Sedjil (air-to-air missile)

Sedjil
Sedjil
Type	Air-to-air missile
Service history
In service	1988 April 4
Used by	Iran
Production history
Manufacturer	Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organization Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force
Specifications
Mass	500 kg
Length	5 m
Diameter	40 cm
Propellant	Solid fuel
Operational; range	90 km
Maximum speed	mach 4-5
Guidance; system	guided semi-active radar

Sedjil (Persian: سجیل) is an Iranian semi-active radar homing air-to-air missile.^[1]^[6]^[7] It is made by the Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force and is actually a modified version of the surface-to-air MIM-23 HAWK. The Sedjil weighs approximately 500 kg, its length is 5 meters and its diameter is about 40 cm. The effective range of the missile is approximately 90 km. Its speed is estimated to be about mach 4-5.^[1]

After six years of combat in the Iran-Iraq War, the prolonged conflict led to a shortage of weapons for Iranian forces, and they felt the need to procure additional weapons systems.^[1] The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, employed an experienced test pilot, Fereidoun Ali-Mazandarani, as the experimental pilot in November 1986, and succeeded in synchronizing the mentioned missile with the AN/AWG-9 radar of the F-14 Tomcat launch aircraft. Experts in the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force also presented a related plan to convert the HAWK missiles. This plan was presented for the first time on 12 August 1986 with the name of "Project-Sedjil" by Ata'Allah-Bazargan (a high-ranking military pilot) and Fereidun Ali Mazandarani. It was submitted to the Iranian Air Force.^[8] The missile^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12] was finally manufactured on 4 April 1988.^[13]

Operational history

In its first military use Cpt. Mazandarani managed to shoot down one Super Etendard over Persian Gulf from 20 km away.^[14]

According to Iranian military documents and the book "Battle in the Sky" written by Brigadier General Fazllolah Javidnia, a MiG-29A was shot down by an F-14A using this missile in 1988.^[14]