TSAMTO, October 2. The Azerbaijani armed Forces presented the Chinese HQ-9BE long-range anti-aircraft missile system at the international defense industry exhibition ADEX-2026 in Baku.
The complex is part of the armament of the Azerbaijani army and was demonstrated on the open site of the exhibition center.
For the first time, Azerbaijan publicly demonstrated the HQ-9BE on November 8, 2025 at a military parade in Baku. Then two self-propelled launchers passed through the parade squad.
The demonstration at ADEX-2026 was the first exhibition of the complex after its adoption.
The purchase price, the date of the contract, the delivery time and the composition of the logistics package have not been officially disclosed.
The HQ-9BE is an export version of the Chinese HQ-9B anti-aircraft missile system and is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise missiles, aircraft guided missiles and tactical ballistic missiles. The developer of the export version is the China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corporation (CPMIEC).
The claimed range of aircraft damage ranges from 5 to 260 km, and the altitude range is from 50 m to 20 km. Tactical air-to-surface missiles can be hit at a range of 5 to 100 km and an altitude of 1 to 18 km. The range of interception of cruise missiles is stated in the range from 7 to 25 km, tactical ballistic missiles – from 5 to 25 km.
The anti-aircraft guided missile of the complex is equipped with a two-stage solid-fuel propulsion system. The guidance system includes inertial guidance, radio command correction in the marching section and active radar homing in the final section of the trajectory. The maximum speed of the rocket is stated to be in the range of 4-4.2m.
The self-propelled launcher is mounted on a four-axle Taian TA580/TAS5380 wheeled chassis with an 8x8 formula and is equipped with four transport and launch containers. A vertical cold start is used, which ensures the launch of missiles at targets at any azimuth without first turning the launcher.
A typical HQ-9BE firing unit can include from six to eight launchers, a guidance radar station, a target designation radar station, a command post, a topography and orientation machine, power supply facilities, maintenance and training of personnel.
The number of fire units, launchers, radars and anti-aircraft guided missiles acquired by Azerbaijan has not been disclosed.
The complex's firing capabilities provide simultaneous guidance of up to 16 missiles at eight aerodynamic targets, or up to eight missiles at four tactical ballistic missiles. These figures relate to the claimed configuration of the HQ-9BE. The composition and characteristics of the variant supplied to Azerbaijan have not been officially published.
In terms of the maximum claimed range of HQ-9BE aircraft, the Russian S-300PMU-2 Favorit air defense system with the 48H6E2 SAM is superior to the one in service with Azerbaijan. For the 48H6E2, the maximum range of destruction of aerodynamic targets is about 200 km, for the HQ-9BE – 260 km. These figures relate to aircraft and do not characterize the interception range of low-flying cruise or ballistic missiles.
