Home  Journals  National Interests: Priorities and Security  7(448) - 2025 July

Assessing the time to achieve advanced technology indicators under sanctions: The Iranian Stealth UAV case study

Received: 17 March 2025

Accepted: 31 March 2025

Available online: 15 July 2025

Subject Heading: THREATS AND SECURITY

JEL Classification: O14, O32, O33

Pages: 100-118

https://doi.org/10.24891/evdbtv

Subject. This article discusses the changes in technical indicators of Stealth UAVs of the USA and Iran.
Objectives. The article aims to assess the development trends of this UAV type, and the gap between the technological development of the USA and Iran.
Methods. For the study, we introduced a Technical Complexity Index calculated for the models of the two countries, and conducted a comparative analysis.
Results. The article reveals average annual growth estimates of the Stealth UAV characteristics produced by US companies, and the average annual growth rate of the Technical Complexity Index for these devices.
Conclusions. Iran is lagging behind the United States in the development of the Stealth technology. However, Iranian UAVs Shahed have a longer flight duration.

Keywords: technical specifications, UAV, stealth, engine power, reverse engineering

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