Khaybar Shenkan and other Iranian missile news
One of the Khaybar Shenkan rocket launchers assembled at the underground base during the show.
In the first months of this year, Iran presented a number of premieres in the field of missile technology and unmanned aerial systems. They confirm the trend that has emerged over the years - Tehran focuses not only on the quantity of its weapons, but above all on quality, constantly improving them and introducing new models with higher parameters. This is also due to the increasingly modern production technology.
As part of the introduction, it is worth briefly paying attention to the significance of the weapons and technical solutions described below. As for rocket technology, both military and space, Iran has mastered the production of composite structures and composite solid-propellant engines. In the first case, this results in an increase in the characteristics of missiles without the need to increase their size. On the other hand, the second reduces the cost of launching satellites into orbit. Of course, this is a more complex issue, but in the field of the launchers themselves, Iran has made significant progress. At the same time, Tehran continues to develop unmanned systems of various classes, not forgetting the simplest ones, while working on very promising developments. He also once again proved the effectiveness of his missile weapons when on March 13 on the night of 10 to 12 (depending on the source) he attacked targets in Erbil in the Kurdish Autonomous Region of Iraq (the context and details of this event, including the article omitted) .
Premiere of the ground-to-ground rocket show by Khaibar Shenkan.
New year - new rocket
The biggest — and literally — newest addition was a surface-to-surface missile dubbed Khaybar Shenkan (the official romanization) launched by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Feb. 9, according to local media. The Khaibar Shenkan is clearly derived from the Fateh-110/-313, Zolfagar and Dezful line of surface-to-surface missiles. In Iran, the latest missile is called the "third generation" of such missiles. What immediately catches the eye is the redesigned warhead compared to its predecessors. In the case of the Khaibar Shenkan missile, it is longer, and according to Western classifications it is described as a three-cone one. In the stern, it is equipped with four trapezoidal rudders (in all photos from underground warehouses with reddish covers). Meanwhile, the Fateh-313 and its derivatives have a double cone warhead. Thus, this Khaibara Shenkan differs from previous missiles of this class and follows the design of the warhead of much heavier missiles such as Qiam (-2), Ghadr-110 or Emad. We add that the warhead in a three-cone configuration better stabilizes the flight path after re-entry into the atmosphere and allows you to reduce the dive angle compared to a two-cone one. On the other hand, aerodynamic rudders allow you to adjust the flight path in the atmosphere in order to improve accuracy (this type of warhead is MaRV and has nothing to do with hypersonic non-self-propelled warheads called HGVs). During the show, it was emphasized that Khaibar Shenkan (its warhead) has increased penetration capabilities of ballistic protection. In fact, a tricone warhead generates more lift in the atmosphere than a dual cone warhead, and thus its flight path can be flatter. We add that in the West, each appearance of three-cone warheads is interpreted as an obvious harbinger of an Iranian nuclear warhead. However, there is no indication that Iran is close to building its first nuclear payload. Although, of course, he can consider the development of three-cone warheads as a promising investment. However, the most important consideration is the possibility that Iran has focused its efforts on increasing the penetration capability of its ballistic defenses (THAAD system, Arrow-2/-3). The design of the Khaibar Shenkan missile also lacks the vortex generators in front of the tail unit, which were previously used in the Fateh missiles and their derivatives.
According to official data, Khaibar Shenkan uses only an inertial navigation system in the guidance system. The body of the projectile is made of composites, thanks to which it retains sufficient rigidity, despite its low weight. The missile should be about 30% lighter than similar older designs (probably the first Iranian composite missile was the Zoheir/Raad-500). The propulsion system is single-stage and consists of a composite solid propellant rocket motor (HTPB, hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene, i.e., hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene). Iranian sources emphasize that in the case of the Khaybar Shenkan, the prelaunch time was reduced to ¹/₆ (not clear for other missiles, although it is not specified which ones).
On the other hand, the advantages of the design and production technology of the Khaybar Shenkan can be seen when looking at the range of 1450 km. The double range of Zolfagar (it can be assumed that both projectiles are of similar dimensions, and Zolfagar has a smaller two-cone warhead) and more than that of Dezful (the projectile is apparently larger) with a range of 1000 km. In terms of flight range, Khaybar Shenkan can be compared with the HajQasam rocket, which can fly 1400 km. This one, however, is much more massive - mainly due to a much larger (of course, with an increased diameter) composite solid-propellant rocket engine, although its warhead seems to be identical to that of the Dezful rocket. In fact, there are no audiovisual materials (rocket magazines, ranges) that would confirm the serial production of the HajQasem rocket. It is not necessary to draw too far-reaching conclusions from this, because the KNII shows selected material. However, from a technical point of view, Khaybar Shenkan offers the same as HajQasem in a more compact "package" and at the same time carries a technically better warhead. Unless the flight range of HajQasema is officially underestimated, since it really reaches 2000 km and even more.
However, if we look at the dates of the public premieres of these missiles - Fateh-110A (2002), Fateh-313 (2015), Zolfaghar (2016), Dezful (2019), Zoheir / Raad-500 (2020 2020), HajQasem (XNUMX) and now Khaibar Shenkan - we see an increasing pace of improvement in Iranian missile technologies and the possibility of implementing technically more advanced missile models. And this is only a part of Iran's missile weapons.
The presented Khaibar Shenkan rocket launchers are two-rocket (double-rocket) mounted on semi-trailers trailing for road (civilian) ballast tractors. All elements of the launcher are placed in the contour of the trailer, which makes it easy to disguise it, making it look like a 40-foot container or semi-trailer with an awning. The number of Khaibar Shenkan launchers and the missiles depicted on them should have left no doubt about mass production.
Videos of the launch of the Khaibar Shenkan missile were also presented, but they were produced from a single-shackle launcher on a three-axle military truck. The launcher is certainly compatible with Zolfaghar missiles and their derivatives.
