Profile
- Type
- Towed twin 35 mm anti-aircraft gun
- Conflict side
- Houthi-aligned forces
- Origin
- Switzerland
- Service note
- 1960s-present family; Yemen record tied to the 2014-2015 takeover period
Air Defense
GDF-001 / GDF-002 anti-aircraft gun
The GDF-001 and GDF-002 are early Oerlikon GDF twin 35 mm towed anti-aircraft guns, usually paired with optical sights or Super Fledermaus/Skyguard radar control for point defense. In the Yemen Civil War record, open-source documentation places GDF-001/GDF-002 guns in the pre-war Yemeni Army inventory and available to Yemeni battlefield parties after the Houthi takeover, but does not support a precise engagement or shootdown claim.
- Conflict side
- Houthi-aligned forces
- Built by
- Oerlikon Contraves
- Built in
- Switzerland
Service History
- In service
- GDF family in service from the 1960s; Yemeni inventory documented before and during the 2014-2015 conflict transition
- Used by
- Yemeni Army, Houthi-aligned forces
- Wars
- Yemen Civil War
Production History
- Designer
- Oerlikon Contraves
- Designed
- Late 1950s
- Built by
- Oerlikon Contraves
- Built in
- Switzerland
- Unit cost
- Not publicly established
- Produced
- 1960s onward for the GDF family
- Number built
- More than 2,000 GDF-family guns reported by Weaponsystems.net
- Variants
- GDF-001, GDF-002
Specifications
- Crew
- 3 on GDF-001/GDF-002 class guns
- Armament
- Two 35x228 mm Oerlikon KDA L/90 autocannons
- Rate of fire
- 550 rounds per minute per barrel; 1,100 rounds per minute combined
- Effective range
- About 3.2 km against aircraft and 4 km against ground targets
- Ammunition
- Original models carried 112 ready rounds plus 126 additional rounds on the carriage
- Weight
- About 6.3 t empty; 6.7 t loaded
- Mobility
- Four-wheel towed carriage, normally moved by a 6x6 truck
Conflict Usage
- Yemen Civil War
- Side: Houthi-aligned forcesRole: Point air defense gun
Documented in 2015 among pre-war Yemeni Army GDF-001/GDF-002 anti-aircraft guns available to Yemeni parties after the Houthi takeover; available evidence supports battlefield availability rather than a specific shootdown claim.
GDF-001 / GDF-002 anti-aircraft gun Images
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Related Weapon Systems
Saqr / Project 358 surface-to-air missileLoitering surface-to-air missileThe Saqr, commonly identified as Project 358 or the 358 missile, is an Iranian-designed loitering surface-to-air missile associated with Houthi-aligned forces in Yemen. Unlike conventional short-range SAMs, it uses a booster and small cruise engine to patrol for slower aerial targets, making it relevant to the Yemen Civil War's UAV, helicopter, and improvised air-defense environment.
ZPU-4 anti-aircraft gun14.5 mm quadruple towed anti-aircraft gunThe ZPU-4 is a Soviet quadruple 14.5 mm anti-aircraft gun built around four KPV/KPVT heavy machine guns on a four-wheel carriage. In Yemen, open-source reporting connects ZPU-4-armed technicals to anti-Houthi Giants Brigades forces, giving the Cold War gun a continued role as mobile low-altitude air defense and direct-fire support.
AN/TPQ-53 multimission radarMobile multimission counterfire and air-surveillance radarThe AN/TPQ-53 is a Lockheed Martin mobile active electronically scanned array radar originally fielded for counterfire target acquisition and later adapted for multimission sensing. In the United States-Iran Conflict, reporting on Operation Epic Fury credited the radar with ground-based tracking of rockets, missiles, and unmanned systems inside joint sensor networks.
Counter Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar system / C-RAMLand-based close-in weapon systemCounter Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar system (C-RAM), also known as the land-based Phalanx Weapon System, is a U.S. fixed-site air-defense suite built around a 20 mm rapid-fire gun, sensors, and fire control to intercept rockets, mortars, and small drones. In the United States-Iran Conflict, U.S. forces used it around Baghdad to defend a diplomatic facility against drone and rocket attacks.
Coyote counter-UAS interceptor / droneCounter-UAS interceptor droneThe Coyote is a combat-proven, rail-launched counter-UAS effector from RTX/Raytheon. In the United States-Iran Conflict, U.S. forces used it to help defend Gulf air bases against short-range drone attacks, while the family continues to evolve into launched-effects variants.
Iranian anti-aircraft artilleryGun-based short-range air defense artilleryIranian anti-aircraft artillery is an aggregate category for gun-based air-defense systems in Iranian service, including ZU-23-2/Mesbah 23 mm weapons, Oerlikon-derived 35 mm Samavat guns, and older heavy-caliber systems. In the United States-Iran Conflict, open-source reporting connected these guns to Operation Epic Fury as low-altitude point-defense threats, strike targets, and attempted fire against U.S. aircraft.Sources
GDFPublisher: Weaponsystems.net | Note: Supports Oerlikon GDF-001/GDF-002 background, manufacturer, variants, armament, crew, rate of fire, range, ammunition, weight, and mobility specifications. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Handbook Of Pre-War Yemeni Fighting VehiclesPublisher: Oryx | Note: Supports Yemen Civil War context: GDF-001/GDF-002 guns were fielded by the pre-war Yemeni Army and documented in 2015 as available to Yemeni parties on the battlefield after the Houthi takeover. | Accessed: 2026-06-20U.S. Destroyer Arrives Off Saudi Arabia Amid Plans To Bolster The Kingdom's Air DefensesPublisher: The War Zone | Note: Supports regional Yemen Civil War air-defense context around Houthi-claimed drone and missile attacks and Saudi Oerlikon GDF/Skyguard point-defense deployments; not used as the direct Yemen battlefield-use source for this entry. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Japanese L90 or GDF-002 35 mm twin cannonPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a Japanese-produced GDF-002/L90 example released into the public domain by the photographer. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Swiss Oerlikon GDF 35 mm Anti-aircraft Gun with Skyguard Fire Control System 1979Publisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a Swiss GDF gun with Skyguard fire-control system, credited to ETH-Bibliothek Zurich / Comet Photo AG under CC BY-SA 4.0. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Dubendorf Flieger Flab Museum - 35mm Oerlikon twin cannon anti-aircraft gunPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a museum-preserved 35 mm Oerlikon twin cannon photographed by Ank Kumar under CC BY-SA 4.0. | Accessed: 2026-06-20