Defense Industries Organization Majid AD-08 and Bharat Dynamics Akash

History

The Majid AD-08 and Akash are two independently developed ground-based surface-to-air missile systems that Armenia has brought into the same air-defense force. Majid is an Iranian short-range system centered on passive electro-optical detection and infrared-guided interceptors, while Akash is an Indian radar-supported system intended to engage aircraft and other airborne threats at greater distance.

Akash was developed in India in the late 1990s under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme, with Bharat Dynamics Limited identified in the supplied material as the manufacturer. Majid emerged much later from Iran's defense industry. An open-source Majid summary records its first public appearance in April 2021 and service from 2021, while the Ukrainian source describes a formal presentation in January 2022.

Armenia is the first country in the supplied sources shown operating both systems together. The Akash acquisition was publicly known by February 2026. Majid had not previously been publicly acknowledged as an Armenian purchase, although vehicles were displayed in Yerevan during Republic Day events on 28 May 2026. By August 2026, Armenian defense authorities had released footage showing both systems in operation.

Akash development

Akash was created as part of India's guided-missile development effort and entered service before Majid. The source describes the system as a short-range surface-to-air missile complex, while later secondary reporting sometimes classifies it as medium-range. Its battery architecture combines self-propelled launchers, the Rajendra target-detection and tracking radar, and a command post. The missile is described as structurally similar to the Soviet 3M9 used by the Kub and Kvadrat systems.

A comparison source lists Akash service entry in 2009. That same Majid versus Akash comparison gives a 45 km Akash range, whereas the principal supplied article gives 27-30 km. Because the available material does not identify the exact Akash variant behind the higher figure, this article keeps the 27-30 km value for the Armenian system described in the source and treats the 45 km figure as variant-dependent or otherwise unresolved reporting.

Majid development

Majid, also known as AD-08, was developed by Iran for short-range, low-altitude defense against unmanned aircraft, cruise missiles, helicopters, and other low-flying targets. The system was publicly visible by 2021. Army Recognition describes the basic architecture as an electro-optical detection and tracking unit, a command and fire-control subsystem, a launcher, and the AD-08 interceptor missile.

Iranian Majid launchers have been associated with the Aras-2 4x4 tactical vehicle. The Armenian configuration shown in 2026 uses a chassis that the source compares with an Iveco vehicle. Reporting from the May 2026 parade also noted a radar mounted directly on the Armenian launcher, indicating a configuration that supplements the system's original passive electro-optical acquisition method with active search or cueing.

Design

Majid AD-08

Majid's defining feature is its ability to detect and engage targets without depending on continuous radar illumination. The launcher carries an electro-optical station for search, target acquisition, and tracking. The interceptor uses passive imaging-infrared homing and a proximity fuze. This arrangement reduces radio-frequency emissions during the engagement sequence and limits the usefulness of anti-radiation tactics against the fire-control process.

The AD-08 missile is reported as 2.67 m long, 156 mm in diameter, and 75 kg at launch. Army Recognition gives a 14 kg warhead. The principal source gives an engagement range from 700 m to 8 km and an altitude envelope from 20 m to 6 km. Army Recognition instead cites 0.2-5 km for altitude, so the exact vertical envelope differs between available reports. The Defence Security Asia report also describes a roughly 15 km passive acquisition range and emphasizes the system's imaging-infrared engagement method.

Launcher capacity also varies in the supplied reporting. The principal article states that Majid can carry packages of four or eight missiles. Army Recognition describes early vehicles with two missiles and later configurations with four canisters. These figures are best treated as configuration-specific rather than as a single fixed launcher load.

Majid can be integrated with the Kashef-99 mobile three-dimensional radar, which the source says can detect small aerial targets at up to 30 km. The Armenian launcher shown in 2026 carried its own radar in addition to the electro-optical equipment. Because the missile remains infrared-guided, the radar is described in the supplied reporting as a search and cueing aid rather than a terminal-guidance emitter.

Akash

A typical Akash battery in the supplied source consists of four self-propelled launchers, a Rajendra radar complex for detection and tracking, and a command post. Radar support allows the battery to maintain tracks and coordinate missile engagements. The source states that a battery can simultaneously track and engage up to four airborne targets.

The principal article gives an engagement range of 27-30 km and a maximum altitude of 18 km for the Akash system described there. It also states that the missile can intercept supersonic aerial targets. A separate comparison page lists a maximum missile speed of Mach 2.5. Because open-source range figures vary, performance numbers should be tied to the specific Akash version being discussed rather than assumed to apply to every production variant.

Operational history

Majid is reported in service with Iran's air-defense forces. Secondary sources have attributed combat use and several high-profile engagements to the system, including claims involving advanced combat aircraft. Those claims are not independently established in the supplied evidence and are therefore not treated here as confirmed operational successes.

Armenia's Akash acquisition became public in February 2026. By late May, Armenia had also publicly displayed Majid launchers during Republic Day events in Yerevan. Hamer Intel later reported Armenian training and drills with both Majid and Akash, describing the acquisitions as part of a broader effort to diversify the country's air-defense equipment.

The August 2026 source reports that Armenian forces assigned local names to both systems: Majid AD-08 was called Scorpion, while Akash was called Lusan. The published footage showed crews operating both systems, indicating that they had progressed beyond parade display into training or operational use. The exact delivery date for the Iranian Majid systems was not publicly established in the source.

Within Armenia, the two systems occupy different layers. Majid provides short-range defense against low-altitude threats, especially drones and cruise missiles, while Akash extends the defended envelope to greater range and altitude. Reporting on the 2026 parade described Majid, Akash, Tor-M2KM, and S-300PS systems as parts of a layered Armenian air-defense architecture.

Variants

• Majid AD-08: Iranian short-range surface-to-air missile system using electro-optical tracking and passive imaging-infrared missile guidance.
• Armenian Majid configuration: Majid launcher shown in 2026 on an Iveco-like 4x4 chassis with an additional radar mounted on the vehicle alongside the electro-optical equipment.
• Akash: Indian surface-to-air missile system built around self-propelled launchers, Rajendra radar support, and a command post. The supplied evidence does not identify the exact Armenian sub-variant.

Operators

• Armenia: Operates both Majid AD-08 and Akash. Majid was publicly displayed in May 2026, and both systems were shown in Armenian operation by August 2026.
• Iran: Operates Majid AD-08 in its air-defense forces.

Specifications (Majid AD-08)

General characteristics

• Missile length: 2.67 m
• Missile diameter: 156 mm
• Launch mass: 75 kg
• Warhead: 14 kg, according to Army Recognition
• Guidance: Passive imaging-infrared seeker
• Target acquisition: Electro-optical detection and tracking, with radar cueing available on some configurations

Performance

• Engagement range: 0.7-8 km
• Engagement altitude: 20 m-6 km in the principal source; another supplied source reports 0.2-5 km
• Maximum speed: Mach 2, according to the open-source Majid summary
• Passive acquisition range: About 15 km in secondary reporting
• External radar detection range: Up to 30 km with Kashef-99, according to the principal source

Specifications (Akash)

Battery organization

• Launchers: Four self-propelled launchers in the typical battery described by the source
• Radar: Rajendra detection and tracking radar complex
• Command element: Battery command post
• Simultaneous engagements: Up to four airborne targets, according to the source

Performance

• Engagement range: 27-30 km for the configuration described in the principal source
• Maximum engagement altitude: 18 km
• Maximum speed: Mach 2.5 in the supplied comparison source