UCAVs have their own utility, less to do with manned aircrafts. Slow moving UCAVs are becoming useless and obsolete yes like we saw how Turkish TB2 made records of being the most shot down UCAV of all time. Similarly 2 dozen predators have been shot down in Yemen or Israeli Hermes during last 5-10 years. Countries with actual defense industry (superpowers) are modifying the UCAV program, not getting rid of it altogether or replacing them with fighter jets. Iran seem to be just legging behind.
Well, I think IRI had a very good program for advanced UCAVs (Karrar and maybe Qaher), maybe problem was that IRI buried manned aircrafts too soon or the budget available or a combination of those reasons, I don´t know.
But advanced UCAVs are the future. Few people don´t pay attention but the revolutionary Type 076 LHD with EMALS will change the equation. In the future, this ship would be able to launch supersonic stealth UCAV aircrafts maybe with less payload and range than F35/J35 (maybe a payload and range similar to an AV8B+) but enough to challenge the embarked naval air power.
1º.- Stealth like a F35 (if not more beacuse they´re much smaller and no canopy and frame are required).
2º.- You don´t need to recruit, train during years, and pay pilots. You don´t need to have high rank instructors and accidents would be negligible (just one or at much 2 UCAVs in flight). You don´t need even flight schools and expensive simulators.
3º.- They´re esentially expendable (even if stealth UCAVs are expensive) after time and being near to their limit airframe you can sacrifice them.
4º.- They spend less fuel, because they weight much less, and their logistic foot must be a half or even lower.
5º.- The vessels don´t need to be nuclear (a fraction of a nuclear carrier, like French, US or future Chinese), much simpler propulsion, a third or even less crew are required and a half of a US supercarrier displacement is required.
During some decades conventional navy carriers would be necessary to fulfill long range and most dangerous missions (SEAD/DEAD and antiship missions) because they require heavy multimissions aircrafts unable to operate from smaller LHDs, but at long term even those missions can be achieved by bigger UCAVs. And US Navy is losing miserably that race (12 CVN conventional fleets and luxury expenses like colonial wars in Venezuela and criminal support to zionism, etc are depleting pentagon budget).
Ironically IRGC realized about the potential future of a unmanned carrier vessel (even before than Turkey or long tradition naval powers like european union navies). But the IRGC achievements in HALE have been at some point deceiving. The first step would be design and operate HALE UAVs, after it arm them and finally embark them.
After 12 day war it is perfectly understable why IRI shifts from those long term plans and come back to reality of manned aircrafts. But after covering such necessity it must be returned to works of design and build UCAVs... and at medium term, embark them.
I don´t agree about smaller UAVs like Mohajer VI or Shahed 129/149. They have their role. For patrolling deserted areas of Baluchestan or Makran coast or even Persian Gulf smugglers are more than suitable, but the problem is when you send to Saudi Arabia or try to use them even in light contested airspace.
IRI must leave behind the Rotax 912/914 family. And Gaza drone it is the correct answer. But please, don´t give it missions in contested airspace or will finish exactly in the same way than US reapers in Yemen, I mean downed by dozens.
thedefensepost.com
Installation of the Rezvan (Raad-2) suicide drone launcher on the Aras-2 vehicle by the IRGC
