400 kilometres),
- the platform is a Mercedes-Benz truck (6×6), with only one missile on the launcher.
Ababil characteristics
Little is known about the Ababil surface-to-surface ballistic missile. It was presented at the Army-2023 exhibition in Moscow:
- range – up to 90 km.
- length – 3.7 m
- weight – 240 kg
- the missile is available in two versions: with inertial and satellite navigation, and equipped with an optoelectronic guidance system.
As reported by Defense Express analysts, Iranian-made Ababil short-range ballistic missiles can be used by Russia to strike our troops at the front, and in return, “free up” a certain number of S-300s, which are currently used as “ersatz ATGMs” to shell our frontline cities.
It is known that Ukraine has an extremely small number of air defence systems capable of shooting down ballistic missiles. Therefore, if Iranian Ababils appear in Russia, it will be a significant problem for our air defence.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has expressed deep concern about the possible transfer of missiles, but Iran has traditionally denied this fact, although some Iranian officials have confirmed the opposite.
Ukraine has called on its allies to increase pressure on Iran and lift restrictions on strikes on Russia with medium-range missiles to counter new threats.
Author – Anastasia Fedor
