The C 14-class missile boat is a light missile boat of

catamaran A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...

designed for use in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

, also known as the China Cat class. The small size of the ship, along with some stealth features provide it with good protection against enemy detection, and it can be armed with a variety of light anti-ship missiles. In addition to the low radar cross section, the boat is also extremely fast with an aluminum monohull with stepped planning.

Design

The catamaran design provides better seaworthiness in comparison to the other boats of similar displacement with a conventional hull. The missile boats have been exported to Iran, where since 2000 it has been in service with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Navy Corps. In Chinese service, it primarily serves as a trial boat, including testing various light anti-ship missiles and other weaponry for catamarans. The boats were reportedly first seen in Iran in May 2002, and western sources assumed that a number of these vessels were delivered by China.

Sources

Global Security

Iran's Naval Forces

Combat Fleets 16th Ed.: Iranian Frigates and Patrol Craft

Missile boats of the People's Liberation Army Navy Missile boat classes Missile boats of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy Ship classes of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Ships built by Marine Industries Organization China–Iran military relations {{china-mil-stub