Review: Yemen's 8 indigenous drones that changed military equations

The Yemeni army and its Houthi allies have successfully changed the military equation in a brutal Saudi war by at least eight military drones which they have manufactured domestically. 

Saudi Arabia launched the war in March 2015, wishing to beat Yemen into submission in a matter of “months”, but it has become deeply bogged down after more than four years, thanks to the resistance of the Yemeni army and its Houthi allies.

Yemen's Arabic-language Ansarullah news portal on Thursday published a report on game-changing military achievements of the Yemeni army in designing and manufacturing missiles and military drones.

According to the report, Yemen currently possesses 11 missile systems, some of which are completely indigenous and some others upgraded versions of Russian ones.

One of these missiles is Quds-1 winged missile, which is capable of traveling as far as 1,700 kilometers, it added.

The report also briefly reviewed eight combat and surveillance drones the Yemeni army has produced during the war, saying the aircraft have changed the military equation, particularly through cross-border attacks on the kingdom.

PressTV-Yemeni drones hit world's largest refinery in Saudi Arabia

Yemeni drones have hit two oil facilities of Saudi Arabia's state oil giant Aramco in the country's east, causing huge fires before dawn Saturday. 

The most significant attack by the Yemeni drones was carried out on September 14, when 10 Yemeni combat drones struck Saudi Arabia’s two oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais, reducing output of the mainly light crude grades by 5.7 million barrels.

The attacks led to a halt in about 50 percent of the kingdom’s crude and gas production, causing a record surge in oil prices.

The eight Yemeni drones technically reviewed by the Ansarullah news portal are as follows:

Hod Hod

A surveillance drone, equipped with the most advanced technology in photography

Hard to detect by radars due to its small size

Hard to hear from the ground due to the low sound of its engine 

Extremely difficult to be targeted by laser rockets

Flight time: 90 minutes

Operational range: 30 kilometers

Raqib

A surveillance drone, capable of direct detection of the enemy’s position with the help of laser technology

Equipped with several photography technologies, including infrared photography

Easy to be carried by the infantry

Flight time: 90 minutes

Operational range: 15 kilometers

Rased

A surveillance drone, capable of detecting the enemy’s targets and monitoring of the battlefield

Equipped with the most advanced technology in photography and mapping

Sammad-1

A surveillance drone

Capable of monitoring targets and transmitting the collected data directly to the operating room

Operational range: 500 kilometers

Qasef-1

A combat drone

Tipped with a 30-kilogram warhead

Having a warhead that can be changed according to the mission

Equipped with a smart system for detecting and striking

Qasef K2

A combat drone

Unveiled in January this year

Capable of delivering a sizable amount of explosives

Capable of of being blown up 10 meters above the target to produce many shrapnel pieces

Sammad-2

A combat drone

Operational range: 1,300 kilometers

Equipped with advanced signal jamming technology  

Capable of performing tactical and stealth maneuvers

In June 2018, Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities were targeted by this drone.

Sammad-3

A stealth combat drone

Operational range: 1,700 kilometers

Capable of hitting the target from above or destroying the target in a kamikaze attack

Yemeni forces regularly target positions inside Saudi Arabia in retaliation for its airstrikes.

The US-based Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a nonprofit conflict-research organization, estimates that the Saudi war has claimed more than 91,000 lives over the past four and a half years.

The war has also taken a heavy toll on the country’s infrastructure, destroying hospitals, schools, and factories. The UN says over 24 million Yemenis are in dire need of humanitarian aid, including 10 million suffering from extreme levels of hunger.

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