Last weekend, Iran’s main navy ship “Sahand” escort ship capsized on the coast of the southern port city of Abbas in Iran. On Tuesday (July 9), Iranian media reported that the ship has completely sunk.
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency stated that this warship entered service in December 2018 and is one of the larger ships in the Iranian fleet, equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles and electronic warfare systems.
On Tuesday, the news agency Nournews, affiliated with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, reported that the escort ship “Sahand” sank completely in the shallow waters of Bandar Abbas port on Tuesday. Previously, the ship briefly repositioned after initially capsizing on Sunday.
“Nournews stated, “The Sahand military ship struggled on Monday to rebalance in the water, but now it has sunk due to the ropes breaking.”
According to the Iranian state news agency (IRNA), the 311-foot-long escort ship “Sahand” lost balance when it was docked at Bandar Abbas port due to water leaks into the fuel tanks. Staff made efforts to restore its balance.
The initial photo from Tasnim News Agency showed the left side of this warship with a displacement of about 2,000 tons anchored at Bandar Abbas port.
The “Jane’s Defense Weekly” believes that “Sahand” is an improvement of the “Mark 5” class frigate sold to Iran by Vosper Thornycroft in the 1960s. The Sahand’s tonnage has been enlarged compared to British warships, reaching a displacement of 2000 tons.
Before capsizing, the Sahand was the main surface combat ship of the Iranian navy, capable of carrying a Bell helicopter, 4 anti-ship missiles, and two torpedoes, with the primary mission of patrolling in the waters surrounding Iran. It visited St. Petersburg and Venezuela in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
Since its construction, the ship has been upgraded to include four to eight medium-range air defense missiles, double the number of anti-ship missiles, and a new radar. According to Navy News, these new equipment may have raised the ship’s center of gravity.
“Sahand” is the name of the ship that the Iranian navy recently renamed. The previous “Sahand” was sunk by the US Navy during Operation Praying Mantis in 1988 when an American frigate was hit by an Iranian mine in the Persian Gulf.
The sinking of “Sahand” is the latest mishap in the Iranian navy fleet. In January 2018, the navy destroyer Damavand sank in the Caspian Sea after hitting a breakwater; in June 2021, Iran’s largest naval ship Kharg sank after catching fire in the Gulf of Oman.