Iranian Navy gets new warship, speedboats

A variety of locally developed and produced military hardware, like the advanced radar-evading Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis cruiser and 100 fast-attack vessels, have been delivered to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy.

They were inducted during a ceremony attended by IRCG chief Major General Hossein Salami, IRGC Navy chief Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri, and other senior state and military officials in the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas on January 6, Tehran Times reports.

The Abu Mahdi Muhandis bears the name of the former deputy chief of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units, who was assassinated in early January 2020 at Baghdad airport in a US drone strike ordered by former US President Donald Trump, along with top Iranian anti-terror commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani.

During the event, Tangsiri stated that the warship can sail within a 2,000-nautical-mile radius without being spotted by hostile radars and surveillance systems. It also has a 14-day naval endurance.

Its superior domestic hull design allows it to conduct naval operations under force five circumstances and stay afloat under force six, he continued. It is powered by four homegrown propulsion systems.

Tangsri pointed out that the development of warships for the IRGC Navy is being carried out by three local knowledge-based enterprises. He said that the making of Abu Mahdi Muhandis warship took fifteen months.

According to Tangsiri, Iranian experts at the IRGC Navy would build at least three warships of the same type in less than a year.

Some 100 ships, including Tareq-class and Ashura-class ships with Kowsar medium-range and anti-ship missiles, have joined the IRGC naval fleet.

Up until now, Tareq-class warships could only shoot rockets, but now they can fire 180-kilometer-range missiles, he said.

The commander said Kowsar missiles mounted on Ashura vessels have been paired with three-dimensional radars that can detect and shoot down hostile planes, helicopters and cruise missiles at high altitudes.

The IRGC Navy also took delivery of new reconnaissance vessels as well as fast attack craft and vessels equipped with torpedo launch systems on January 6, Tangsiri stated.

On the sidelines of an event, the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, Major General Hossein Salami, emphasized Iran’s noteworthy advancements in naval technology and cautioned the enemy to stay away or face the Islamic Republic’s fierce retaliation.

He also noted that the navy has made a huge and stellar leap forward in its offensive and defence capabilities. The IRGC Navy is known as the pioneer of Iran’s defence power in the frontline against the global naval powers.

The general emphasized the need for Iranian naval forces to pursue opponents in any place and develop combat capabilities in distant locations, saying Iran’s adversaries have numerous irreversible shortcomings in the sea, such as large and slow fleets.

Remaining at close or relatively far distances from Iran’s territorial waters will harm the enemies, the IRGC chief noted, warning the adversaries to stay away from the region.

“Our enemies understand the logic of force very well. We do have determination, power, and strategy,” the general stated.

In November 2020, the IRGC Navy unveiled plans to dispatch a flotilla of military vessels, including its first oceangoing warship, to the northern parts of the Indian Ocean.

The IRGC’s oceangoing warship, which is 150 metres long and weighs 4,000 tons, is a multipurpose vessel for long-range operations. It is furnished with missiles, air defense systems, and radars.

Last year, an ocean-going warship, named Shahid Mahdavi, was added to the IRGC Navy fleet in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.

The multi-purpose Shahid Mahdavi warship, manufactured by local experts and technicians, weighs more than 2,100 tons. It also has a length of 240 metres and a width of 27 metres.

Equipped with a 3-dimensional phased array radar, sea-to-sea and sea-to-air missiles, and advanced communication systems for electronic warfare, the warship is capable of carrying different types of helicopters, drones and speedboats.

“The Shahid Mahdavi warship is like a mobile maritime city ready to carry out ocean missions … to create sustainable security of sea communication lines and provide aid to the commercial and fishing fleets of the Islamic Republic and regional countries,” Tangsiri said at the delivering ceremony.

Also, 95 Ashura- and Tareq-class missile-launching speed boats joined the IRGC Navy fleet. They can launch rockets with a range of between 100 and 180 kilometres.  

They enjoy high manoeuvrability and have been designed to carry out missions in different weather conditions.