Profile
- Type
- Naval surface vessels
- Conflict side
- Iran
- Origin
- Iran
- Service note
- 2020s
Artillery
Iranian naval surface vessels
Iranian naval surface vessels in this archive include regular navy frigates and corvettes as well as IRGC Navy fast-attack craft and patrol boats. In the United States-Iran Conflict, they have been documented in tanker seizures, armed intimidation, and Strait of Hormuz/Gulf of Oman maritime coercion rather than blue-water fleet combat.
Service History
- Used by
- Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy
- Wars
- United States-Iran Conflict
Production History
- Built in
- Iran
Specifications
- Fleet mix
- Frigates, corvettes, patrol boats, missile boats, and fast attack craft
- Crew
- Varies by hull and class
- Armament
- Small arms, crew-served weapons, cannon, anti-ship missiles, and sometimes torpedoes or mines
- Speed
- Fast attack craft can exceed 60 knots; larger surface combatants are slower
- Role
- Maritime interdiction, escort, coastal defense, and harassment
Conflict Usage
- United States-Iran Conflict
- Side: IranRole: Maritime interdiction and coercive boarding
Used by Iranian Navy and IRGCN surface vessels in the July 2023 attempted seizures of TRF Moss and Richmond Voyager in the Gulf of Oman, including gunfire on Richmond Voyager.
Iranian naval surface vessels Images
Related Weapon Systems
Iranian small attack boatsSmall attack boat / fast attack craftIranian small attack boats are the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy's fast-boat and swarm force for harassment, mine-laying, and littoral attack in the Strait of Hormuz. In the United States-Iran Conflict, U.S. and Iranian reporting documented these boats as part of attacks on U.S. Navy destroyers transiting the strait.
Iranian submarinesSubmarine forceIranian submarines are the Islamic Republic's mixed diesel-electric submarine force, combining Russian-built Kilo boats with domestically built Fateh, Ghadir, and other mini-submarine classes. The fleet is centered on Bandar Abbas and the Strait of Hormuz, where it supports sea-denial, mine-laying, and anti-ship strike missions; in the United States-Iran Conflict, CENTCOM said Operation Epic Fury damaged or destroyed Iranian Navy ships and submarines.
IRIS Shahid Sayyad Shirazi / Shahid Soleimani-class corvetteMissile corvetteIRIS Shahid Sayyad Shirazi is a Shahid Soleimani-class Iranian missile corvette built for IRGC Navy littoral strike and air-defense duties. In the United States-Iran Conflict, U.S. forces struck the ship during Operation Epic Fury, making it one of the class's clearest wartime appearances in the archive.
BGM-109 Tomahawk Land Attack MissileShip- and submarine-launched land-attack cruise missileThe BGM-109 Tomahawk Land Attack Missile, often abbreviated TLAM, is a U.S. all-weather, long-range subsonic cruise missile used by naval forces for deep precision strikes from surface ships and submarines. Modern Block IV and Block V weapons combine low-altitude flight, GPS-aided navigation, terrain matching, and in-flight retargeting, with recent documented use in Syria, the 2018 Syria Missile Strikes, Yemen, the Red Sea Crisis, and U.S. strikes on Iran..jpg?width=480)
Iranian anti-ship missile systemsAnti-ship missile systemIranian anti-ship missile systems combine coastal-defense cruise missiles and longer-range anti-warship missiles to threaten shipping across the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman. In the United States-Iran Conflict, they form a core part of Iran's maritime-denial posture against U.S. and commercial traffic.
Mark 48 heavyweight torpedoHeavyweight torpedoThe Mark 48 heavyweight torpedo is the U.S. Navy's submarine-launched anti-surface and anti-submarine weapon, and in the United States-Iran Conflict it was used against an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean.Sources
ONI Iran's Naval ForcesPublisher: U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence | Note: Supports Iranian Navy and IRGCN surface-force composition, including fast attack craft, small boats, and anti-ship missile emphasis. | Accessed: 2026-06-20RAND Military Trends and the Future of WarfarePublisher: RAND Corporation | Note: Supports the broader characterization of Iranian surface combatants as coastal patrol craft, fast attack boats, and a small frigate-heavy blue-water force. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Producing large vessels on IRGC Navy agendaPublisher: Mehr News Agency | Note: Supports Iranian domestic ship-production context: the IRGC Navy said it was constructing vessels and other equipment on its own. | Accessed: 2026-06-20U.S. Prevents Iran from Seizing Two Merchant Tankers in Gulf of OmanPublisher: U.S. Navy | Note: Supports United States-Iran Conflict direct conflict-use: Iranian naval vessels were used by Iran in the July 5, 2023 attempted seizures of TRF Moss and Richmond Voyager in the Gulf of Oman. | Accessed: 2026-06-20CENTCOM Operation Epic Fury IRGCN video pagePublisher: U.S. Central Command | Note: Supports United States-Iran Conflict direct conflict-use: IRGCN fast-attack craft were used by Iran to swarm Niovi in the Strait of Hormuz on May 3, 2023. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Fast-attack craft approaching an internationally flagged merchant vessel.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports the primary image provenance and public-domain licensing for the U.S. Navy surveillance screenshot of Iranian fast-attack craft. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Helicopter prepares to land on IRIS 76 Jamaran.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports gallery image provenance and CC BY 4.0 licensing for the IRIS Jamaran frigate image. | Accessed: 2026-06-20Iranian Velayat-90 Naval Exercise by IRIN (2).jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports gallery image provenance and CC BY 4.0 licensing for the IRIN missile-boat exercise image. | Accessed: 2026-06-20New vessels join Iranian Navy Dec 2019 - 2.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports gallery image provenance and CC BY 4.0 licensing for the 2019 Iranian Navy vessel-delivery image. | Accessed: 2026-06-20