Iranupdated 28m ago2 min read
Imam Khomeini Decree Formed IRGC Air Force Branches, Later Renamed Air Space Force
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IRGC air activities started as limited units and evolved into a dedicated aerospace force. Missile, reconnaissance, and air defense capabilities expanded, enhancing Iran's regional deterrence power.
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IRGC air power evolves
Imam Khomeini (RA) issued a decree to Mohsen Rezaee on 26 Shahrivar 1364 (Sept 17, 1985), ordering the formation of three branches, and the IRGC Air Force gained a more formal and organized shape alongside the other two forces. The Ra’d Reconnaissance Battalion was described as an early UAV unit that began with aerial photography and information gathering, then continued as a UAV unit after being transferred to the IRGC Air Force. The IRGC Air Force was renamed the Air Space Force in Mehr 1388 (October 2009), and Sardar Amir-Ali Hajizadeh was appointed its commander.
Khabaronline linked Iran’s early missile milestone to the firing of Iran’s first ballistic missile on 21 Esfand 1363 (March 11, 1985) from the Kurdistan region toward the Kirkuk refinery in Iraq. Khabaronline described the Ra’d Reconnaissance Battalion as an early UAV unit that began with aerial photography and information gathering, then continued as a UAV unit after being transferred to the IRGC Air Force.
Missile operations and messaging
Khabaronline said the Leilat al-Qadr missile operation on 28 Khordad 1396 (June 17, 2017) fired six medium-range ballistic missiles from the provinces of Kurdistan and Kermanshah toward targets in the Deir ez-Zor region of Syria.
The operation was conducted in response to terrorist attacks in Tehran earlier that month, and it described the strike as a practical demonstration of the IRGC’s missile capability outside Iran’s borders.
The IRGC missiles targeted the U.S. Ayn al-Asad base in Iraq on 8 January 1399 (January 2020) after the assassination of Sardar Qasem Soleimani, and it named the operation “Martyr Soleimani.”
Tasnīm quoted Mohsen Rezaei on Aerospace Day, writing, "The missile industry of the Islamic Republic of Iran stands as a proud symbol of faith, courage, initiative, and jihadi management,".
Tasnīm quoted Rezaei again, saying the force aims for an "immediate, effective, and proportionate response to any threat, anywhere, and without geographical limitations" against the American-Zionist enemy.
Deterrence, air defense, and anniversaries
Amir Sarlis? Ali Reza Halimi, Commander of the KHATAM-AL-ANBIYA (PBUH) Joint Air Defense Command, sent a congratulatory message to the commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force on the occasion of Aerospace Week.
Halimi congratulated Sardar Sardar Sayed Majid Mousavi, Commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, and the message appreciated efforts in developing advanced defense technologies and strengthening deterrent power.
خبرگزاری مهر framed Iran’s missile capability as a component of defensive power and deterrence, and it said the narrative began with experiences of the Iran-Iraq War, arms restrictions, broad sanctions, and the necessity to rely on domestic power.
خبرگزاری مهر said the report marked the fifteenth anniversary of the martyrdom of General Hassan Taheranigomhad and described a renewed opportunity to review the path that began in the difficult days of the war and early missile experiences.
خبرگزاری مهر also said Iraq launched missiles at Dezful on 17 Mehr 1359 (October 9, 1980), and it added that the Iraqi army targeted Dezful with a FROG-7 missile, killing 70 innocent residents.