HESA Shahed 136

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Shahed 136
TypeLoitering munition
Place of origin Iran
Service history
Used by Iran
 Russia (as Geran-2 user)
 Houthis (alleged)[1]
WarsYemeni war (Abqaiq–Khurais attack), 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, September-October 2022 attacks on Iraqi Kurdistan
Production history
DesignerShahed Aviation Industries
ManufacturerHESA
Unit costUnknown, (various estimates from $10,000 to €50,000)[2][3][4]
No. builtUnknown
Specifications
Mass200 kg (440 lb)
Length3.5 m (11 ft)
Warhead weight30–50 kilograms (66–110 lb)
EngineMD-550 piston engine
Wingspan2.5 m (8.2 ft)
Operational
range
Unknown, estimates between 1,800–2,500 km (1,118–1,553 mi)
Maximum speed Around 185 km/h (115 mph)
Guidance
system
GNSS, INS[5]
Launch
platform
Rocket Assisted Take Off

The HESA Shahed 136 (Persian: شاهد ۱۳۶, literally "Witness-136") is an Iranian loitering munition autonomous swarm pusher-prop aerial drone, developed by HESA. At its core, it is designed to attack ground targets from a distance, fired in multiples from a launch rack (in batches of five upwards) to overwhelm air defenses by consuming their resources during the attack. The first public footage of the drone were released in December 2021.[3]

Overview

Description

The aircraft has a cropped delta-wing shape, with a central fuselage blending into the wings and stabilizing rudders at the tips. The nose section contains a warhead estimated to weigh 30–50 kilograms (66–110 lb).[6] The engine sits in the rear of the fuselage and drives a two-bladed propeller in a "pusher" arrangement.[7] The drone is 3.5 metres (11 ft) long with a wingspan of 2.5 metres (8.2 ft), flies at over 185 kilometres per hour (115 mph), and weighs about 200 kilograms (440 lb).[8] The range has been estimated as between 1,800 and 2,500 kilometres (1,100 and 1,600 miles) usable in a pre-programmed direct-attack munition mode (somewhat like a long-range cruise missile),[9] and also a long duration loitering munition mode limited by a radio signal range of about 150 kilometres (93 miles) in receiving new GNSS target location instructions.[10]

The Shahed 136 is used in three models in the Iranian armed forces: anti-personnel and armoured vehicle, anti-fortification, and radar seeker.[11] The U.S. Army unclassified worldwide equipment guide states that the Shahed 136 design also supports an aerial reconnaissance option.[12][13]

Deployment

Because of the portability of the launch frame and drone assembly, the entire unit can be mounted on the back of any military or commercial truck.[8]

The aircraft is launched at a slight upward angle and is assisted in the initial phase of flight by rocket launch assistance (RATO). The rocket is jettisoned immediately after launch, whereupon the drone's conventional Iranian-made Mado MD-550 four-cylinder piston engine (possibly a reverse-engineered German Limbach L550E, also used in other Iranian drones such as the Ababil-3[14]) takes over.[15]

Electronics

Despite no markings, experts believe the drone uses a computer processor manufactured by the American company Altera, RF modules by Analog Devices and LDO chips by Microchip Technology.[16]

Inspection of captured drones used by Russia during 2022 year Ukraine invasion revealed that the Shahed-136 electronics were manufactured from American- and EU-made components, such as a TMS320 processor and a Polish made fuel pump on behalf of UK-based company TI Fluid Systems.[17]

Others

Various colloquial terms have been used for these drones due to their ubiquity, such as "mopeds" or "lawnmowers", alluding to the signature loud sound of their engine in flight, and "doritos", in reference to their delta-winged silhouette.[18][19][10]

Confusion with Shahed 131

It is visually similar to the smaller Shahed 131, differing mainly by its wingtip stabilisers extending up and down rather than only up on the Shahed 131.[11] The Shahed 131 has a simple inertial navigation system (INS) and a GPS with some electronic warfare protection, which the Shahed 136 may also have.[20]

Geran-2

Geran-2 is the name given to the drone in Russian service.[9] The Washington Post reported an expert on Russian military systems at the CNA Strategy, Policy, Plans and Programs Center suggesting that the Geran-2 may use additional steering methods compared to the standard Iranian Shahed 136.[13] A The Times of Israel correspondent notes that the Iranian navigation system made from civilian components has been replaced with a Russian manufactured flight control unit and microprocessors, using the Russian GLONASS GNSS system rather than U.S. civilian grade GPS, seemingly improving its loitering munition capability.[21][22] No cameras or short-range sensors were noted.[10]

Combat history

2014 Yemeni Civil War

See also: Abqaiq–Khurais attack

The drone has reportedly been used by the Houthis in the Yemeni Civil War during 2020.[1][better source needed] There were some reports of its use in the 2019 attack of Saudi oil plant,[23][better source needed] however The Washington Post reported that other types of drone were used in that attack.[13]

2022 Russian war in Ukraine

See also: 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

During the 2022 war in Ukraine, Russia has used suicide drones bearing the name Geran-2 (Russian: Герань-2, literally "Geranium-2") against Ukraine. These Geran-2 drones are considered by Ukraine and its Western allies to be redesignated Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones.[24][25][26][27]

In the months prior to the confirmation of their use, US intelligence sources and Ukrainian officials have claimed that Iran had supplied Russia with several hundred drones including Shahed-136s, although Iran has repeatedly rejected the claims that it had sent drones for use in Ukraine, saying it is neutral in the war. .[27][28][29][24] However, on 2 September 2022 the Commander of the IRGC General Hossein Salami said at a Tehran arms show that "some major world powers" had purchased Iranian military equipment and his men were "training them to employ the gear".[30] Russia stated it uses unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of domestic manufacture.[31] This may reflect domestic production of these drones within Russia.

First appearances

File:M214 ГЕPAНЬ-2 drone remnants near Kupiansk, Kharkiv region (1).jpg
Part of a drone shot down near Kupiansk, Kharkiv Oblast, on September 2022 and considered by Ukraine and various experts to be an Iranian made Shahed-136.

On 13 September 2022, initial use of the Shahed 136 was indicated by photos of the remains of a drone inscribed with Russian: Герань-2, lit. 'Geranium'-2,[8] operated by Russian forces.[7][32] According to Rodion Kulahin, the Ukrainian artillery commander of the 92nd Brigade, Shahed 136 drones destroyed four howitzers and two BTRs during the Kharkiv counter-offensive.[33] On 23 September, further use of the drones was recorded in Odesa, where videos of their flyover and subsequent impact were uploaded on various Telegram channels. Notably, the drones were audibly engaged with small arms fire, which did not seem to have shot down any of the aircraft. On 25 September, videos posted on social media shows intensified use of the drone by the Russian forces around Odesa and Dnipro cities. This time, along with small arms, some form of anti-aircraft rotary cannon was employed, along with surface-to-air missiles, downing at least one Geran-2. A number of the drones were able to hit unknown targets, although there are claims the Ukrainian Navy Headquarters in Odessa was hit.[34][35]

On 5 October 2022, a Geran-2 struck barracks hosting soldiers from the 72nd Mechanized Brigade in Bila Tserkva.[36]

Ukrainian soldiers claim they can be heard from several kilometers away and are vulnerable to small arms fire.[37]

Ukrainian sources stated they deployed MiG-29 fighter aircraft to shoot down these drones with success, claiming that they used a similar strategy to shoot down cruise missiles such as the Kalibr.[38] However on 13 October 2022, a Ukrainian MiG-29 crashed in Vinnytsia while attempting to shoot down a Geran-2. According to Ukrainian sources, one version of the incident is that the drone detonated near the jet and shrapnel struck the cockpit which forced the pilot to eject.[39][40]

October waves

Geran-2 drones participated in the October missile strikes that disabled large sections of the Ukrainian power grid.[41] The United States Institute of Peace stated 117 drones were launched during the attack.[9]

In the morning of 17 October Kyiv was attacked again.[9] The drones were engaged by small-caliber ground fire as well as dedicated air-defense systems, but the drones reportedly hit several locations, including the offices of Ukrenergo. Other energy infrastructure facilities were also reported to be attacked, leading to blackouts around the affected infrastructure. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said the strikes hit critical energy infrastructure in three regions, knocking out electricity to hundreds of towns and villages.[42][43][44] At least 8 people were killed during the day's attack.[9]

The cost-benefit analysis of using these drones in strikes versus the defending air defense systems is in favor of the Shahed drones, being about half the cost of the defenses employed against them, such as emplaced SAM systems.[4] Suicide drones downed after they have reached cities can lead to large-scale collateral damage from falling wreckage.[4] The average Shahed drone is worth about $20,000. An IRIS-T missile is worth about $430,000 in comparison. From 13 September until 17 October, it has been estimated that Ukraine has spent $28.14 million on defences against these drones.[45][46]

The US Department of Defense has stated that a number of Iranian experts were deployed to Crimea to provide technical support for the drones used in the attacks.[47]

Ukrainian sources claim that more than 220 of these drones were shot down since September 13.[13]

A Ukrainian defense attaché in the United States stated that SA-8 missiles and both the Soviet-era ZSU-23-4 and the German-supplied Flakpanzer Gepard SPAAGs have been used to "great effect" against these "relatively crude" drones.[48]

Reactions

In response to these initial attacks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has denounced it as "a collaboration with evil". Diplomatic ties between Iran and Ukraine were subsequently reduced as a consequence of the attacks.[49]

On 18 October 2022 the U.S State Department accused Iran of violating United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 by selling drones to Russia, agreeing with similar assessments by France and the United Kingdom. On 22 October France, Britain and Germany formally called for an investigation by the UN team responsible for UNSCR 2231.[50] Iran denied sending arms for use in the Ukraine war. Resolution 2231 was adopted after the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was signed but subsequently made obsolete by the United States under the Donald Trump administration in 2018.[51][29][52]

Multiple critics including a senior researcher of the Center for Security Studies called the weapon tactically useless, and said that its role is as a weapon of terror against civilians.[53][54][55][56]

In response to the allegations of the use of Iranian drones, Iran affirmed its willingness to hold direct talks with and on 24 October 2022, the country's foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Iran will not remain indifferent if proven Russia used Iranian drones in the war against Ukraine.[57][58][59]

2022 Syria

The U.S. military believes groups allied to Iran used the Shahed 136 in August 2022 against a U.S.-run military base at Al-Tanf in Syrian opposition controlled territory in the Syrian Desert.[13]

2022 Iraqi Kurdistan

See also: September-October 2022 attacks on Iraqi Kurdistan

In 2022, the ground forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps used the Shahed 136 drone in attacks on headquarters of Kurdish separatist group in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.[60]

Operators

Dark blue: Countries operating Shahed-136. Light blue: non-state operators (Houthis)

See also

Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References

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  53. ^ "Russland setzt auf Kamikaze-Drohnen aus Iran" [Russia bets on kamikaze-drones from Iran] (in German). SRF. 19 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022. ["These dones don't win a battle but it is possible to terrorize the population" (minute 4:30)]; "Kamikaze-Drohnen sind militärisch nutzlos – aber trotzdem wirksam" [Kamikaze-Drones are militarily useless - but nevertheless effective] (in German). SRF. 19 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022. [«The iranian Schahed-136-Drones fired by Russia are neither manouverable nor precise.»]
  54. ^ Russland-Experte vermutet Plan, der den Westen treffen soll: Bringen Kamikaze-Drohnen Putin die Kriegs-Wende?, merkur.de, 24 October 2022
  55. ^ EXPLAINER: Killer drones vie for supremacy over Ukraine, ABC, 18 October; quote: “They know that most will not make it through”
  56. ^ Wie einst Hitler mit der V1-Rakete: Russland sucht sein Heil in billigen Terrorwaffen, watson, 17. Oktober 2022
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  59. ^ Twitter https://twitter.com/irimfa_en/status/1584991966596849665. Retrieved 2 November 2022. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
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External links

it:Shahed-136

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