Ra'ad-II

The Ra'ad-II (رعد-۲,"Thunder-2") is a standoff and an air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) derived from the Hatf-VIII Ra'ad. It was first publicly unveiled on the Pakistan Day Parade on 23 March 2017,

The Ra'ad features extended range, changes in its control mechanism, its guidance and enhanced flight control systems.

Testing and unveiling
On 18 February 2020, Ra'ad-II was test-fired from the Pakistan Air Force's Mirage-IIIR platform. The test was overseen by Ra'ad-II program manager, the Strategic Plans Division, developing contractor, NESCOM, and the Pakistan Air Force and Army's Strategic Commands.

According to the ISPR, it significantly enhanced Pakistan's air delivered strategic standoff capability on land and at sea.

Technical design
Data provided by the Inter-Services Public Relations, the Ra'ad-II has an extended range of 600 km and has a conventional tail fin configuration compared to the twin tail configuration of the previous version.

It has a new "X" type tail as opposed to previous versions large horizontal tails. It has a length of 4.85 m, and is much lighter than the previous weapon system. Design and control surfaces changes to Ra'ad-II allows to integrate with the JF-17 Thunder platform— the PAF's primary strike platform.

Aerial-based deterrence
Both Hatf-VIII Ra'ad and Ra'ad-II are seen as providing Pakistan the aerial nuclear deterrence against the much larger Indian Air Force and their air defenses in an event of large scale conventional war.

In a view of one former PAF's former fighter pilot, Ra'ad "treetop-hugging [ ALCM] with its minuscule radar cross-section should be a good antidote to the Indian acquired of S-400 Triumf." While the Islamabad-based Center for International Strategic Studies (CISS) analyst maintained that the Ra’ad-II is "Pakistan's response to Indian development of the Nirbhay cruise missile."

Similar missiles

 * AGM-158 JASSM (USA)
 * CJ-10 (China)
 * KEPD 350 (Germany/Sweden)
 * Kh-65SE (Russia)
 * SOM (Turkey)
 * Saber
 * Storm Shadow (France/UK)