HOW POWERFUL IS IRAN’S ‘CLONE’ OF AMERICAN SIDEWINDER MISSILE IT RECENTLY LAUNCHED FROM A DRONE?
Iran has reportedly fired its enigmatic Azarakhsh missile, which is believed to be a clone of the American-made AIM-9 Sidewinder missile, from one of its drones during a recently-held war drill.
Video footage of the war games shows the Iranian military using its Karrar drone to launch the Azarakhsh missile.
While the exact nature of the missile still remains a mystery, experts believe it to be a derivative of the US-made AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missile.
It stands as the most widely used air-to-air missile in the West, with more than 110,000 missiles produced for the US and 27 other nations.
The latest exercise highlighted the version of the Karrar drone which appeared to be fitted with an infrared sensor in the nose.