Military Knowledge: Pakistan Missile Capability

Pakistan’s missile arsenal consists mainly of short-range and medium-range ballistic missiles, and important steps have been taken in the production of cruise missiles. Pakistan has received significant technical assistance from China in its nuclear and missile programs, and in addition to China, it has also benefited from military cooperation with Iran and North Korea.

The culmination of Pakistan’s missile program is reflected in the Shaheen 3 (Shaheen-III) missile project, which was successfully tested in the waters of the Arabian Sea on January 20, 2021, after modifying its technical design and carrying capacity.

Pakistan also has two prominent examples of cruise missiles, classified as “Babur” and “Ra’ad”. Babur is fired from land and sea at the target, and the Ra’ad can be fired from the warplane.

Pakistan has been building ballistic missiles since the 1980s under the Hatf project, which has continued unabated to this day with the support of the Pakistan government and military, and has achieved many goals for Pakistan.

Pakistan short-range missiles:

1- Hatf-1 missile:
Hatf-1 short-range ballistic missile, which is made in four types. The missile weight is 1,500 kilograms, 6 meters long and 0.56 meters in diameter, the warhead weight is 500 kilograms and has a range of 70 to 100 kilometers.

2- Abdali missile:
Hatf-2 or Abdali short-range ballistic missile (named after Ahmad Khan Abdali), the missile weight is 1750 kg, 9.75 meters long and 0.56 meters in diameter, with warhead weight of 500 kg. Range 280 km (with a load of 500 kg) up to 450 km (with a load of 300 kg) and accuracy of 100 to 150 meters.

3- Ghaznavi missile:
Hatf-3 or Ghaznavi short-range ballistic missile (named after the Ghaznavid dynasty), the missile weight is 5,256 kg, 9.64 m long and 0.88 m in diameter, with warhead weight of 700 kg and with a range of 290 to 320 km, capable of carrying nuclear warhead.

4- Shaheen 1 missile:
Hatf-4 or Shaheen 1 short-range ballistic missile (taken from Iqbal Lahori poem) is a missile with a weight of 9.5 to 10 tons, 12 meters long and 1 meter in diameter, with warhead weight of 1000 kg, and with 750 to 1000 km range, And has a high accuracy.

5- Nasr missile:
Hatf-9 or Nasr short-range ballistic missile is a missile with a weight of 1,200 kg, with warhead weight of 400 kg, with range of 70 km and accuracy of 1 meter.

Pakistan medium-range ballistic missiles:

6- Ababeel missile:
The Ababil medium-range ballistic missile is a missile with a length of 21.5 meters and a diameter of 1.7 meters, with warhead weight of 500 kg, and range of 2200 km, which is also capable of carrying nuclear warhead.

7- Ghauri missile:
The Hatf-5 or Ghauri medium-range ballistic missile (named after Sultan Shahabuddin Mohammad Ghauri) is a missile with weigh of 15850 kg, 15.9 m long and 1.35 m in diameter, with a range of 1350 to 1500 km.

8- Ghauri 2 missile:
The Hatf-5A or Ghauri 2 medium-range ballistic missile is a missile with a weight of 17,800 kg, 18 meters long and 1.35 meters in diameter, with warhead weight of 1,200 kilograms, and with range of 1,800 to 2,000 kilometers and is capable of carrying nuclear warhead.

9- Ghauri 3 missile:
The Hatf-8 medium-range ballistic missile, or Ghauri 3, was a 3,000 km missile which did not reach the production stage and its design was stopped. After the halt of Ghauri 3 project, Pakistan claimed to have built another ballistic missile called Tipu missile with a range of 4000 km, about which no information has been released yet.

10- Shaheen 2 missile:
The Hatf-6 or Shaheen 2 medium-range ballistic missile is a missile with a weight of 25,000 kg, 17.5 meters in length and 1.4 meters in diameter, with a range of 2500 km, which is also capable of carrying nuclear warhead.

11- Shaheen 3 missile:
The Shaheen 3 medium-range ballistic missile is a missile with a length of 19.3 meters and a diameter of 1.4 meters, with a range of 2750 kilometers.
The missile is capable of targeting all of India, including its islands, from positions south of Islamabad, as well as targeting Israeli if deployed in Balochistan province.