an old cargo ship converted to launch attack and spy drones

The main thing Iran’s military shortcomings are reflected in its naval branchThe complexity of this industry, as well as the multi-million dollar projects required to design, develop and build from scratch a deep-draft vessel such as an aircraft carrier, remain, for the moment, very far from being a reality, unlike Spain with ships such as the Juan Carlos I.

However, the urgency need for a naval projection platform for fixed-wing aircraft – it is not known whether there was any staff or not – led the engineers of the Persian country to modify a container ship, like those that call at ports around the world with goods on board. The first time this idea was heard was in 2022, when images appeared on the Internet about this very particular adaptation.

Now, a new photograph shows more details about these ships. Specifically, the Shahid Bagheri, which is currently moored in a Iranian port while final works are carried out. One of the most surprising details in the photos is that it has a sloping cockpit.

Although the date of this image is unknown, a significant evolution can be seen compared to the video released on social networks in December 2023. the mentioned cockpit seems much more complete and included an operating area for nearby aircraft marked on the surface as shown TWZ.

The ship is being built for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy and is based on the Perarin container ship. In addition, it is expected that a second unit of the same type named Shahid Mahdavi.

What do aircraft carriers look like?

The nation of the ayatollahs will thus become the first country in the Middle East to have an operational aircraft carrier. The curious thing is that in reality these are cargo ships over 22 years old that will not be able to launch fixed-wing aircraft in principle, but will be entirely focused on the Iranian army’s fleet of drones and helicopters.

Originally container ships, both ships had a long flat deck for most of their length. To convert them into aircraft carriers, Iran decided to build inclined cockpitwhich would allow both launching and receiving aircraft separately.

Both warships are named Shahid-Mahdav and Shahid BagheriThere is no clear information on which of the two will be operational first and, according to Sutton, the dimensions and characteristics of the two ships would be practically the same.

There is also no consensus on which cargo to convert. On the one hand, the medium The Maritime Executive recognized the Iranian-flagged Sarvin ship on the merchant ship that had been in dry dock since May 2022. It has dimensions of 240 meters in length and 34 meters in width.

However, according to Sutton, The ship he himself detected is the Perarina large container ship built in 2000. The confusion is logical, since the dimensions of this ship are similar to those of the Sarvin: it has a width of 32.2 meters and measures 240.2 meters in length.

This is not the first time that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has converted merchant ships into warships. A few days ago I arrived in Brazil The largest ship in the Iranian Navy, IRIS Makran (441)after having carried out operations in different parts of the world. In reality, it is a former oil tanker converted into a warship in 2021.

Even though it appeared among the largest civilian ships in the worldThe Makran has dimensions considerably smaller than those of an aircraft carrier: 228 meters long and 42 meters wide. Its large central platform provides space for seven large drones or other unmanned aerial vehicles.

Iran is also not the first country to acquire an aircraft carrier that was not originally intended for this purpose. In fact, Of the 16 countries with aircraft carriers, three have used this formula.. Japan, for example, is converting the two destroyers JS Izumo and JS Kaga into ships capable of carrying F-35B Lightning II fighters. Even the United States used this method with its first aircraft carrier, the USS Langley, which was originally a collier.

Drones on board

But if there is one thing that sets Iran apart from countries that have also converted their aircraft carriers, it is that they do not have – even remotely – the same military capability. Following decades of military sanctions, Both aircraft carriers could carry military helicopters which this country acquired 40 years ago under the regime of the last Shah of Iran.

The Islamic regime has indeed found a goldmine in drones, as it demonstrated with its shipments to Russia. Although this figure is not yet final, it is estimated that the Russian army has acquired some 1,700 Shahed-136 unmanned dronesWith a range of between 2,000 and 2,500 kilometers on low-altitude routes, these unmanned aircraft have the capacity to fly at 180 kilometers per hour.

The Shahed-136 – in service since 2021 – is 3.5 metres long with a wingspan of 2.5 metres and weighs almost 200 kilograms. in the nose accommodate an explosive warhead and the guidance system via an optical sensor. They mainly focus on ground targets, either to attack attack equipment or intended for countermeasures.

Although they could be mounted on virtually any military or commercial vehicle, the truth is that on aircraft carriers they would allow Iran to reach new targets and launch attacks in areas where this was previously impossible. These developments would be particularly oriented towards Iran’s main adversaries today are Israel and Saudi Arabiaexcept the United States.

Among the variety of unmanned aerial vehicles Iran has, other major candidates for carrier-based deployment are Mohajer-6, drones also used by the Russian army on Ukrainian territory. They have a wingspan of 10 meters and a length that almost does not reach 6 meters, a size that is supported on the ground by a fixed three-legged landing gear. Like the Shahed-136, the Mohajer-6 is designed to perform espionage, reconnaissance and attack tasks.