Wednesday, February 25, 2015

IRGC Navy Starts Persian Gulf Wargames

Anti-Ship Missiles Hit Mockup of U.S. Aircraft Carrier
The IRGC navy (IRGCN) today began its “Payambar-e Azam 9” (Great Prophet 9) wargames in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, Fars News Agency reported.

During the exercises today, anti-ship ballistic missiles fired from the coast and anti-ship cruise missiles fired by navy helicopters hit a carrier mockup, modeled after a U.S. NIMITZ class aircraft carrier. This is the first time that the IRGCN has incorporated a carrier mockup in its wargames. In a video released by Fars News Agency, IRGCN fast attack boats are shown training swarm attack and firing rockets at the mockup carrier, with helicopters overhead firing Nasr anti-ship cruise missiles at their target.

IRGCN also reported that several vessels today drilled high-speed mine-laying operations in the Strait of Hormuz.

“We have the most advanced sea mines which cannot be imagined by the Americans,” said IRGCN Commander Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi. (Fars News Agency, 25 February)

IRGCN also fired a number of anti-ship ballistic missiles into the Strait of Hormuz during today’s drills.

Photo: Screen capture of IRGCN video showing missile attacks on a carrier mockup; the Persian Gulf, 25 February 2015 (Fars News Agency/eaworldview)

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

"We have the most advanced sea mines which cannot be imagined by the Americans,"

Such a naive and childish statement made by a man of his so-called rank who takes some people as idiots.But I suppose being the member of the IRGCN and not the IRIN explains that a little.

Anonymous said...

OK granted they went and built this very costly barj to represent the USN carrier Nimitz. But want do they go and do? They go and place this thing a kilometre away from the shore and proceed by blasting it up with small missiles and attack craft and then hitting it with a larger missile followed by commandos landing on its deck. If this wasn't the dumbest thing to do I don't know what was. I mean couldn't these characters have moved the target at least 50 to 100 Kilometers away from the shore and ringed with IRIN ships and submarines as well as a few aircraft to simulate USN task force defence operative shield? This just exposed the naivety of this type of defence strategy for what it truly represented,namely for domestic propaganda purposes.Now lets see who is naive enough to believe them.

Anonymous said...

Moving that thing 50 - 100 kilometers away from the coast is still useless... Iran can never ever make a successfull attack on US carrier Group as well as the beating they would get in return for a failed attack would be nightmarish..For Iran will always be a dream. to defeat US carrier Group. This rigged event is for propaganda / domestic consumption, most definitely...

Anonymous said...

Iran has probably the largest stocks of sea mines in the region ranging from ww1 contact type to chinese rocket powered and very likely captor types as well and when you throw in the dismal performance of the last nato navies de-mining exercises you can see that irans naval mine warfare capabilities are not to be taken lightly

interested party said...

For domestic propaganda purposes? Okay maybe some Iranians are as stupid as people in my country. However I can't help but wonder if the larger picture here is for a wider Western and Sunni Gulf audience. So in 2006 Hezbollah fires more rockets on the last day of its 34 day war with Israel than it did on any other day of that war? A victory for a doctrine! And there is not some type of psych op at play here? Let them think we are primitives? Plenty of Faith based right wing politicians in America looking for a faith based retired colonels to get on FOX and bring forth a rapture all about exactly this kind of theater. And expose themselves. They breath this kinda of superiority complex. Luckily Obama is the man and won't be bullied. By Bibi. By Wahabi's or by congress. Guessing the movie coming out soon using the footage of this event won't be winning any cannes or sundance film festivals!

Anonymous said...

No because those speed boats are scary things to be in when you're far away from shore.

Anonymous said...

Anon 2:42 AM........What ever the case,the statement that so-called officer made was pure nonesense.This man "cannot imagine" the power of a carrier groups capability and technical ability to counter such threats.

Anonymous said...

"We have the most advanced sea mines which cannot be imagined by the Americans,"

I call BS on that one.

Anonymous said...

I wonder how much this useless stunt cost the country? Because there was a awful lot of metal used to build that mockup.Oh well might as well look at the bright side of things. It may make a good barrier reef for the local marine life bless them.

Anonymous said...

Reminds me of the famous Bruce Lee movie : "Boards don't hit back"
Mock ups don't hit back, real US aircraft carriers do, and that with a vengeance !

Anonymous said...

Maybe the regime was going for the Golden Teddy Bear prize? But missed it by a few days after Panahi had won it with his film "Taxi".

Anonymous said...

AnonymousFebruary 26, 2015 at 12:47 AM
actually any carrier group that had to cross the straits of hormuz that was contested/defended by iran would likely face a real mauling before it could break out into the wider persian gulf

Anonymous said...

Anon 2:20 AM

How about the other dozen nuclear capable aircraft carriers with their support ships and nuclear/ballistic carrying submarines which will be parked two hundred or so miles outside the persian gulf? Will they "face a real mauling" as well?