NEWS MILITARY's video: Iran s and Russian succes built Best Submarines to defend the country

The 3,000-ton Kilos are the Iranian Navy’s largest and most potent submarines. They are based at Bandar Abbas near the Strait of Hormuz at the entrance to the Persian Gulf. The Russian-built boats are armed with up to 18 torpedoes and can remain submerged for several days at a time. They are, logically, central to the Iranian Navy’s ability to defend the country. The addition of Iran’s 600-ton indigenous Fateh-class submarines could be viewed by Tehran as enough capability to allow all three of the Kilos to be out of the water at once. First-in-class Fateh has been tied up to the submarine pier in Bandar Abbas throughout. But Fateh is much smaller and less capable than the Kilos. Iran also has a sizable fleet of midget submarines. These are the locally designed Nahang-class boats and around 14 (estimates vary) of the North Korean derived Ghadir-class. They can be armed with heavyweight torpedoes and the small Jask-2 anti-ship missile. But they are not comparable in either role or capability to the much larger Kilos. The Kilos have been overhauled in local facilities rather than being sent back to more experienced Russian yards.