Iran successfully tests home- made rocket with thermobaric warhead

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Ground Force successfully tested on Sunday the locally manufactured Fajr-5 missile, which is equipped with a thermobaric warhead, Iranian Tasnim news agency reported.

The agency said experts at the Research and Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organisation of the IRGC Ground Force, have developed the Fajr-5 missile; a 333 mm rocket, whose guided version, dubbed ‘Fajr-5C’, had been already delivered to the IRGC Ground Force units.

The new thermobaric warhead, which uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion, has increased the Iranian rocket’s destructive power, according to the same source.

The agency added that the new warhead’s destructive power is reportedly 1.5 times greater than that of trinitrotoluene (TNT), enhancing its blast radius and thermal effect, while the thermobaric explosive’s lower sensitivity than TNT has made it a safer option in comparison with conventional warheads.

The newly developed model is more convenient for confronting “terrorist groups”, especially in mountainous areas that are difficult to reach.

The 333 mm rocket that runs on solid fuel has single- and two-stage versions, with a range of 75 km and 180 km, respectively.

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