Rushed into service late last year to repair the extensive damage suffered during earlier campaigns, the newly integrated network was intended to serve as Iran’s ultimate multi-tier defensive anchor.
By Hezy Laing
The Israeli Air Force (IAF) executed a precision offensive dismantling Iran’s strategic long-range aerial defense networks across western and central regions.
Initiated during a devastating joint operation on February 28, 2026, the complex aerial campaign lasted approximately three hours.
This sustained assault severely compromised Iran’s flagship air defense layer, focusing on the Chinese-supplied HQ-9B surface-to-air missile installations.
Developed by the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC), the HQ-9B features a 260-kilometer radar tracking range and an engagement ceiling of 50 kilometers.
Iran acquired these hardware units in July 2025 via an oil-for-weapons deal with Beijing to replace underperforming Russian S-300 batteries.
This advanced Chinese hardware represented a completely new, unproven addition to Tehran’s military infrastructure, procured just months prior to the strikes.
Rushed into service late last year to repair the extensive damage suffered during earlier campaigns, the newly integrated network was intended to serve as Iran’s ultimate multi-tier defensive anchor.
Dozens of IAF F-16I Sufa fighter jets neutralized three distinct HQ-9B systems protecting vital Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) missile hubs, major drone storage nodes, and sensitive nuclear complexes.
Over the course of the intense three-hour bombardment, the installations failed to intercept incoming munitions, exposing severe vulnerabilities when confronted with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Harop loitering munitions, F-35 stealth fighters, and advanced electronic warfare techniques.
This specialized jamming completely blinded the system’s phased-array tracking radars, rendering its Mach 4 interceptors entirely ineffective.
The IDF released clear combat footage confirming direct kinetic impacts on targeted missile launcher units.
The strikes triggered immediate, massive secondary explosions, indicating the direct detonation of ready-to-fire ordnance sealed inside the canisters.
By systematically eliminating these radar arrays, the IAF achieved absolute air superiority over the sovereign airspace of Iran.
This destruction dismantles Iran’s interconnected “missile city” defensive doctrine designed to shield underground armories.
The elimination of the medium-range Khordad-15, short-range Pantsir-S1, and long-range HQ-9B tiers strips protection from crucial enrichment centers.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) verified structural damage at the Natanz nuclear facility following the localized defensive collapse, though inspectors confirmed no active radiation leakage occurred.
The systematic destruction of these advanced systems eliminates Iran’s capability to protect its weapons manufacturing facilities, leaving its broader industrial complex entirely vulnerable to future military actions.
