In 2015 Iran dramatically attacked a fake U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in a propaganda display, and it now appears poised to pull off a sequel.
The ship, which also features at least 16 mock fighter jets aboard, was captured by satellite images being towed out into the Strait of Hormuz by Maxar Technologies on Sunday. It was previously docked in Bandar Abbas, a port city located on Iran’s southern coast. Although the ship’s existence hasn’t been acknowledged by Iranian authorities, its movement out to sea likely means it is poised for an “attack.”
The size of the fake vessel is estimated to be about 650 feet long and 160 feet wide. The boat is much smaller than the Nimitz-class carriers it is reportedly modeled after, which are about 980 feet long and 245 feet wide.
After being moved to a berth a few days ago, the mock aircraft carrier was towed out of the port yesterday morning. Today, @maxar captured it in its new location around 50 km southeast (possible fast attack boat approaching). Interesting to see what happens in next days pic.twitter.com/dcpGqkaNzj
— Christoph Koettl (@ckoettl) July 27, 2020
During the 2015 stunt, Iranian fast boats surrounded the ersatz replica and fired upon it using machine guns. The crescendo of gunfire was amplified by the use of surface-to-surface missiles, such as the country’s Fateh-110.
“American aircraft carriers are very big ammunition depots housing a lot of missiles, rockets, torpedoes, and everything else,” the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’s then-navy chief, Adm. Ali Fadavi, said at the time of the first mock attack.
President Trump said in April that he ordered the U.S. Navy to destroy any Iranian boats that harass U.S. Navy vessels after an incident involving Iranian vessels approaching U.S. ships.
The Washington Examiner reached out to U.S. Central Command for comment.
