The joint air defense exercise, codenamed ‘Guardians of Velayat Sky-99’, will begin on Wednesday, the commander of the war game said.

The drill, involving air defense units from the Army and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), is aimed at boosting the combat preparedness and consolidate the air defense capabilities of the Armed Forces in simulated real-war conditions, General Qader Rahimzadeh said.

According to the commander, the upcoming drill will include various types of homegrown missile systems, radars, electronic warfare equipment, and communication systems countering aerial threats in low, medium and high altitudes.

The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force is planned to fly fighter jets, bombers and drones during the exercise, he added.

Iran’s Air Defense holds annual war games in order to enhance capabilities to defend the country’s airspace.

In 2018, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei underlined the important role that Iran’s Air Defense plays in protecting the country, saying it is on the front line of countering enemies.

The Spokesman for the Army’s “Zolfaqar 99″ Joint Exercise said on Thursday that during the wargame, the Iranian forces have witnessed the concentrated activity of American drones to gather information from the exercise area.

“These activities were detected by the army’s signal detection systems, and the drones were warned by the air defense,” added Rear Admiral Shahram Irani.

He noted that after they understood the surveillance, reconnaissance, and defense systems of the army are prepared, the Americans were forced to take their drones out of the area, according to IFP.

Iran’s Army is conducting the joint maneuver for three days in the country’s southern waters and in international waters.

The commander of the joint drill, codenamed Zolfaqar-99, said the main stage of the exercise will begin on Thursday and continue for three days.

The war game would include forces from the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force, and Air Defense, Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said, noting that the drill zone covers an area of 2 million square kilometers in eastern parts of the Strait of Hormuz, Makran Coast, Sea of Oman, and northern parts of the Indian Ocean, down to the 10-degrees latitude.

He also noted that a broad range of vessels, submarines, aircraft and new weapons will be utilized in the war game, including ‘Fateh’ homegrown submarine.

The Army forces will practice offense and defense tactics in the drill, the commander said, adding that a long-range drone, called Simorgh, would carry out patrol and reconnaissance operations and engage in combat against hostile vessels by dropping smart bombs with pinpoint accuracy.

He said the purpose of the exercise is to ensure security of regional waters and international shipping routes. “Security in West Asia and its vital and strategic waterways requires indigenization of security with constructive cooperation from all regional countries and prevention of foreign presence in regional waters.”

The war game is also aimed at enhancing Iran’s military preparedness to counter trans-regional threats and exercise plans for a crushing response to any act of aggression, the commander said.

He also warned the enemies that any strategic mistake would make Iran define a theater for reaction that would not be confined to West Asia.

Iran’s Armed Forces hold routine military exercises throughout the year.

Iranian officials have repeatedly underscored that the country will not hesitate to strengthen its military capabilities, including its missile power, which are entirely meant for defense, and that Iran’s defense capabilities will be never subject to negotiations.

A spokesperson for Payambar-e Azam 14 (The Great Prophet) war game, whose final stage began on Tuesday morning, said the military exercise is based upon plans for fighting hybrid warfare and network-oriented combats proportional to the IRGC’s offense doctrine.

General Abbas Nilforushan noted that the forces attending the drills make maximum use of telecommunication and optical devices and well as manned and unmanned equipment to exercise tactics for biological warfare.

Anti-ballistic and anti-cruise missile defense operations were carried out in the war game, he added.

The general also said the IRGC forces have used a series of “surprising equipment and weapons” in the drills, such as long-range ballistic missiles capable of hitting the intruding naval targets at a far distance.

The spokesman added that the exercise involves a large number of popular forces and Naval Basij servicemen.

The military exercise has been held in Iran’s southern province of Hormozgan, western parts of the Strait of Hormuz, and the Persian Gulf.

The final stage of the war game includes joint operations by missile units, vessels and drones from the IRGC Navy and missile, drone and radar units from the IRGC Aerospace Force.

Satellite images taken by Iran’s homegrown ‘Noor’ (light) satellite that was launched into space in April have been used to evaluate the situation in the war game zone.

The IRGC Public Relations said the final stage of the military exercise, codenamed “Payambar-e Azam 14 (The Great Prophet)”, started on Tuesday morning in Hormozgan, the south of Iran western, parts of the Strait of Hormuz, and the Persian Gulf.

The joint exercise, including forces from the IRGC Navy and the IRGC Aerospace Force, involves ground, aerial, naval, and space operations.

The final stage of the exercise in the South includes joint operations by missile units, vessels, and drones from the IRGC Navy and missile, drone and radar units from the IRGC Aerospace Force.

The servicemen attending the war game exercise offensive operations using missiles, drones and vessels, offensive mine-laying operations, and tactics to cut off the naval connections of the hypothetical enemy, missile combat operations using helicopters, and launch of coast-to-sea missiles.

Satellite images taken by Iran’s homegrown ‘Noor’ (light) satellite that was launched into space in April have been used to evaluate the situation in the war game zone.

The IRGC successfully put Noor into orbit on April 22. The Iranian satellite was launched with the three-stage satellite carrier Qassed (messenger) from a launchpad in the Dasht-e Kavir, a large desert in central Iran.

Iran’s Armed Forces hold routine military exercises throughout the year.

Iranian officials have repeatedly underscored that the country will not hesitate to strengthen its military capabilities, including its missile power, which are entirely meant for defense, and that Iran’s defense capabilities will be never subject to negotiations.

Back in February 2018, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei called for efforts to maintain and boost Iran’s defense capabilities.