Missile Ra'ad

Ra'ad (Urdu: رعد, "Thunder"), carrying the Pakistani military designation Hatf-VIII, is a subsonic, air-launched standoff cruise missile.

Design work began in 1998 and was conducted under military direction with little public disclosure. Western sources alleged foreign technical assistance from China and, separately, from apartheid-era South Africa; these claims were rejected by Pakistani officials, who attributed the design to domestic scientists.

The missile is described as incorporating shaping and other measures intended to reduce radar detectability. It flies at subsonic speed at low altitude, following terrain, and is credited with high manoeuvrability during the cruise phase. The airframe, control system, guidance package, warhead and propulsion were developed within Pakistan's military-industrial establishment. No terminal guidance method has been publicly identified.

The stated mission set covers precision attack against high-value fixed and semi-fixed targets: command and control facilities, radar sites, surface-to-air missile batteries, ballistic missile launchers and warships at anchor. The missile is assessed to carry a payload of approximately 450 kg. In the nuclear role, the yield of the warhead is estimated within a band of 5 to 12 kilotons. A conventional warhead option is implied by the target set but has not been detailed.

A second variant, Ra'ad-II, was displayed publicly during the Pakistan Day parade in 2017 with an extended range.

Flight testing began on 25 August 2007, when the first launch was announced by the Inter-Services Public Relations directorate. A second test followed on 8 May 2008, with released footage showing the missile released from a Mirage IIIR. Further tests were conducted on 29 April 2011, 30 May 2012, 2 February 2015 and 19 January 2016. Every test launch to date has been conducted from a Mirage III.

The Pakistan Air Force selected the Mirage III as the test platform rather than the F-16A/B in order to avoid objections from the United States, although the F-16A/B is generally regarded as physically capable of carrying the weapon. The JF-17 has only been photographed carrying one and has never test-fired it.

As of July 2025, there is no available evidence that any Ra'ad variant has been deployed. The system has been flight-tested repeatedly since 2007, but no deployment has been confirmed and it is not known to have entered operational service with any air force. The missile has not been exported and has no recorded combat use.