The HESA Bavar 2 ( fa, باور ٢) is a
ground effect vehicle
A ground-effect vehicle (GEV), also called a wing-in-ground-effect (WIG), ground-effect craft, wingship, flarecraft or ekranoplan (russian: экранопла́н – "screenglider"), is a vehicle that is able to move over the surface by gainin ...
unveiled in September 2010 by the
IRGC Navy
The Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ( fa, نیروی دریایی سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی, niru-ye daryâyi-e sepâh-e pâsdârân-e enghelâb-e eslâmi; officially abbreviated NEDSA ( fa, ندسا), als ...
. It is designed to have a small radar signature, and therefore be difficult to track on
radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...
, to be able to remain undetected while carrying out patrol missions. The vehicle can be equipped with different kinds of weapons including locally produced rockets and missiles.
The design is based on the work of
Alexander Lippisch
Alexander Martin Lippisch (November 2, 1894 – February 11, 1976) was a German aeronautical engineer, a pioneer of aerodynamics who made important contributions to the understanding of tailless aircraft, delta wings and the ground effect, and a ...
and is similar in concept to the 1970s experimental
RFB X-113
The RFB X-113 Aerofoil Boat was an experimental ground effect vehicle intended to work over water. It was one of three such aircraft designed by Alexander Lippisch in the 1960s and early 1970s. The X-113 first flew in 1970; only one was built.
...
.
Analysis
Because they ride on a cushion of air generated between their wings and the water's surface and don't actually fly, as such, surface-effect vehicles (SEVs) are able to sustain payloads approximately three times the weight of those carried by equivalent-sized airplanes. This fact - taken together with their small size, quick acceleration, high speed, close proximity to the water and ability to blend-in with small, stationary boats on radar while loitering - makes small SEVs like the Bavar ideal platforms for carrying-out asymmetric approaches to conventional naval surface forces, especially at night and within the confines of an area as restricted (and often congested) as the Persian Gulf. The Bavar II exhibits a small radar signature and is therefore difficult to pick-up and track, especially while lying passive/motionless, when set against a cluttered backdrop, while merely trolling (see photo) and/or at longer ranges. Its reduced cross-section is intended to allow the Bavar to remain undetected while carrying out reconnaissance/patrol/attack missions, but its tellingly quick approach is often given-away through its employment of a (radar-reflecting) high propeller and a (heat-emitting) high, exposed engine. For these reasons, future versions are expected to incorporate a smaller and lower, enclosed turbofan, as well as emphasize the more extensive use of carbon-fibre, facetted surfaces and radar-absorbing paint to further minimize their profiles.
Operators
;
–
IRGC-N
See also
*
Islamic Republic of Iran Navy
, ''Daryādelān''"Seahearts"
, patron =
, motto = fa, راه ما، راه حسین است, ''Rāh-e ma, rāh-e hoseyn ast''"''Our Path, Is Hussain's Path''"
, colors =
, ...
*
List of military equipment manufactured in Iran
In recent years, the Iranian government states that it has self-sufficiency in essential military hardware and defense systems.
Tehran established an arms development program during the Iran–Iraq War to counter the weapons embargo imposed on ...
References
External links
{{Iranian Aircraft
Bavar 2
The HESA Bavar 2 ( fa, باور ٢) is a ground effect vehicle unveiled in September 2010 by the IRGC Navy. It is designed to have a small radar signature, and therefore be difficult to track on radar, to be able to remain undetected while carry ...
Ekranoplans
2010 ships
Amphibious aircraft
2010s Iranian attack aircraft