Iran’s Navy Blasts Away at a Mock U.S. Carrier – NYTimes.com.
( Music by Max Steiner – The Caine Mutiny – Based on the novel by Herman Wouk, my dad.. – JW )
TEHRAN — Iran’s navy may pale in comparison to that of the United States, but on Wednesday it inflicted serious damage on an American aircraft carrier — a mock-up of one, to be exact.
The replica, which seemed to have been built on top of a barge, took some nasty hits, just as a real carrier would in a real war situation, Iranian commanders boasted.
“A unique power has been created, and we do not like to put it into practice,” Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari, the highest commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, told the local news media. “But if, God forbid, such a day comes, Iran’s navy will have the complete control over the Sea of Oman, the Hormuz Strait and the Persian Gulf.”
The simulation, called Great Prophet 9, was the centerpiece of an exercise by the naval branch of the Revolutionary Guards, and it was carried out in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which more than 20 percent of the world’s oil passes.
State television showed images of missiles striking a “ship” resembling a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, similar to the ones permanently patrolling the blue waters of the Persian Gulf. Enveloped in smoke, the ersatz warship was swarmed by dozens of Iranian speedboats, as a presenter described the types of missiles, torpedoes and rockets blowing holes in its sides.
Military officials could be heard shouting “praise the lord” each time the replica was hit.
“That is the Fateh-110 missile hitting its target,” the presenter said, as more smoke belched from the fake aircraft carrier. “God will guide those who fight in line with his wishes,” he added, quoting a line from the Quran.
Though Iran and the United States are engaged in nuclear talks, Iran has often threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for any attack on its nuclear sites.
Wednesday’s make-believe attack is part of Iran’s strategy to show military might, despite being engaged in direct talks with its archenemy, the United States.
The United States’ presence in the Persian Gulf has long vexed Iran’s leaders, who have said there is no reason for the American Navy to project power so far from its borders. In addition, Iranian officers say, its very presence presents a danger to the region.
“American aircraft carriers are very big ammunition depots housing a lot of missiles, rockets, torpedoes and everything else,” the Revolutionary Guards’ navy chief, Adm. Ali Fadavi, said on state television, adding that a direct hit by a missile could set off a large secondary explosion. Last month, Admiral Fadavi said his force was capable of sinking American aircraft carriers in the event of war.
The mock carrier bore a striking resemblance to a model that the United States military noticed when it was under construction in a shipyard in the port of Bandar Abbas last year. It quickly became known as the Target Barge. The United States did not seem overly concerned about the exercise or the implied threat to its carriers.
“We are aware of a recent exercise by Iranian naval forces involving a mock-up of a vessel similar to an aircraft carrier,” said Cmdr. Elissa Smith, a Defense Department spokeswoman. “We are confident in our naval forces’ ability to defend themselves against any maritime threat.”
Cmdr. Kevin Stephens, the spokesman for the Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain, echoed that confidence, adding in remarks to The Associated Press, “It seems they’ve attempted to destroy the equivalent of a Hollywood movie set.”
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