Saturday, December 27, 2014

'Muhammad Rasullullah' multi-service maneuvers (1)

'Muhammad Rasullullah' multi-service maneuvers, comprising NEZAJA, IRIN, IRIAF and IRIADF. "Main stage" of maneuver scheduled from 25-31 December over an area stretching from the northern Indian Ocean to the Strait of Hormuz, to the southern Iranian provinces of Sistan-Baluchestan and Hormozgan. Following magery from 25DEC14:

NEZAJA (Islamic Republic of Iran Army Ground Force)
NEZAJA T-72S main battle tank

NEZAJA Brigadier General 2C before T-72S main battle tank

NEZAJA BMP-2 infantry fighting 

Pair of NEZAJA BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles

NEZAJA column of armor being trailered to maneuver site

NEZAJA SBIG/DIO Hadid HM-20 122 mm MLRS

NEZAJA D-30 towed howitzer firing 122 mm artillery shell

NEZAJA D-30 122 mm towed howitzer position

NEZAJA M1954 (M-46) 130 mm towed field gun

What appear to be 122 mm artillery rounds for the D-30 howitzer

NEZAJA corporal sighting SPG-9 type variant tripod-mounted man-portable, 73 mm recoilless gun

NEZAJA second warrant officer manning DIO DShK type variant 12.7x108mm heavy machine gun

NEZAJA DIO MGA3 7.62×51mm general-purpose heavy machine gun

NEZAJA DIO 14.5mm anti-material sniper rifle

NEZAJA DIO HM-13 60 mm mortar

NEZAJA second sergeant equipped with DIO G3 battle rifle

NEZAJA third sergeant equipped with DIO G3-A3 battle rifle


NEZAJA communication team operating AN/PRC-77 Portable Transceivers

Detail of NEZAJA soldiers equipped with AN/PRC-77 Portable Transceiver

NEZAJA soldiers equipped with AMICO motorbike


65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade, Islamic Republic of Iran Army Aviation
IRIAA Bell 214A Isfahan transporting counter-terrorist team from 65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade

LZ practice drop for counter-terrorist team from 65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade

Disembarkation from IRIAA Bell 214A Isfahan

65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade counter-terrorist team practice assault

65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade counter-terrorism simulation

65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade member equipped with G3 battle rifle fitted with telescopic sight

NEZAJA Banihashem ATV 500 assisting counter-terrorist team from 65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade

65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade platoon formation

Detail of tactical eyewear, 65th Airborne Special Forces Brigade


Islamic Republic of Iran Navy
IRINS Jamaran (76) Moudge class guided missile frigate (FFGH)

IRIN Kilo class diesel-electric submarine (SSK)

IRIN Aviation Sikorsky RH-53D Sea Stallion (S-65C-4), serial 9-2702 (cn 65-413)

IRI Marine lieutenant before IRIN Aviation Sikorsky RH-53D Sea Stallion

IRIN Mk 105 Magnetic Sweeper to be towed by IRIN Aviation Sikorsky RH-53D Sea Stallion


Islamic Republic of Iran Army UAVs
Ghods Mohajer-2 reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle UAV

Ghods Mohajer-4 reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), airframe #AO41-65

Launch ramps for Ghods Mohajer type UAVs

Rocket-assisted launch of Ghods Mohajer-4 reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), airframe #AO41-65


Iran military mobile medical unit
Surgical team of an Iran military mobile medical unit

Examination section of Iran military mobile medical unit

Lab section of Iran military mobile medical unit

Dental section of Iran military mobile medical unit


VIDEOS:

Photo credits:
Mahdi Marizad at Fars News Agency
Chavosh Homavandi at Jamejam.ir
Alireza Ghaffari at AJA.ir
Islamic Republic News Agency

14 comments:

Mark Pyruz said...

Apologies for tardiness in posting this material. Holiday commitments.

Anonymous said...

Iran has come a long way since the dark days of the Jange Tahmili and the equipment even though dated is in excellent shape. However, the WW2 tinpot US helmets have to be replaced by Kevlar ones along with proper body armor for all soldiers. There also seems to a lack of individual communications equipment for soldiers, that is surprising since how cheap it is these days to acquire or manufacture and Iranian electronic manufacturing is not that bad considering some of the new radars. Encrypted tactical individual radios are a must for any modern military for individual communications and Iran must invest in them. The individual soldier's battlefield kit upgrades should includes new helmets, flak jackets with bulletproof plates, ballistic goggles, kneepads, uniforms, and communications and navigation equipment, as well as thermal and night-vision sights for firearms. Iran is easily capable of producing all of those or importing them.

Anonymous said...

One of the helmets looks like it has been hit by a mortar right on top. I mean come on ...why no kevlar helmets... and flak jackets should be standard issue... even Syrias troops are better armed and armored than Irans. They would be smart to at least fully equip the ones photos are being taken of, but no, their brains couldnt think that far... that would have conveyed the picture of Irans troops being well equipped or well armed. But to their defence... just fundamentally Iran may have too many troops...which naturaly makes it costly and difficult to properly outfit them all with the best stuff.

Anonymous said...

how come army never exercises in north of Iran in and around the forrests ? always exercise in the southern deserts. why is that ?

Anonymous said...

If we look at the western forces in the previous Iraq war all of them had such gear, including protective gear for biological and chemical weapons which they quickly put on when required. Good encrypted radio communications with GPS positioning is a must for every soldier. Fighting at night was not a problem as they all had thermal and night-vision not only on weapons but also mounted on a clip at the front of their helmets. Since then they still have been impoving their gear such as like this with their body armour and here is some information.

After the Vietnam War, military planners developed a concept of “Casualty Reduction”. The large body of casualty data made clear that in a combat situation, fragments, not bullets, were the greatest threat to soldiers. After WWII vests were being developed and fragment testing was in its early stages. Artillery shells, mortar shells, aerial bombs, grenades, and antipersonnel mines are all fragmentation devices. They all contain a steel casing that is designed to burst into small steel fragments or shrapnel, when their explosive core detonates. After considerable effort measuring fragment size distribution from various NATO and Soviet Bloc munitions, a fragment test was developed and used, and also used with various sized and velocities bullet projectiles. Military personnel can only carry a limited amount of gear and equipment, so the weight of the vest is a limiting factor in vest protection.

The Small Arms Protective Insert (SAPI) is a ceramic trauma plate used by the United States Armed Forces. It was first used in the Interceptor body armor, a ballistic vest. It is now also used in the Improved Outer Tactical Vest as well as the Modular Tactical Vest, in addition to commercially available "plate carriers". The kevlar Interceptor vest itself is only designed to stop projectiles up to and including 9x19mm Parabellum submachine gun rounds, in addition to fragmentation. To protect against higher velocity rifle rounds, additionally SAPI plates are needed.

ESAPI - In May 2005, the U.S. Armed Forces began replacing the standard Small Arms Protective Insert plates with the Enhanced Small Arms Protective Insert (ESAPI). An ESAPI provides protection from .30-06 M2 Armor-piercing rounds with a steel or tungsten penetrator, but costs about $600 per plate, 50% more than SAPI plates. They are produced by Ceradyne, BAE Systems, and ArmorWorks Enterprises.

XSAPI - A call for a next generation plate, to stop even greater velocity threats than the ESAPI plate has been issued by the U.S. Army. They have specifically allowed scalar or flexible systems, and are also calling for greater coverage, with less than a pound of additional weight.

Materials and capabilities - The standard plate for the Interceptor body armor is made of boron carbide or silicon carbide ceramic. New ESAPI plates are also made of boron carbide. The standard plates are not given an NIJ rating, as they are tested in accordance with specific protocols for the military and not the NIJ's testing. Military testing calls for survivability of three hits from the round marked on the plate - for standard SAPI, of a caliber up to 7.62x51mm NATO M80 ball and of a muzzle velocity up to 2,750 ft/s (840 m/s). For ESAPI, a .30cal M2 AP (.30-06 black-tip armor-piercing) cartridge. This performance is only assured when backed by the soft armor of the OTV (or any soft armor which meets military requirements for protection. The ceramic plate is backed with a shield made of Spectra, a material up to 40% stronger than Kevlar., to trap any fragments of either plate or projectile and prevent them from injuring the wearer.

Physics - The mechanism of effect lies in absorbing and dissipating the projectile's kinetic energy in local shattering of the ceramic plate and blunting the bullet material on the hard ceramic. The Spectra backing then spreads the energy of the impact to a larger area and stops the fragments, reducing the likelihood of fatal injury to the wearer.

Anonymous said...

In the northern terrains the special forces conduct exercises regularly. In northern country regular army also conducts training, but mainly it is the task of the special forces to halt any invading force. Iran has a "massive" special forces concentration for those areas. Due to the terrain Iran knows exactly to how halt and counter-attack any invading force with minimum number of troops. Part of the special forces are also trained for "snow" conditions and skiing. Equipment and training has been done by Russian forces for snowy conditions (especially how to survive in those cold conditions).
The other reason is that Iran feel more threats coming from the sea than from the northern parts and as such it concentrates its maneuvers mainly for the southern part of the country.

Anonymous said...

they are holding military maneuvers in that part of Iran probably because they think that is where an external threat to their security may emanate from . If you are asking me , I think they ought to do these military exercises wherever they could find and fight those d--- takfiris and Talibans .

Anonymous said...

In today's world's situation, more important, than "some" armor of your or others "choice" - to undermine the credibility and attempts to lower morale of Iranian population, are Iranian allies in the world and the influence of Geopolitics on the security of the Islamic Republic.
Unbiased people will acknowledge that, the time and development of events work against Islamic Republic's adversaries, as well as that those events will be magnified by an increase of the Iranian population as well.

I would advise you to analyze and to be "sad " about the unquestionable achievements of the Islamic Republic in its other aspects of military achievements which include but are not limited to its missile arsenals.

+A

Anonymous said...

To me this is just a practical exercise against an imaginary enemy and gives soldiers an opportunity to fire their weapons, so a few things are being experienced and learnt. Heaps more could be learnt by each soldier, including real practical fighting skills, if instead they fought against real enemy, like Takfiris and Talibans who would fight back with real weapons that can kill. But maybe most on this manoeuvre might be new soldiers who are completing their basic training plus the next stage of training, where they might not be ready yet for real practical fighting where that maybe the next stage.

Unknown said...

In regards to the Manpack radios seen in the picture in use by the Iranian Army. They are not AN/PRC-77 Portable Transceiver. They are using PRC-110 series radios built by Iran Electronic Industries.

For those here that critisize Iran for not equiping every soldier with individual Radios and NVGs, thereis not a single military in the world that outfits all its troops with such expensive equipment. Radios are usually used at the section level at the smallest level for Infantry units such as what we see in these pictures.

Anonymous said...

The Russians that liberated Crimea all had individual radios. You can check reports on NY Times and Washpost. Even the US was amazed at the new battlefield kit of the Russian "Green" soldiers in Crimea.

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry ABOLFASR but you are not correct as you do not know and nor have you seen western combat soldiers deployed in the field in Afghanistan and Iraq, where each western combat soldier certainly did have such equipment. The Russians saw it including President Putin who decided to start modernise his soldiers with similar equipment as overall it could give an extra edge or tactical advantage to those who do have it.

US battlefield combat radio models can vary depending which one each unit was issued with and when issued, they also get upgraded when newer models become available similarly like civilians upgrade their mobile phones.
One recent model is the SRX 2200 so if you look that one up it will give an idea of the details of what is being used.
The US Air Force has upgraded some recently and placed orders for the Falcon III AN/PRC-117G multiband man pack and AN/PRC-152A multiband handheld tactical radio systems. Both radios are equipped with the Harris Adaptive Networking Wideband Waveform, which is designed for interoperability among a wide range of radio systems and software applications. The radios are also certified to operate with the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) waveform, and can also work with SINCGARS, HAVEQUICK, and P25 waveforms for secure tactical use.
The company also ships these models to all branches of the US military and to more than 15 allied nations.

Here is the part from the New York Times about the Russians in Crimea which the other person referred too:-

There was another indicator of an army undergoing an upgrade: compact encrypted radio units distributed at the small-unit level, including for soldiers on such routine duty as guard shifts beside machine-gun trucks. The radios are a tell-tale sign of a sweeping modernization effort undertaken five years ago by Vladimir V. Putin that has revitalized Russia’s conventional military abilities, frightening some of its former vassal states in Eastern Europe and forcing NATO to re-evaluate its longstanding view of post-Soviet Russia as a nuclear power with limited ground muscle.

The radios were one part of a broad element of Mr. Putin’s military overhaul: the replacement of equipment carried by individual soldiers. Known as the Ratnik program — from the Russian word for warrior — the upgrade includes new helmets, flak jackets with bulletproof plates, ballistic goggles, kneepads, uniforms, and communications and navigation equipment, as well as thermal and night-vision sights for firearms.

Apparently modelled after the equipment upgrades visible on Western soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq for more than a decade, the Ratnik kit has not yet been fully fielded. But many of its signature components were evident in Crimea, including the uniforms, helmets, goggles, flak jackets and kneepads.

Out on the roads, Russian forces could also be seen deploying electronic-warfare platforms, including the new Tigr-M and the R-330Zh jamming station, which can block GPS and satellite telephone signals.

While analysts said that there was now better equipment and training throughout the Russian military, some cautioned against drawing too broad a conclusion based on the forces in Crimea, many of which were part of elite units that were among the first to benefit from the overhaul.

Regarding ISIL. Each member of ISIL just uses their mobile phones to communicate with each other, and the mobile phones do have GPS navigation with satellite maps of the area where they are.

Anonymous said...

Your analysis is correct. If you look at Syrian footage of President Assad's inspection visit with frontline soldiers in Jobar near Damascus at beginning of New Year, all SAA soldiers have individual communication radios and body armor. The Syrian military appears to get the first rate Russian equipment and looks highly motivated and professional with a very high morale as the pictures on Al-Manar show.

Anonymous said...

That doesn't surprise me in Syria and years ago Russia's Putin saw what the western nations had in Iraq and Afghanistan where he then started the modernisation Ratnik program to upgrade and overhaul his military forces, which included new helmets, flak jackets with bulletproof plates (Body Armour), ballistic goggles, kneepads, uniforms, and communications and navigation equipment, as well as thermal and night-vision sights for firearms.

In Iraq Body Armour is becoming common where already a few western nations have given lots of Body Armour to the Iraqi and Peshmerga. Even the British gave 10 tons worth and the latest is that the US is going to provide them with yet more, with Body Armour and guns to 45,000 soldiers, 15,000 Kurdish Peshmerga and 5,000 Sunni tribal forces.

I do know that the US is going to upgrade their Body Armour to the very latest new technology in Body Armour. Maybe the Body Armour that they are giving away is some of their older version, but would still offer protection and it would be better than not having any Body Armour. Maybe the western nations that gave away Body Armour to Iraq and the Peshmerga might also be upgrading their Body Armour to the very latest new technology in Body Armour.

By the way, the Peshmerga that don't use Encrypted Radios for their communications means use their Smartphones instead and everyone has a Smartphone, and when they go back on duty to their military units, their Smartphones remain switched on in a pocket of their Body Armour. ISIL's fighters use Smartphones and they just put it in any pocket.