군수지원함 이란 해군의 군수지원함이 화재로 손실

[위종민]

https://bityl.co/7DOQ (USNI)

이란 해군의 군수지원함 IRIS 카르그함이 6월 1일 이란 Jask 항 외곽에서 화재로 손실됐습니다. 

IRIS 카르그 함은 이란 해군의 중동역외 작전에 매우 중요한 역할을 하고 있었으며, 2011년 이란 해군의 지중해 항해, 2014년의 대서양 항해 당시에도 주요 전력을 구성했었습니다. 

또한 카르그함은 훈련함 용도로도 쓰이고 있었으며, 작년엔 인도양에서 훈련생도 300명을 태우고 작전을 하기도 했었습니다. 

이번 화재사고는 2019년 1월 28일 반다르-이-안잘리의 방파제에 충돌해 수리불가능할 정도로 파손된 경프리깃 IRIS 다마반드, 2020년 5월 10일 이란 해군 소속 경프리깃에서 발사된 미사일에 피격된 지원함 IRIS 코노락에 이어 최근 이란해군에서 벌어진 세 번째 사고입니다. 

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

By: H I Sutton

June 3, 2021 6:22 PM

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 stern-first, within sight of the Iranian port of Jask, according to imagery provided to USNI News by Maxar.

The loss of Kharg, Iran’s only replenishment ship, created new challenges for the under-resourced Iranian Navy. The fleet oiler was an essential unit in Iranian ambitions to operate beyond the Middle East. For example, when Iranian warships sailed to the Mediterranean in 2011 Kharg was a key part of the group. In 2014, when Iran said that it was sending warships to the Atlantic, Kharg was present. While the Iranian surface group did not make good on Tehran’s promise to operate in the Gulf of Mexico, Kharg did give the Iranian Navy potential for much longer voyages.

IRIS Kharg wreck on June 3 Fire. Maxar Image used permission

Kharg also acted as a training vessel, carrying 300 to 400 naval cadets. Last year it operated in the Indian Ocean carrying 300 cadets. There are reports that at the time of the accident, Kharg had 400 cadets aboard that were set to join in a training exercise with the Russian Navy.

The sinking is the latest in a series of serious mishaps affecting Iranian Navy ships in the last three years. On Jan. 28, 2018, the light frigate IRIS Damavand (77), the flagship of Iran’s Caspian Fleet, ran aground on the breakwater at Bandar-e Anzali. The ship, which was less than three years old, was damaged beyond repair.

On May 10, 2020, the support vessel IRIS Konarak was accidentally struck by a missile fired by an Iranian light frigate. The misfire killed 19 sailors. The superstructure was destroyed and although the hull could be towed to port, the ship was lost. The Kharg incident this week is the third time in recent years that the Iranian Navy has lost a vessel due to an accident.

Iranian Friendly Fire Incident Kills 19, After Frigate Fires Missile At Support Ship - USNI News

Iran’s sectarian maritime force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN), suffered their own incident in July. A large target barge, designed to resemble a U.S. Navy Nimitz-class carrier, sunk while under tow back to base. The wreck of the mock carrier posed a danger to navigation and drifted with the tides just outside the Bandar Abbas naval base, almost blocking the entrance. Eventually, they were able to tow what was left into the harbor.

An Iranian built mockup of a US Nimitz-class carrier is destroyed during the IRGCN Noble Prophet exercise. ONI Photo

The Ol-class ship was built in the U.K. and delivered to Iran in 1984. Kharg displaced 33,544 tons and was 679 feet long – about the size of a U.S. San Antonio-class amphibious warship. For many years Kharg was the largest ship in the Iranian fleet, but the oiler had recently been surpassed by the IRIS Makran.

Makran itself is an unusual support ship for the Iranian Navy and may replace Kharg in the training role. The converted oil tanker is around 755 feet long and was launched in October 2020. Her new role is as a forward base ship, roughly equivalent to the U.S. Navy’s Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB). For this role, it has a large helipad fitted and can carry cargo, boats, or submersibles.

After several training exercises, Makran has been loaded with seven fast attack craft and sent down the East Coast of Africa, USNI News reported this week. Accompanied by an Iranian Navy frigate, the lack of an oiler on the deployment implies Makran could make the journey and support the frigate escort on its own. U.S. officials have said the destination is Venezuela. However, Kharg’s sinking may have interrupted the transport of the boats to Venezuela. There are unconfirmed social media reports that Makran has been diverted to replace Kharg in a training exercise with the Russian Navy

With Iran’s modest shipbuilding industry, it seems unlikely that they can build a replacement oiler very quickly. Makran may be forced to take on more than just the training role from Kharg. In the short term, analysts will be watching Makran for signs the ships will proceed with operations or arms sales to Venezuela. In the longer term there is the question of whether Kharg can be replaced by the Iranians and how soon the navy could roam beyond the Middle East.

[백선호]

이란해군의 대서양 항해는 그냥 순전히 '나도 할 수 있다'는 보여주기를 위해서 하는 것 같네요.

[위종민]

전시에는 사우디 상대로도 군항 바깥으로 나갈 수나 있을지..

기사에도 나온 반잠수 수송함이 고속정 7척 싣고 베네주엘라로 가는 것 같다고 하던데, 평화시의 훈련이나 수송때나 나갈 수 있을 테죠.

[정명기]

화재로 손실되었다기에 회복 불가능한 피해를 입은건가 했더니만, 우현측으로 기울면서 침몰했다는 거였군요. 뭘 어쩌다 저랬는지 모르겠지만 이란 해군도 정말 노답인가 봅니다.

[백선호]

1980년 5월 중국해군의 3,670톤급 Luda형 구축함이 남태평양에 간 적이 있는데, 그 이유는 시험 발사된 중국의 ICBM을 회수하러 간 잠수함 구조선, 급유함 등등을 호위하러 간 것이었습니다.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_051_destroyer