Is Fattah Missile of Iran Hypersonic?

After Iran’s “Fattah Missile” launch on Israel, defense circles are actively debating whether the missile is supersonic or hypersonic.

According to Iran, the Fattah missile is a hypersonic missile that falls under both ballistic and cruise missile categories.

The Fattah-1 hypersonic missile reportedly has a range of 1,400 kilometers and is capable of evading and destroying all missile defense systems. It belongs to a generation of solid-fuel missiles with speeds reaching Mach 13 to 15 before hitting its target.

Mach 15 translates to around 5 kilometers per second, which exceeds the typical speed of hypersonic missiles.

At the unveiling ceremony of the Fattah-1 missile, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, stated that the missile is extremely fast and cannot be destroyed by any existing missile system.

Following the unveiling, a billboard was placed in Tehran’s Palestine Square as a warning to Israel. It read: “Tel Aviv in 400 seconds.”

Four months later, the IRGC unveiled Fattah-2, described as a new generation of cruise missiles with a range of 1,500 kilometers. According to Iranian media, the Fattah-2 can fly at very low altitudes and change its trajectory multiple times during flight, making it harder to intercept.

International experts, however, remain skeptical about the missile’s speed and capabilities. The full technical details have not been disclosed, and its hypersonic classification has not been independently verified.

Still, Iran likely has the best understanding of its missile’s performance, and the reported destruction caused during the recent attack on Israel seems to support Iran’s claims to some extent.