Pakistan flight-tests first domestically developed Fa'az air-to-air missile

Pakistan has flight-tested the Fa'az, the first air-to-air missile developed inside the country, the military's Inter-Services Public Relations said on Tuesday.

ISPR said the missile is fitted with a modern terminal guidance system and is capable of engaging enemy aerial targets at longer ranges.

The weapon is meant to widen the operational options of the Pakistan Air Force and strengthen the country's defence posture, the statement said. ISPR called the test a demonstration of the technical maturity, innovation and self-reliance of Pakistan's defence industry.

Senior officers of the armed forces watched the launch alongside the scientists and engineers who developed the missile.

President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir and the services chiefs congratulated the scientists and engineers.

Geo News reported the test alongside the Army's launch on 13 October 2026 of the extended-range version of the Fatah-2 ballistic missile. ISPR described that weapon as hypersonic, equipped with advanced navigation and avionics, able to strike targets with high precision and able to penetrate enemy missile defences because of what the statement called its unique trajectory and manoeuvrability features. The longer range, it said, extends the Army's reach and its ability to strike deep targets.

The Fa'az announcement is the second weapons test the military has publicised through ISPR in three weeks.

Neither ISPR statement gave the range of the Fa'az, the site or exact date of the launch, or the aircraft from which the missile will be fired. Both announcements were issued through the military's media wing.