Alwaght- On Saturday, Iran launched two key navy ships, displaying a key navel breakthrough. The upgraded Sahand destroyer and Kurdistan forward base ship.
Beyond boosting naval vessel numbers, these launches reflect a strategic shift in Iran’s naval operations. The move aims to extend its operational range, achieve logistical self-sufficiency, and sustain a persistent presence in international waters. Military officials state that commissioning these vessels will directly enhance the navy’s combat and logistical capabilities.
Unveiling upgraded Sahand destroyer and Kurdistan forward base ship
The fully upgraded Iranian destroyer Sahand, which sank last year in the port, has been refloated and restored to service. This unprecedented engineering operation required the efforts of over 200 navy specialists and engineers and 350 consecutive hours of work. The mission has been recorded as one of the most complex technical operations ever undertaken by the Iranian navy, showcasing the military’s specialized engineering capabilities.
The upgraded Sahand destroyer now features an 8-meter longer hull and modernized offensive, defensive, electronic warfare, and intelligence systems. These enhancements boost its ability to engage low-altitude and medium-range aerial threats, increasing its missile launch capacity to 18 missiles. The modifications significantly improve the vessel’s sea-keeping stability, its capacity to carry weapons and equipment, and its capabilities in both point-defense and area-defense.
The refitted ship will soon deploy on International missions and joint exercises, where it is expected to play a key role in protecting Iran’s maritime borders, securing shipping lanes, and providing escort for commercial vessels.
Simultaneously, Iran is deploying the Bandar-e Kurdistan, a new forward base designed to provide logistical support for combat units, host helicopters and drones, and enable sustained long-range missions. The deployment of this new base alongside the Makran signifies a major expansion of Iran’s ability to support expeditionary naval operations.
The Kurdistan forward base ship Is armed with advanced weaponry, including Qadir and Qader anti-ship cruise missiles, with a strike range of 200 to 300 kilometers.
Its air defense is bolstered by the vertically-launched Navid system, developed by defense ministry. This system has a 25-kilometer range to engage low-altitude threats and uses proximity-fuze warheads, significantly enhancing the air defense capabilities of naval battle groups and coastal installations. Furthermore, the vessel carries Kian loitering munitions with an operational range of approximately 2,000 kilometers, dramatically extending the forward base’s own strike and combat radius.
On the civilian-support side, the forward base ship contains extensive logistical capabilities for storing and transporting fuel, water, and food. It is equipped with advanced and comprehensive medical and hospital services to sustain naval fleets on long-term deployments. These features allow it to function as a mobile sea base, providing technical and repair services to other vessels on long-range missions.
How many forward base ships does Iran have and what are their missions?
Currently, Iran operates a number of vessels with forward base ship duties. This class includes Makran, Kurdistan, Shahid Mahdavi, and Shahid Bagheri.
Each of these ships play various roles from logistical and operational support to carrying helicopters, drones, and working like support bases.
Their general mission includes logistical support fir strike groups, hosting helicopters and drones, and escorting and protecting commercial and oil tankers, relief work, and providing operational bases in the distant seas.
Forward base ships’ significance in boosting Iran’s naval capabilities
Forward bases facilitate prolonged, sustained presence in distant waters, ensuring expeditionary operations and the protection of trade routes without reliance on friendly ports or land-based support.
In today’s geopolitical landscape, maritime power is a fundamental principle for safeguarding national security and protecting a nation’s marine commerce.
This global trend is exemplified by China’s significant investments in aircraft carrier programs, which directly support its policy of expanding global trade. For Iran, facing both regional and international threats, this strategic necessity is even more critical.
Operating under sanctions, these vessels enhance Iran’s logistical self-sufficiency and provide significant operational flexibility, enabling them to fulfill diverse roles, from escort duties and combat support to serving as floating hospitals.
How many countries can build forward base ships? Where is Iran’s place?
Production of advanced heavy forward bases requires developed shipbuilding industries and intricate defense ecosystem. Such countries as the US, China, Japan, Britain, France, Italy, South Korea, Russia, and India are forerunners in this class of ships.
Iran now ranks among the world’s advanced naval producers, thanks to its ability to design and build, or upgrade, light to medium destroyers such as the Mowj-class and projects like the upgraded Sahand, as well as its work on designing or refitting heavy, oceangoing warships in the naval support–ship class.
Former Navy commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari has previously noted that only “perhaps seven countries in the world” can build destroyers, and that Iran is one of them, especially since most countries construct such vessels jointly rather than independently.
A key factor in evaluating Iran’s indigenous naval capability is the synergy among its fast-attack boats, naval drones, medium-weight submarines, and destroyer/support-ship platforms. Together, these assets have made Iran a consequential actor in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf.
This force mix enables protection of commercial and energy shipping: fast boats support asymmetric coastal operations, medium submarines provide subsurface deterrence, and destroyers and support ships deliver surface defense and long-range logistics. With this structure, Iran can sustain its exports from the Persian Gulf to the Sea of Oman, the Indian Ocean, and the Red Sea, and tailor its responses to emerging threats in its security environment.
These capabilities are central to realizing the vision of a “strategic navy,” a term emphasized by Iran’s Supreme Leader Sayyed Ali Khamenei who is also the commander-in-chief of the Iranian armed forces.
A navy becomes “strategic” when it can operate at long range, maintain logistics far from home waters, and field a broad spectrum of combat and support assets. Iran’s production of medium submarines, drone carriers, support ships, and upgraded destroyers underscores its drive toward building such a strategic naval force.
Naval power’s role in protecting national interests and maritime security with regard to threats
The experience of recent conflicts showed that deterrent and sustained presence in the sea can ensure Iran’s export lanes and Iran’s national interests. Forward base ships and destroyers can carry out search-and-rescue missions, and provide emergency repairs, while submarines and fast-attack boats, backed by air-defense systems, reinforce deterrence and raise the cost of any attack on Iran’s maritime trade.
