IRGC Unveils Cutting-Edge Warship With Standoff Capability, VLS, Drone and Missile Suite – Video

Cut off from its traditional Western arms suppliers after the revolution of 1979, and facing a United Nations arms embargo between 2006-2020, Iran has built up a large domestic defense industry, producing everything from tanks and warships to radar equipment, air defense systems, drones, missiles, and defense electronics.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy has taken delivery of the Shahid Soleimani (lit. "Martyr Soleimani"), the lead ship of a new generation of catamaran-style missile corvettes.

The hull of the 64-meter-long warship, built from the ground up by local engineers and shipbuilders, is designed to have a low radar cross section.

Iran's IRGC Navy unveils homegrown Shahid Soleimani patrol combat vessel🔥#IRAN #Soleimani pic.twitter.com/snL3IsMC2D

— Persian-Immortal 🇮🇷🦁🗡️ (@GreaterIran92) September 5, 2022

The vessel has a displacement of 1,000 tons, and is stuffed with electronic warfare equipment vertical launch system (VLS) missile launchers carrying between eight and sixteen air defense missiles, as well as six onboard anti-ship cruise missiles with a range of up to 300 km. The Shahid Soleimani is also equipped with a domestically-designed onboard battle management system, advanced radar, sonar and electronic countermeasures. Other features include a 30-mm machinegun and four 20 mm machineguns for peripheral defense, chafe and flare launchers, and six vertically launched ground attack cruise missiles with a range of up to 700 km.

Marinha iraniana recebe primeira corveta da classe Shahid Soleimani

Observações e dúvidas sobre essa nova classe de corvetas iranianas:

Comprimento: 64 metros
Deslocamento: mil toneladas
Sistema de lançamento de mísseis vertical pic.twitter.com/Tbqp6z1ffm

— Heber (@Heberobruto) September 5, 2022

It seems main weapon systems on Shahid Soleimani missile catamaran consists from
6 different cruise missiles (currently looks like 4 Ghader\Ghadir ASM and 2 Nasr\Nasir ASM)
16 short ranges SAM and 6 middle range SAM
1x 30mm gun and 4x 20mm gun +2 chaff dispenser pic.twitter.com/n5TydHXHZc

— Yuri Lyamin (@imp_navigator) September 5, 2022

The combat patrol vessel is capable of carrying a sole Bell-412 helicopter and/or drones, as well as speedboats, which are launched from its aft.

Speaking at the warship’s unveiling ceremony on Monday, Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri said that the ship is the first Iranian military vessel with onboard VLS, and that its four powerful engines will enable it to carry out long-range naval missions without coastal logistical support.

Qasem Soleimani (1957-2020) was the long-time commander of the IRGC’s Quds Force, an elite fighting formation responsible for Iran’s covert extraterritorial operations. Before his assassination in a US airstrike in January 2020, Soleimani commanded Quds and advised Iran’s allies in conflicts against a wide range of jihadist forces including Daesh (ISIS)* and al-Qaeda* in Iraq and Syria, the Taliban in Afghanistan, and Israel during the 2006 Lebanon War.

* Terrorist groups outlawed in Russia and many other countries.