“Fateh has passed all stages of construction and the defense ministry is now doing the final tests,” Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Navy Rear Admiral Gholam Reza Khadem Biqam said.
He added that the submarine will join the Iranian Navy's fleet after passing the final factory, waterfront and sea tests.
In relevant remarks earlier this month, Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari announced that the Iranian Navy would launch a new home-made submarine and a new destroyer in the near future.
“The Navy's new submarine will be launched soon,” Sayyari said.
He noted that the Navy was working on a new submarine, and added, “We hope that our new destroyer will also join the Navy's fleet this year.”
The Iranian Navy Commander also noted that the new destroyer is armed with “a collection of missiles and torpedoes” and will be displayed to the public soon.
In April 2013, Iran announced it had increased the power and efficiency of the missiles and torpedoes mounted on its Fateh submarines.
“Naturally, the power of Fateh's missiles and torpedoes are more than Qadir (class) submarines (which are equipped with sonar-evading technology and can fire missiles and torpedoes simultaneously),” Khadem Biqam told FNA at the time.
In February 2015, the Iranian Navy announced that it was building a new hi-tech submarine with the capability of launching missiles and torpedoes.
“The submarine, named Be'sat, which is now in designing stage, will be 60 meters long and has the operational power for missions in the depth of 300 meters,” it said.
Iranian military experts plan to mount 6 launchers for firing torpedoes and marine cruise missiles on the new submarine and equip the subsurface vessel with mine-laying capability.
The submarine would weigh over 1,300 tons.
Source: FNA
