Iran to unveil new naval surveillance aircraft

TEHRAN, Jan. 17(MNA) – Iran`s Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi announced on Monday that a new domestically manufactured naval surveillance aircraft will be unveiled in the near future. He said that it is more than likely that the surveillance aircraft, which has been designed and manufactured by Iranian engineers, will be unveiled during the Ten-Day Dawn celebrations (February 1-11) marking the anniversary of the victory of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Vahidi also said that the aircraft enjoys all features of a modern surveillance aircraft and has a long range, adding that it is equipped with advanced radar and optical systems. It is also able to air-drop military equipment and ammunition, he added. Elsewhere in his remarks, the defense minister said that Iran will send a rocket carrying a biological capsule into space in the near future. “The project is in its final stage of completion, and it is likely that the Kavoshgar (Explorer) will be launched into space in the not too distant future,” he said. On August 22, 2011, the Iranian Space Agency (ISA) announced that the domestically manufactured Kavoshgar 5 rocket will be launched into space by the end of summer. The rocket, weighing 300 kilograms, will carry a capsule containing a rhesus monkey, ISA Director Hamid Fazeli said at the time.