TEHRAN - Yousef Qorbani, the commander of the Iranian Army Airborne, announced on Monday that his forces have mounted modern cannons and rocket-launchers on the transport helicopters. 

Qorbani’s remarks came on the sidelines of a ceremony commemorating Major General Ahmad Keshvari, who was martyred in Iraq’s war against Iran during the Saddam regime in the 1980s). 

The date of Keshvari’s martyrdom, 7 December, is remembered as "Havanirooz (Army Aviation) Day" in the Iranian military calendar.

“Previously, helicopter 214, which is a transport helicopter, could not defend itself and that was a weak point for the said helicopter. Today, the Airborne Unit’s helicopters have been equipped with 20mm Cannons and rocket-launchers,” Second Brigadier General Qorbani said in the ceremony. 

“The missiles that were previously mounted on our choppers enjoyed finally 3,500 meters of effective range but in the last 2 years the Airborne with the cooperation of the country’s defense industries and universities have managed to produce long-range missiles and have mounted them on the choppers,” he explained. 

The commander went on to say that the Airborne unit has attained self-sufficiency in producing its spare parts. “We are producing nearly 240,000 different parts inside the country.”

He said, The Airborne Unit turned sanctions into an opportunity.” 

In recent years, Iran has made great strides in the defense sector and become self-sufficient in producing essential military hardware and defense systems.

Iran has made it clear that its military might is merely defensive and that it poses no threat to other countries.  

MJ/PA