Munitions

Sayyad anti-ship cruise missile

Also known as
  • Sayyad
  • Sayyad naval cruise missile
  • Sayyad ASCM
  • Paveh-based Sayyad
  • Project 351 anti-ship cruise missile
  • Quds-family Sayyad

The Sayyad is a Houthi anti-ship cruise missile tied by IISS to the Iranian Paveh/Project 351 or Quds cruise-missile family. It is described in open sources as the radar-seeker counterpart to the EO/IR-guided Quds-Z-0, giving Houthi-aligned forces a long-range maritime-strike option during the Yemen war and the later Red Sea anti-shipping campaign.

Sayyad anti-ship cruise missile, Anti-ship cruise missile, Munitions
Image source: Sacred Defence Week parade, 2023, in Tehran (107).jpg

Role in Conflicts

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
Yemen / Iran
Type
Anti-ship cruise missile
Service note
First publicly displayed in 2023
Designer
Iranian Paveh / Project 351 cruise-missile lineage adapted by Houthi forces
Designed
2023
Produced
2023-present

Specifications

Range
At least 800 km claimed; IISS assesses Paveh-based anti-ship cruise missiles in roughly the 900-2,000 km class depending on baseline
Length
6.8 m reported by Houthi-aligned media
Diameter
0.5 m reported by Houthi-aligned media
Payload
200-300 kg conventional explosive payload reported by Houthi-aligned media
Propulsion
Solid-fuel booster with turbojet cruise engine
Guidance
Reported satellite/inertial midcourse navigation with radar-homing anti-ship terminal seeker
Launch platform
Mobile ground-based launcher
Family
Paveh / Project 351 / Quds-series anti-ship derivative
Identification And Evidence Limits

Sayyad is documented mostly through Houthi display material and external open-source assessment. The strongest public sources identify the family connection and seeker split, while keeping individual strike attribution cautious.

Evidence pointWhat it supportsLimit to preserve
Family lineageIISS and DIA-linked material connect Houthi Quds/Paveh cruise missiles to the Iranian Project 351 line and note design features shared across engines, rear fins, and boosters.The record describes lineage and technology support rather than claiming a complete public manufacturing chain.
Seeker distinctionIISS identifies Sayyad as the radar-seeker anti-ship version and Quds-Z-0 as the EO/IR-seeker version.Public sources do not provide a full seeker model, targeting chain, or test record.
Red Sea useIISS lists Paveh/Quds-based anti-ship cruise missiles, including Sayyad and Quds-Z-0, among systems known to have been used in the Houthi anti-shipping campaign.The MSC Orion episode is best treated as a likely failed Paveh-type missile attempt, not a confirmed hit by Sayyad alone.

Sources: The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden; Iran: Enabling Houthi Attacks Across the Middle East; The Anti-Ship Missile Arsenal Houthis Are Firing Into The Red Sea.

Variants

Public sources treat Sayyad as a radar-homing anti-ship member of the wider Quds/Paveh cruise-missile family, with Quds-Z-0 representing the EO/IR anti-ship branch and Quds-1 representing an earlier land-attack branch.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
Quds-1 land-attack cruise missile, Land-attack cruise missile, MunitionsQuds-1 land-attack cruise missileEarlier land-attack Quds family member

The Sayyad shares the Iranian Project 351/Paveh or Quds lineage associated with earlier Houthi land-attack cruise missiles, but is adapted for anti-ship targeting.

Sources: The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, Iran: Enabling Houthi Attacks Across the Middle East

Quds-Z-0 anti-ship cruise missile, Anti-ship cruise missile, MunitionsQuds-Z-0 anti-ship cruise missileEO/IR anti-ship counterpart

IISS separates the two Paveh anti-ship versions by terminal seeker, identifying Quds-Z-0 with an EO/IR seeker and Sayyad with a radar seeker.

Sources: The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, The Anti-Ship Missile Arsenal Houthis Are Firing Into The Red Sea

Radar-homing SayyadCurrent record configuration

The distinguishing public feature of Sayyad is the reported radar seeker used for the anti-ship mission.

Sources: The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden

Timeline

Sayyad anti-ship cruise missile Key Events

  1. Displayed in Sanaa

    Houthi-aligned forces displayed Sayyad during the September 2023 Sanaa parade as one of two anti-ship Paveh/Quds-family cruise-missile versions.

    Sources: The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, Explainer: How Yemen's Sayyad missile bolsters its naval deterrence against adversaries

  2. IISS seeker split reaches wider reporting

    TWZ summarized IISS's assessment that Sayyad was the radar-homing Paveh/Quds-family anti-ship version, paired with the EO/IR-guided Quds-Z-0.

    Sources: The Anti-Ship Missile Arsenal Houthis Are Firing Into The Red Sea

  3. Paveh-type missile linked to MSC Orion attempt

    IISS later assessed that a Paveh-type missile wreck found in northern Somalia was likely launched in a failed attempt connected to the Houthis' late-April 2024 claim against MSC Orion.

    Sources: The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden

  4. Houthi-aligned media reports active service

    Press TV reported a Yemeni Navy statement that Sayyad had entered active service and repeated Houthi claims about its 800 km range and mobile ground-launch configuration.

    Sources: Explainer: How Yemen's Sayyad missile bolsters its naval deterrence against adversaries

Media

Sayyad anti-ship cruise missile Images

Sayyad anti-ship cruise missile, Anti-ship cruise missile, Munitions - view 1
Source: August 2024 National Aerospace Park tour for journalists (10).jpg
Related Weapon Systems
Quds-1 land-attack cruise missile, Land-attack cruise missile, MunitionsMunitionsQuds-1 land-attack cruise missileLand-attack cruise missileThe Quds-1 is a Houthi land-attack cruise missile publicly displayed in Yemen in July 2019 and identified by U.S. sources as the 351 land-attack cruise missile. Open-source and UN-linked analysis describes a compact, ground-launched cruise missile powered by a TJ100-type turbojet and tied to Iranian design and supply networks despite Houthi claims of indigenous development. In the 2014 Yemen Civil War, Houthi-aligned forces used the Quds-1 for long-range strikes against Saudi airport, desalination, and oil-infrastructure targets.
Al-Mandab-2 anti-ship cruise missile, Anti-ship cruise missile, MunitionsMunitionsAl-Mandab-2 anti-ship cruise missileAnti-ship cruise missileAl-Mandab-2 is a Houthi designation for an anti-ship cruise missile displayed in 2022 and associated by UN, defense, and component-analysis sources with the C-802-derived Iranian Noor/Ghader/Ghadir family. Houthi-affiliated media claimed a seven-meter missile with a 300-kilometer range and micro-turbojet propulsion, while outside assessments differ on whether the public evidence best matches Ghader, Ghadir, or a broader C-802 derivative.
Mobile coastal launcher, Truck-mounted mobile coastal launcher for anti-ship cruise missiles, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsMobile coastal launcherTruck-mounted mobile coastal launcher for anti-ship cruise missilesThe Houthi mobile coastal launcher is a road-mobile shore-launch arrangement for anti-ship cruise missiles, built around recovered Yemeni C.801 launch equipment, trucks, and surface-search radars. It links the Al-Mandab-1/C-801 family to 2014 Yemen Civil War coastal defense and later appears in 2023 Red Sea Crisis reporting as Houthi truck-mounted anti-ship missiles and launchers threatened shipping from Houthi-controlled Yemen.

Sources

The Houthis' Campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of AdenPublisher: International Institute for Strategic Studies | Note: Supports 2014 Yemen Civil War fielding context and 2023 Red Sea Crisis direct conflict-use: IISS identifies Sayyad as the radar-seeker Paveh/Quds-based anti-ship version unveiled by the Houthis in 2023, lists Quds-Z-0 and Sayyad among Paveh/Quds-based anti-ship cruise missiles known to have been used in the Houthi anti-shipping campaign, and assesses a failed late-April 2024 Paveh-type missile attempt connected to MSC Orion. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Iran: Enabling Houthi Attacks Across the Middle EastPublisher: Defense Intelligence Agency via Iran Watch | Note: Supports background and manufacturer context: DIA material compares Houthi Quds-4 land-attack cruise missiles with Iranian Project 351/Paveh systems, notes shared design features, and states that Iran supplied components to the Houthis for Quds-4 production. | Accessed: 2026-07-01The Anti-Ship Missile Arsenal Houthis Are Firing Into The Red SeaPublisher: The War Zone | Note: Supports background on the Houthi anti-ship missile inventory, including IISS-sourced discussion of Sayyad and Quds-Z-0 as Quds-family anti-ship cruise missiles, Sayyad's radar-homing seeker, and an at-least-800 km range estimate from Houthi claims and Quds baseline data. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Explainer: How Yemen's Sayyad missile bolsters its naval deterrence against adversariesPublisher: Press TV | Note: Houthi-aligned media source used for attributed Sayyad-specific claims: reported Yemeni Navy active-service statement, September 2023 display, 800 km range claim, 6.8 m length, 0.5 m diameter, 200-300 kg payload, booster/turbojet propulsion, and mobile ground-launch context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Houthi ArsenalPublisher: Wilson Center | Note: Supports background on Houthi anti-ship cruise missile inventories, including a Sayyad anti-ship cruise missile listing and reported range and payload context. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Under Fire in the Bab al-MandabPublisher: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy | Note: Supports background on the Houthi maritime threat set, including Sayyad among anti-ship cruise missiles available for Bab al-Mandab and Red Sea operations. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Sacred Defence Week parade, 2023, in Tehran (107).jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and CC BY 4.0 licensing for a clear-license representative Paveh-family missile image used because exact Sayyad parade imagery found during this pass did not show suitable reuse terms. | Accessed: 2026-07-01August 2024 National Aerospace Park tour for journalists (10).jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and license for a second clear-license representative Paveh-family missile image. | Accessed: 2026-07-01