Iranian frigate ''Alvand'' () is a

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

of the

Islamic Republic of Iran Navy The Islamic Republic of Iran Navy (IRIN; ), also referred as the Iranian Navy (abbreviated NEDAJA; ), is the naval warfare service branch of Iran's regular military, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, Islamic Republic of Iran Army (''Artesh''). I ...

and the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships that are all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very comple ...

of her class. She was launched in 1968. The ship was originally called ''Saam'', lead ship of the ''Saam'' class (which is named after

Sām Sām (), also transliterated Saam, is a mythical hero of ancient Persia, and an important character in the Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' (, ), also transliterated ''Shahnama'', is a long epic poem written by the Persian literature, Persian p ...

, a mythical hero of ancient

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, and an important character in the

Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' (, ), also transliterated ''Shahnama'', is a long epic poem written by the Persian literature, Persian poet Ferdowsi between and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,000 distichs or couple ...

). After the

Islamic Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Im ...

the class was renamed to ''Alvand'' class, after the

Alvand Alvand is a subrange of the Zagros Mountains in western Iran located south of the city of Hamadan in Hamadan province. Its summit has an elevation of . The main body of the Alvand range extends for about 50 km from east to west, while thei ...

mountain-chain and so this ship, being the lead ship was renamed ''Alvand''.

History

Her delivery was delayed because the weapon control system was not prepared on time. She completed her refit on 15 May 1977 at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

. It joined the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy (IN) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Navy, maritime and Amphibious warfare, amphibious branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of the Naval Staff (India), Chief ...

's 'Bridges of Friendship', held in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

on 17 February 2001 to celebrate

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

's 50th anniversary as republic where in 60 Indian vessels and 24 foreign vessels (including ''Alvand'') participated. ''Alvand'' appeared to be in good state despite being thirty years old. In 2010 it participated in the 60th anniversary of the

Sri Lanka Navy The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) (; ) is the navy, naval arm of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and is classed as the country's most vital defence force due to its island geography. It is responsible for the maritime defence of the Sri Lankan nation and its ...

. ''Alvand'' entered the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...

on 22 February 2011, with the supply vessel , on a deployment reported to be a training mission to

Latakia Latakia (; ; Syrian Arabic, Syrian pronunciation: ) is the principal port city of Syria and capital city of the Latakia Governorate located on the Mediterranean coast. Historically, it has also been known as Laodicea in Syria or Laodicea ad Mar ...

, Syria. In October 2016, ''Alvand'' and ''Buseshr'' were deployed to the Gulf of Aden, off Yemen. The ship was modernized in 2021.

References

External links

'AP Video'
Alvand-class frigates Ships built in Southampton 1968 ships Frigates of Iran Iran–Iraq War naval ships of Iran Frigates of the Cold War {{mil-ship-stub Military history of the Mediterranean

History

See also

References

External links