The Saudi Air Defense Forces succeeded in confronting various types of air attacks that targeted many areas, most notably winged cruise missiles, thus confirming their high combat readiness and exceptional efficiency in protecting the security of the homeland and developing an integrated safety system that protects civilian objects and vital infrastructure from all cross-border threats.
During the past few years, a number of winged missiles were intercepted, the most recent of which was Thursday, in the airspace of Medina, and another missile was intercepted over Al-Kharj Governorate, in addition to confronting 5 missiles that targeted the capital, Riyadh, including a missile that targeted the vicinity of King Khalid International Airport.
The successful interception operations over residential areas resulted in falling shrapnel and debris, resulting in limited material damage, including about 15 homes and minor injuries among civilians. However, these threats did not succeed in achieving their sabotage goals thanks to the combat readiness of the air defense systems.
The Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces deal with high efficiency in the challenges posed by cruise missiles and low-altitude air threats, relying on an integrated and interconnected air defense network that is considered one of the strongest and most modern in the region.
Saudi Arabia has advanced capabilities in confronting these threats through mechanisms it has developed over the years, starting with monitoring and early warning layers that detect hidden threats, through precise interception systems that are distinguished by their superior ability to track and intercept winged missiles and drones with complete accuracy, all the way to short- and medium-range defense systems to protect vital installations, airports, and urban areas from any potential intrusion.
A cruise missile is defined as a suicide drone similar in structure to small fighters. It operates with a jet engine (turboprop or jet) that enables it to fly long distances and cover thousands of kilometres. Cruise missiles represent a complex security challenge to air defense networks. Due to its small radar footprint and its ability to fly at very low altitudes, it is obscured from the conventional radar horizon until late in its flight path.
Brigadier General Hassan Al-Shehri, a military analyst and expert, said that the cruise missile is a guided missile that flies inside the atmosphere, with a jet engine and wings, like a suicide drone. It flies at a very low altitude, making it difficult for radars to detect it.
He added: “The strengths of the cruise missile lie in its high accuracy, the ability to program a path to circumvent defenses, and its small radar footprint. Various countries stand out in its manufacture, the most important of which are the United States, China, France, and Britain, with different types of winged missile families.”
Regarding the most prominent air defense systems capable of confronting it, Al-Shehri said it is the “Patriot” system, which is available in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. It is a mobile system designed to intercept aircraft, low-profile “cruise” missiles, and tactical ballistic missiles, in addition to other systems.
He added: “More important than the system are airborne early warning aircraft, which are also available in Saudi Arabia, in addition to combat aircraft, which deal with a cruise missile that flies at a low level, below the horizon of ground radars, and its early detection requires aerial radar.”
Brigadier General Al-Shehri noted the high capabilities of the Saudi air defense in dealing with this type of missiles, pointing out that Saudi Arabia has a multi-layered defense that deals with various types of threats, in addition to fighters and early warning aircraft, and the accumulated combat experience that the Saudi air defense has acquired, most of which succeeded in intercepting threats coming from the Houthi militia or Iran and Iraq.
Brigadier General Hassan Al-Shehri explained that field data and data reveal the falsity of the narrative spread by the Houthi militia regarding its claim to manufacture these weapons locally. Pointing out that the United Nations team of experts has presented evidence since 2020 proving that some components of the “Quds 1” missile are based on an unlicensed copy of a small Czech jet engine, with information suggesting that it was developed using advanced Chinese technologies, as estimates indicate that the “Quds 1” is nothing but the Houthi name for the Iranian missile “Pawah”, given the complete identicalness between them in shape and design.
Al-Shehri added that the high manufacturing quality of these missiles makes it likely that they will be entirely produced outside Yemen, pointing out that the designs and sensitive components of the engines and guidance systems come from multiple sources, most notably Iran, China and Russia.
The military expert confirmed that the Houthi militia completely lacks these complex manufacturing capabilities, as members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah in Lebanon are responsible for the actual operation and launch operations, in addition to the assistance of Houthi elements who previously received extensive training courses in Iran and southern Lebanon.
Regarding the mechanism of the arrival of these weapons, Brigadier General Al-Shehri explains that the process depends on organized smuggling and financing networks, where the missiles are shipped after being produced externally in the form of fragmented parts and components into Yemen, to be later assembled in workshops and designated secret areas, which gave some Houthi elements practical experience in assembly and assembly techniques, to a greater degree than their limited launching capabilities.
At the conclusion of his speech, the military analyst pointed out that the militia had recently suffered heavy human and technical losses, including the deaths of a number of Iranian experts supervising these systems, which was directly reflected in its field efficiency. This led to the failure of more than 4 missiles to be launched during the past week alone, and their ricocheting and falling inside Yemeni territory.
