The first Iranian regiment equipped with the S-300 PMU-2 systems will enter service by next February. The second regiment will enter service by August of 2016. It is what transpires from the main Russian news agencies.
One of the most sophisticated anti-aircraft systems in the world will arrive in Iran nine years late. The 800 million dollar contract for five S-300 defensive systems was signed in the 2007. The supply was then frozen following sanctions imposed by the United Nations on the Islamic Republic. Supply again called into question after the nuclear agreements signed last April between the world powers and Iran.
Last August, commenting on the 'S-300' affair, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, gave for certain the delivery of anti-aircraft systems by the end of the year. Israel has tried, in vain, to block the sale of S-300 systems. The reason is easy to understand: a defensive line, deployed close to Tehran's nuclear plants (considered the first targets in the event of an Israeli attack), would almost certainly cause heavy losses. If S-300 were to get hold of Hezbollah, Israel's regional air supremacy would be challenged.
Iranian S-300
The 9M82M missile known as "Antey-2500", (code name NATO SA-23 Gladiator \ Giant) is specifically designed for tactical defense against medium-range ballistic missiles or enemy aircraft. He can follow up to 100 targets, being able to hire 12 / 24 at a distance of 200 kilometers (124 miles) and at height of 27 kilometers (about 17 miles).
The SA-23 is considered immune to most Western ECM countermeasures with a operational tangency of thirty thousand meters. The Antey, once put on line, does not require maintenance for at least ten years, while its warheads are considered able to defeat even the most modern western ballistic missiles. It is driven by an inertial system with half-way radio updating, while in the terminal phase it relies on a semi-active radar. Probably the delivery of at least one 'V4' system, with a range of 400 km.
For the Russians, there is no aircraft (including the B-2, the F-22 and the F-35) capable of dealing with an S-400 system with impunity.
