Iran and the United States are inching towards conflict, with Washington ramping up its military presence in the Middle East — moving warships, aircraft and additional forces closer to the region amid stalled negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme.

Amid Donald Trump’s frequent threats against Iran, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a stark warning to the US, saying, “An aircraft carrier is a dangerous machine, but even more dangerous than that is the weapon capable of sending it to the bottom of the sea."

His remarks were in response to reports of the US deploying the aircraft carriers USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Gerald R. Ford in the Middle East, within the striking distance to Iran.

The question is: What is the weapon Tehran is planning to use against the US? Although the Ayatollah refrained from specifying the weapon system, his message appeared to be a rhetorical one, designed to highlight Tehran’s claimed anti-ship capabilities, and its claimed ability to dominate the Strait of Hormuz.

Based on information available, we can theorise what weapon Khamenei was referring to. Let’s dive deeper.

Iran is well-equipped with the Fattah class of hypersonic missiles — the most dangerous weapon in Tehran’s arsenal that can be deployed against the US.

Developed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRCG), the first of the Fattah class is the Fattah-1, a medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) with a reported range of 1,400 km (870 miles) and speeds of Mach 13–15.

Unveiled in June 2023, it features a solid-fuel booster and a manoeuvrable re-entry vehicle (MaRV) with thrust vector controls designed to evade anti-missile defences in its terminal phase, according to a report by the Associated Press.

Then, there is the Fattah-2, a newer addition to Iran’s arsenal. Unveiled in November 2023, the Fattah-2, as analysts suggest, may incorporate a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) design — an advanced manoeuvrable warhead that uses its aerodynamic construction to travel along an unpredictable flight trajectory, making it difficult for missile systems to detect and destroy them.

What forms the backbone of Iran’s anti-ship and area denial arsenal is its possession an estimated 1,000 to 1,200 Anti-Ship Cruise Missiles (ASCM) as reported by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

Source: World News in news18.com, World Latest News, World News