Previous Message

The Iranian copies you refer to are the Ghadir class. Before the conflict, press reports on how many Iran had were already varied. I have read as many as 20 and as few as 11, with 17 also a commonly reported number. So, the situation already starts with confusion over how many Ghadir class there are.

As of March 26th, the US officially claimed 11 subs sunk. From this source:

https://www.fw-mag.com/shownews/983/iranian-naval-losses-after-3-weeks-of-war

This quote: "Regarding the submarine component, the latest Pentagon report cited 11 units struck. Of these, only the coastal submarine FATEH and one of the GHADIR-type midget submarines have been visually confirmed in CENTCOM imagery."

Times of India has this:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/us-all-11-of-iran-submarines-have-been-destroyed/articleshow/129689745.cms

This claims all 11 subs sunk were midget subs (which would be Ghadirs.) How it was concluded that Hegseth meant all 11 subs were midget subs is not stated. This pretty plainly exposes how messed up the world's press is on reporting this. Neither side is being very forthcoming with hard info to begin with, and the press freely adds speculations of its own choosings on top of that. This is the best my searches can turn up. I have read all sorts of conflicting nonsense getting to this much.

It appears we have indeed sunk submarines of theirs, not just surface ships. How many, and of what classes, I can't begin to confidently answer. Nor were there accurate open source mumbers of how many Ghadirs Iran had before the conflict started to boot. Hard to estimate from the confusion how many might be left when the total started with is unclear. Images show we got at least one, apparently.

I've read they have no crew accomodations...no galleys, nor bunks, etc. (Hopefully they at least have a head!) So, they aren't able to spend extended time at sea. They are then tied to shore bases (where we probably found any that we've sunk) and are sent out on short duration ambush missions. It's been claimed they lie in wait on the bottom a lot...their apparent chief tactic. That makes them very hard to detect, but overall, it looks like they can only be dispatched for specific missions/intended targets which they venture out to an intercept point for, drop to the bottom and wait until it comes or their endurance is done. Then, they must go back to port. Like all weapons, this produces advantages and disadvantages. They can be very deadly, but "prowling the seas" does not seem to be their purpose. They are more like manned mines, waiting in ambush, and for a finite duration.

Felix Bustelo is selling a pair of 1/700 Ghadirs in his for sale listings just above.