How significant is Iran's unveiling of latest hypersonic cruising missile?
Iran continues to voice support for Hamas in its war against Israel while boosting its own military capabilities.
![A truck carries an Iranian Fattah hypersonic ballistic missile during the annual military parade marking the anniversary of the outbreak of the devastating 1980-1988 war with Saddam Hussein's Iraq, in Tehran, Iran, Sept. 22, 2023.](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/2023-11/GettyImages-1683466575%20%281%29.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=75Rny04Z)
Iran unveiled on Sunday new hypersonic missile, a potential boost to Iran’s military capabilities amid the Israel-Hamas war.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force unveiled the Fattah 2 at Ashura Aerospace Science and Technology University during a visit by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
Iran unveiled its first Fattah hypersonic missile in June, claiming it could hit targets at a distance of 1,400 kilometers (870 miles). The report did not specify how the Fattah 2 differs from the original Fattah, but said the Fattah 2 is in both the hypersonic glide vehicle and hypersonic cruise missile classes of weapons. The agency did not mention whether the Fattah 2 has been tested.
Hypersonic glide vehicles are launched from a rocket, like ballistic missiles, while hypersonic cruise missiles are powered by engines of their own. Hypersonic missiles travel at five times the speed of sound or more.