The Raad 85 (Thunder 85) (Also R'ad 85, Ra'ad 85, etc) is an Iranian loitering munition developed in the 2010s.[1] It was designed by the Iranian Army's Research and Self-sufficiency Jihad Organization in cooperation with Qods Aviation[2] for the Iranian Army Ground Force. It is an unmanned "suicide drone" that is remotely guided to its target by a human operator.[3] It is designed to be operated in an electronic warfare environment.[4]
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General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan of the Iranian Armed Forces has stated, "This drone is like a mobile bomb, and is capable of destroying fixed and mobile targets."[5]
In 2015, five Ra’ad-85 drones were used to strike an Ahrar Al-Sham military base in Syria’s Idlib province, as part of the Syrian Civil War.[6]
Specifications
Ceiling: 11000 ft
Top Speed: 250 km/h
Combat radius: 100 km
Avionics: transmitting imagery[7]