Iran Finally Has An Active Aircraft Carrier - But It's Incredibly Unusual

When most people think of modern aircraft carriers and the nations that use them, they likely consider the 11 such vessels sailing for the U.S. Navy. The other nations with two or more carriers include China, France, Italy, Japan, Egypt, and the U.K. These massive warships host thousands of personnel and can cost billions of dollars to develop, build, and operate. This keeps carriers beyond the reach of many countries.

Iran is now a member of the illustrious global aircraft carrier club, having launched the IRIS Shahid Bagheri in February 2025. There are several different types of aircraft carriers, but Iran opted to try something new: a drone carrier. Ship-launched drones aren't a new phenomenon, but Iran has doubled down by creating an aircraft carrier that seems primarily designed to launch unmanned aerial vehicles.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) isn't limiting the vessel to drones, as it can also be used to launch and recover helicopters. The Shahid Bagheri is also armed with and capable of launching cruise missiles. The carrier hasn't been at sea long enough to pick up any barnacles, so not much is known about its capabilities. Still, some information has been revealed since work on the vessel began — here's everything we know about the Shahid Bagheri.

It should be noted that Iran previously fielded the Shahid Mahdavi, a helicopter carrier, which is a bit different from a traditional aircraft carrier. Like its predecessor, the Shahid Bagheri wasn't built from the ground up; instead, it was the result of a multi-year conversion process. In 2022, Iran began the transforming the container ship Perarin into its newest aircraft carrier. The Shahid Bagheri could be considered a light carrier, as it's considerably smaller than the vessels used to launch fixed-wing aircraft.

The Shahid Bagheri's flight deck stretches just over 590 feet, roughly the length of the world's longest private yacht. In comparison, the USS Gerald R. Ford has an overall length of 1,092 feet, and its flight deck is 256 feet wide. Because drones are typically much smaller and lighter than manned fighters, a shorter flight deck is suited to launching and recovering them. In his launch ceremony speech, Admiral Ali Reza Tangsiri said the Shahid Bagheri had a range of 22,000 nautical miles — just a little more than the distance around the globe.

Tangsiri added that it took two years to convert the Perarin into the Shahid Bagheri, and both he and Chief of the Guard General Hossein Salami said it could stay at sea for up to a year at a time. This offers an extension of Iran's naval power far beyond its shores, which is something the IRGCN has been eying for years. The Shahid Bagheri tells the world that Iran's military might will allow it to engage with any country in the world, though General Salami stressed that it was meant as a deterrent.

Footage of the launch ceremony for the Shahid Bagheri showed two small, likely remotely-operated Qaher 313 drones on its deck alongside an Ababil-3 drone taking off and landing. Other images and footage showed scaled-down JAS-313 and Mohajer-6 drones in various states of readiness. Several helicopters were spotted, including some Bell models and a Russian-made Mil Mi-17 Hips. In addition to aircraft, the carrier supports 30 Tareq class boats as well as un-crewed surface and underwater vehicles.

It can travel at speeds up to 20 knots (just over 23 mph) and has a hospital and a soccer pitch aboard. The plentiful supplemental craft are served by eight hangars on two levels and three fueling stations. The unique design of the flight deck was limited due to the original superstructure of the Perarin, which couldn't be abandoned in the conversion. The deck has a large upward slope at one end, and the Shahid Bagheri's drones will likely require arresting gear to land safely.

As far as armaments, Iran revealed it could launch cruise missiles from the ship but didn't specify the type or quantity it would carry. There are short and medium-range air defenses as well as a variety of offensive weapon systems located around the flight deck. The Shahid Bagheri is also outfitted with a substantial array of visible intelligence collection system antennae, although no anti-ship missile defense system was apparent.