IRGC receives new missile catamaran

The IRGCN's new missile-armed catamaran Martyr Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis . (Mehr News Agency)

Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Navy (IRGCN) formally received Martyr Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis (PC313-01), a new type of stealthy missile-armed catamaran, during a ceremony held at the force's main base in Bandar Abbas on 6 January.

IRGCN commander Rear Admiral Alireza Tangsiri said the new vessel, which is named after an Iraqi militant leader who was killed in a US airstrike along with the IRGC's Major General Qasem Soleimani, has a range of 2,000 n miles, an endurance of 14 days, and has four engines that give it a speed of 37 kt.

While Rear Adm Tangsiri was cited as saying it is the second in the IRGC's Shahid Soleimani class, which is also a catamaran, it is significantly smaller at 47 m in length and has a different hull design.

The media coverage of the event showed it has the same 30 mm weapon station as Shahid Soleimani (FS313-01), which was formally handed over in September 2022, and six anti-ship missiles, although these are launched over the sides from the rear deck rather than forward either side of the bridge.

The ship appeared to be armed with C-802-derived Nour or Ghader missiles for the ceremony, but Rear Adm Tangsiri indicated it can also carry the new very long-range anti-ship missile that is also named after Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis when he said it is capable of engaging surface targets at a range of 750 km.

Longer-range target acquisition could be supported by an unmanned aerial vehicle that is capable of taking off vertically from the small flight deck behind the new ship's bridge.

Unlike Shahid Soleimani