Iran’s Quest for Blue Water Supremacy

The Islamic Republic of Iran has ambitions to make its navy a blue water power and it demonstrated its resolve and ingenuity when it commenced commercial conversion of ships as mobile forward bases.Iran is vying for an extended naval outreach in the region.

Credit Iran Press

Last year two of its converted military ships sailed on a 45,000 km journey across the ocean .A former Aframex oil carrier IRINS Makran will be able to embark six helicopters and will rival the US Navy’s biggest Expeditionary Sea Bases.The Iranian Navy is poised to carry out operations with greater outreach in its littoral sector and flex its maritime muscles in the Straits of Hormuz and Arabian Sea.

Low Cost Conversion of Commercial Ships

Credit The Drive

Emboldened by the low costs involved in conversion of  IRINS Makran Iran indigenously converted IRINS Mahdavi a 36,000-ton, 240 meter long and 27 meter wide former boxship. The IRINS Mahdavi ,once a container ship , has been retrofitted in a record time of 7 months and assigned a logistical role in the Iranian Navy. The vessel is equipped with advanced weapon systems and locally designed radar and defense electronics and is also a multipurpose military vessel.

Comparable to largest US naval ship

Credit Navy Recognition

The draft of most of the naval bases is not sufficient to accommodate the IRINS Makran and it berths at the only deep water berth. The displacement of the vessel makes it comparable to the largest US naval ship. Detractors of Iran’s blue water ambitions maintain that the sinister purpose is to carry fuel cargoes to Venezuela as U.S. sanctions are applicable to commercial vessels and not to any military vessels.

By Maritime Analyst