Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Archives

Russian Navy Announces More Major Fleet Exercises as Drills End with China, Iran

21 January 2022

Russian Navy guided-missile destroyer Admiral Tributs in the Indian Ocean. Russian Navy Photo

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The Russian Navy will conduct a series of exercises in the next few months with all of its fleet commands throughout their respective areas of operations, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on Thursday.

Russian Navy Chief Admiral Nikolai Evmenov will oversee the effort, which is in accordance with the Russian Armed Forces’ 2022 training plan.

The series of exercises is meant...

https://news.usni.org/2022/01/21/russian-navy-announces-more-major-fleet-exercises-as-drills-end-with-china-iran

Iran’s Drive to Modernize Navy Faces Latest in String of Setbacks

16 December 2021

Iran’s drive for naval modernization and self-sufficiency has had another recent setback the when Iranian Navy’s newest frigate capsized in its dry dock. Last week, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps showed off more than 100 of their latest homegrown fast attack craft – new types of missile boats, unique torpedo boats and other craft – in Bandar Abbas.

The frigate – IRIS Talayieh – fell...

https://news.usni.org/2021/12/16/irans-drive-to-modernize-navy-faces-latest-in-string-of-setbacks

Pentagon Says Iranian Helicopter Made ‘Unprofessional’ Pass Within 25 yards of USS Essex

15 November 2021

ARABIAN GULF The amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD-2) transits the Arabian Gulf during flight operations on Nov. 13. US Navy Photo

An Iranian Navy helicopter came within 25 feet of the USS Essex (LHD-2) while the ship was in the Gulf of Oman, the Pentagon confirmed Monday.

USS Essex is in the Persian Gulf after doing training with the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth (R08) in the Gulf of Oman on Nov. 8, according to USNI News’ Fleet and Marine Tracker.

The Iranian helicopter...

https://news.usni.org/2021/11/15/pentagon-says-iranian-helicopter-made-unprofessional-pass-within-25-yards-of-uss-essex

Iran Releases Tanker Sothys After Offloading Oil, Questions Remain Over Seizure

10 November 2021

Image from Iranian television of the tanker Sothys and a U.S. destroyer on Oct. 24, 2021.

A tanker once full of crude oil is back at sea more than two weeks after the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy took control of the merchant ship in the Gulf of Oman, Iranian officials said on Wednesday.

Vietnamese-flagged merchant tanker M/V Sothys departed the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on Wednesday after IRGCN troops took control of the ship on Oct. 24 in the Gulf of Oman.

“Following an order...

https://news.usni.org/2021/11/10/iran-releases-tanker-sothys-after-offloading-oil-questions-remain-over-seizure

Iranian Navy Flotilla Wraps up Four-Month Atlantic Deployment, Pledges More International Operations

10 September 2021

Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Shahram Irani and the crew of IRINS Makran. Tasnim News Photo

The two-ship Iranian Navy group that stalked the West Coast of Africa and the Baltic Sea this summer has returned home, as leaders in Tehran pledge more international naval operations.

Iran’s largest warship, IRINS Makran, and frigate IRINS Sahand returned this week after leaving the Middle East in May for a highly publicized trip that culminated in the ships participating in a fleet review in the Baltic...

https://news.usni.org/2021/09/10/iranian-navy-flotilla-wraps-up-four-month-atlantic-deployment-pledges-more-international-operations

EXCLUSIVE PHOTO: Iran’s Largest Warship Now in the Baltic Sea Bound for Russia

22 July 2021

IRINS Makran passes through the Great Belt strait in Denmark en route to the Baltic Sea on July 22, 2021. Photo by @shipoholic used with permission

Iran’s largest warship is now in the Baltic Sea – a first for the Iranian Navy – according to photos from ship spotters provided to USNI News.

Oil-tanker-turned-warship IRINS Makran transited the Great Belt early Thursday morning entering the Baltic Sea under escort by Royal Danish Navy patrol vessels.

Makran passed under the Great Belt Bridge just...

https://news.usni.org/2021/07/22/exclusive-photo-irans-largest-warship-now-in-the-baltic-sea-bound-for-russia

Two Iranian Warships Spotted Near English Channel

18 July 2021

Iranian warship, IRINS Makran, and the frigate accompanying her, have been tracked through open source intelligence including imagery from Sentinel-2 satellites.

Two Iranian warships are nearing the English Channel, according to satellite photographs reviewed by USNI News. The ships are thought to be headed to the Baltic Sea to represent Iran in a July 25 naval parade to commemorate the 325th anniversary of the Russian Navy off the coast of St. Petersburg.

The pair, the frigate IRINS Sahand and...

https://news.usni.org/2021/07/18/two-iranian-warships-spotted-near-english-channel

Iranian Warship Could Be Bringing Millions of Gallons of Fuel to Venezuela

11 June 2021

USNI News Illustration by H I Sutton

The former oil-tanker the Iranian Navy converted into a warship could be carrying millions of gallons of fuel to Venezuela in a ploy to get around U.S. sanctions, according to photos that emerged on Persian social media.

On Thursday, undated photos of IRIN Makran show the ship, designed to carry around 3 million of gallons of fuel, riding low in the water compared to its January commissioning photos. The photos, circulated on the Telegram instant messaging...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/10/iranian-warship-could-be-bringing-millions-of-gallons-of-oil-to-venezuela

Loss of Iranian Navy Ship Mutes Tehran’s Global Ambitions, 3rd Warship Lost Since 2018

3 June 2021

IRIS Kharg before and after the June 1 Fire. Maxar Image used with permission

New satellite images released Thursday show the sunken hull of what earlier this week was one of Iran’s largest warship, IRIS Kharg an Ol-class replenishment oiler, caught fire on the evening of June 1.

The crew battled the fire with only 33 injured and no deaths but could not save the ship. In the end only the sea could extinguish the flames. Kharg burned for hours before slowly listing to starboard and sinking...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/03/loss-of-iranian-navy-ship-mutes-tehrans-global-ambitions-3rd-warship-lost-since-2018

Iranian Warship Thought to be Headed to Venezuela Left Port with 7 High-Speed Missile Boats Aboard

1 June 2021

An Iranian Navy ship thought to be bound for Venezuela left its port in late April with seven high-speed missile-attack craft strapped to its deck, USNI News has learned.

According to imagery provided to USNI News by Maxar, the Iranian Navy’s new forward-basing ship, IRINS Makran, was seen on April 28 after leaving its homeport with seven attack boats aboard.

Last week, citing three U.S. officials, Politico

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/01/iranian-warship-thought-to-be-headed-to-venezuela-left-port-with-7-high-speed-missile-boats-aboard

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