Iran Navy test-fires domestically built smart missile

TEHRAN, Jan. 2 (MNA) – A domestically manufactured surface-to-air medium-range smart missile, named the Mehrab (altar), was successfully test-fired on Sunday during the power stage of the 10-day naval war games, which started on December 24, 2011. The third stage of the Velayat-90 war games, entitled the power stage, started on Saturday. “The Mehrab missile successfully followed its path toward the designated target and accomplished the pre-planned mission,” the commander of the Iranian Navy, Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, told . He added that various surface-to-surface missiles were also fired and successfully hit the designated targets. The Mehrab missile is equipped with anti-radar and anti-jamming systems, and if the enemy tries to jam the guidance system of the missile, it immediately identifies the source of the interference and changes its course toward the source and destroys the jammer. In another operation on Sunday, artillery units of the Navy engaged in a mock battle with the enemy and successfully targeted hostile vessels and aircraft. The Velayat-90 war games are said to differ from previous ones in terms of the vastness of the area of action and the military equipment and tactics that are being employed. During the preliminary stage of the maneuvers, Iranian warships, submarines, and other naval vessels spread out across the theaters of operations, which cover a wide area from the Strait of Hormuz to the Gulf of Aden. During the tactical stage of the maneuvers, which ended on Friday, the theater of war was simulated, and naval forces practiced various military tactics.