Israeli Navy expands capabilities with second American-built landing craft

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The Israeli Navy has expanded its capabilities to meet growing regional threats from Iran and its various terrorist proxies such as Hezbollah and Hamas. in recent years

On Sunday, the Israeli Navy received the Israeli Navy Ship (INS) "Komemiyut," its second American-manufactured landing craft. The new vessel arrived at the Haifa Naval Base after an extended journey. The Israeli Navy received its first landing craft, the INS "Nahshon" in August 2023.

Weighing 2,500 tons, the large vessel measures 311 feet (95 meters) in length and is 65 feet (20 meters) wide. Landing crafts are designed to transport troops and equipment for various naval assault operations. The Israeli Navy stated that the new vessels will “act as a central pillar in adapting the Israeli Navy to the modern and multi-arena battlefield.”

In recent years, the Israeli Navy has been expanding its capabilities to meet growing threats from the Iranian regime and its regional terror proxies, such as Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthi rebels in Yemen.

The chief of the Navy, Vice Adm. David Sa’ar Salama emphasized that the new landing crafts constituted important components in Israel’s overall military capabilities.

“Today, at the same time as IDF soldiers are engaged in intense fighting in the various arenas, the Navy received a vessel of strategic significance for the State of Israel. During these historic moments, we salute our brothers in arms who fell during their mission to maintain the security of the State of Israel,” Salama stated.

“Sailors of the INS Komemiyut, today you have completed a voyage of thousands of miles. The end of the voyage is the beginning of the journey for you. Your future actions will strengthen the cooperation between the IDF branches, expand the range of military operations, and maintain the security of the State of Israel,” he added.

Each of the two landing crafts will have dozens of combat sailors, including female troops. The Nahshon is expected to be operational sometime in 2024. However, the Navy has not yet stated when its second landing craft will be ready for use.

The Israeli Navy has traditionally received fewer resources than Israel Defense Forces and the Air Force (IAF). While it employed landing crafts in the past, they were reportedly decommissioned in 1993 when they became outdated

However, the Navy has undergone numerous upgrades in recent years to meet the growing naval threats in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea regions.

While the IAF mainly consists of American-produced platforms, the Israeli Navy has, instead, developed close ties with the German naval military industry.

In April 2023, the Israeli Navy announced that three of its four new advanced German-built Sa’ar 6-class Corvette warships were operational. The highly sophisticated warships are designed for Israeli naval security needs and play a central role in defending Israel’s large maritime gas assets in the Mediterranean Sea.

Maj.-Gen. Eli Sharvit, former commander of the Israeli Navy, stressed the importance of defending Israel's strategic maritime assets.

“The mission of defending Israel’s Exclusive Economic Zone and strategic assets at sea is the primary mission of the Israeli Navy,” Sharvit stated.

“These assets are essential to the operational continuity of the State of Israel, and having the ability to protect them has critical importance. The security needed to protect the EEZ is clear. The best protection method of that space and the assets in it is by ships, and the Sa’ar 6 Corvettes fulfill that operational need in a precise and excellent way,” he added.

The Israeli Navy has also acquired German-manufactured Dolphin submarines that constitute a strategic asset due to their reported second-strike capabilities of non-conventional missiles.