Fast Attack Craft - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Fast Attack Craft are small, fast, agile and offensive warship

Warship

A warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way from merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuvrable than merchant ships...

s, that are armed with anti-ship missiles, gun

Gun

A gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...

s or torpedo

Torpedo

The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...

es. These are usually operated in close proximity to land as they lack both the sea-keeping and all-round defensive capabilities to survive in blue water

Blue-water navy

The term blue-water navy is a colloquialism used to describe a maritime force capable of operating across the deep waters of open oceans. While what actually constitutes such a force remains undefined, there is a requirement for the ability to exercise sea control at wide ranges...

. The size of the vessel also limits the fuel, stores and water supplies. Sizewise they are usually between 50–400 tonnes and can reach speeds of 25–50 knots.

History

As early as the mid-19th century, the Jeune École

Jeune Ecole

The Jeune École was a strategic naval concept developed during the 19th century. It advocated the use of small, powerfully equipped units to combat a larger battleship fleet, and commerce raiders capable of ending the trade of the rival nation...

's poussiere navale theory called for a great number of small, agile vessels to break up invading fleets of larger vessels. The idea was first put into action in the 1870s with the steam torpedo boat, which was produced in large numbers by both the Royal Navy and the Marine Nationale. These new vessels proved especially susceptible to rough seas and to have limited utility in scouting due to their short endurance and low bridges. The potential threat was entirely extinguished with the introduction of the Torpedo Boat Destroyer (TBD) in 1893, a larger vessel, it could mount guns capable of destroying the torpedo boat before it was within range to use its own weapons.

The idea was revived shortly before World War I with the craft using new gasoline engines. Italy and Great Britain were at the forefront of this design, with the Coastal Motor Boat (CMB) and the Motobarca Armata Silurante
MAS (boat)
Motoscafo Armato Silurante , commonly abbreviated as MAS was a class of fast torpedo armed vessel used by the Regia Marina during World War I and World War II...

(MAS). The outstanding achievement of the class was the sinking of the Austro-Hungarian battleship SMS Szent István

SMS Szent István

SMS Szent István was a dreadnought , the only one built in the Hungarian part of Austria-Hungary. The Ganz & Company's Danubius yard in Hungarian-owned Fiume was awarded the contract to build the battleship in return for the Hungarian government agreeing to the 1910 and 1911 naval budgets...

by MAS. 15 on June 10 1918. The equivalent achievement for the CMBs was a lesser success; during the Russian Civil War

Russian Civil War

The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...

CMBs attacked the Red Fleet at anchor at Kronstadt on June 18 1919, sinking the cruiser Pamiat Azova

Russian cruiser Pamiat Azova

The Pamiat Azova was a unique armoured cruiser built for the Imperial Russian Navy in the late 1880s. She was decommissioned from front line service in 1909, converted into a depot ship and sunk by British torpedo boats during the Baltic Naval War, part of the Russian Civil War.-Name:The name of...

for the loss of four craft.

The design matured in the mid-1930s as the Motor Torpedo Boat

Motor Torpedo Boat

Motor Torpedo Boat was the name given to fast torpedo boats by the Royal Navy, and the Royal Canadian Navy.The capitalised term is generally used for the Royal Navy boats and abbreviated to "MTB"...

s (MTBs) and Motor Gun Boat

Motor Gun Boat

Motor Gun Boat was a Royal Navy term for a small military vessel of the Second World War. They were physically similar to the Motor Torpedo Boats but equipped with a mix of guns instead of torpedoes. Their small size and high speed made them difficult targets for E-boats or torpedo bombers, but...

s (MGBs) of the Royal Navy, the PT boat

PT boat

PT Boats were a variety of motor torpedo boat , a small, fast vessel used by the United States Navy in World War II to attack larger surface ships. The PT boat squadrons were nicknamed "the mosquito fleet". The Japanese called them "Devil Boats".The original pre–World War I torpedo boats were...

s of the US Navy, and the Schnellboote (often called E-boats) of the Kriegsmarine. All types saw extensive use during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

but were limited in effectiveness due to the increasing threat of aircraft.

After WW2, the use of this kind of craft steadily declined in the USA and Britain, despite the introduction of safer diesel engines to replace the highly flammable gasoline ones, although the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

still had large numbers of MGBs and MTBs in service.

With the development of the anti-ship missile

Anti-ship missile

Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing...

(ASM) the FACs seemed to have been reborn. Again small fast craft could attack and destroy any major warship. The idea was first tested by the Soviet Union as Project 183R which, in August 1957, produced the Komar-class

Komar class missile boat

The Soviet Project 183R class, more commonly known by its NATO reporting name Komar, is a class of missile boats, the first of its kind, built in the 1950s and 1960s. They also hold the distinction of being the first ships to sink another ship with anti-ship missiles.- Design :The Project 183 MTB...

which mounted two P-15 Termit

P-15 Termit

The P-15 Termit is an anti-ship missile developed by the Soviet Union's Raduga design bureau in the 1950s. Its GRAU designation was 4K40, its NATO reporting name was Styx or SS-N-2. In Russian service today it also seems to be called the Rubezh...

missiles in box-launchers on a 25 m hull backed with a twin 25 mm gun. Four diesels gave the Komars 4,800 bhp and a top speed of around 40 knots. Endurance was limited to 1000 nm at 12 knots and the vessels had supplies for only five days at sea. Built in Leningrad and Vladivostok, 110 Komar-class vessels were produced, while over 400 examples were built of the following Osa-class

Osa class missile boat

The Project 205 Tsunami, more commonly known by their NATO reporting name Osa, are a class of missile boats developed for the Soviet Navy in the early 1960s. The Osas are probably the most numerous class of missile boats ever built, with over 400 vessels constructed for both the Soviet Navy and for...

with a significant portion of the total being sold to pro-Soviet nations.

Two Egyptian Komar

Komar class missile boat

missile boats sank the Israeli destroyer INS Eilat

HMS Zealous (R39)

HMS Zealous was a Z-class destroyer of the Royal Navy built in 1944 by Cammell Laird. She served during the Second World War, participating in operations in the North Sea and off the Norwegian coast, before taking part in some of the Arctic convoys...

on October 21 1967 as she sailed too close to Port Said.
Five Israeli Sa'ar 3-class missile boats sunk one Syrian Torpedo boat

Torpedo boat

A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...

, one Minesweepr, two Komar

Komar class missile boat

and one Osa class missile boat

Osa class missile boat

s in the Battle of Latakia

Battle of Latakia

The Battle of Latakia was a small but revolutionary naval battle of the Yom Kippur War, fought on 7 October 1973, between Israel and Syria. It was the first naval battle in history to see combat between surface-to-surface missile-equipped missile boats and the use of electronic deception.At the...

on October 7/8, 1973. Indian FACs of the Vidyut class

Vidyut class missile boat

The Vidyut class missile boats of the Indian Navy were an Indian variant of the Soviet Osa I class.These vessels formed the illustrious 25th "Killer" Missile Boat Squadron, which sunk 2 destroyers, a minesweeper and various other vessels of the Pakistan Navy during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.-...

(an Osa variant) attacked a Pakistani naval base on two occasions in December 1971, sinking a total of four ships; one destroyer (Khaibar), one minesweeper (Muhafiz) and two merchantmen (Venus and Harmattan), and damaging a further two vessels (Gulf Star and Dacca).

The Soviet FACs prompted a NATO response, which became more intense after the sinking of the Eilat. The Germans and French worked together to produce a new FAC, resulting in 1968 in the Combattante II class (and its many variants and imitators). Built on a 47 (or 49 for Libya) meter hull with 12,000 bhp of MTU diesel engines driving four shafts; a common layout would have four MM-38 Exocet

Exocet

The Exocet is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Hundreds were fired in combat during the 1980s.-Etymology:...

missiles in two sets of two box launchers, in line and offset to the right and left with a 76 mm gun forward and 40 mm twin guns aft. Built until 1974 by CMN, a total of 68 Combattante IIs were launched, 20 went to the Bundesmarine, twelve each to Israel and Iran, ten to Greece, ten to Libya and four to Malaysia. The design was immediately followed by the Combattante III (1975-90) which added 9 meters to hull length but kept the same armaments (+ two twin 30 mm guns), 43 of this type were produced. A great many other shipyards produced their own versions of the Combattante, notably the Israeli Sa'ar/Reshef variants.

Operation Desert Storm in January and February 1991 again highlighted the major flaw in FACs at the Battle of Bubiyan

Battle of Bubiyan

The Battle of Bubiyan was a naval engagement of the Gulf War, that occurred in the waters of the Persian Gulf, where the bulk of the Iraqi Navy, while attempting to flee to Iran, much like the Iraqi Air Force, was engaged and destroyed by Coalition warships and helicopters.The battle was completely...

where Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

i FACs were destroyed by British air-to-surface missile

Air-to-surface missile

An air-to-surface missile is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft and strike ground targets on land, at sea, or both...

s. Later designs, such as the German Gepard class fast attack craft

Gepard class fast attack craft

The Type 143A Gepard class is Germany's last class of missile bearing fast attack craft and the only one still in service with the German Navy since 1990.It is an evolution of the Type 143 Albatros class...

are equipped with countermeasures, such as decoy and chaff launchers, and the RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile

RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile

The RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile is a small, lightweight, infrared homing surface-to-air missile in use by the American, German, South Korean, Greek, Turkish, Saudi and Egyptian navies. It was intended originally and used primarily as a point-defense weapon against anti-ship cruise missiles...

system which gives them a good air defence capability. Many of the latest designs, such as the Finnish Hamina class missile boat

Hamina class missile boat

The Hamina class missile boat is a 4-strong class of fast attack craft of the Finnish Navy. Technically they are classified as "missile fast attack craft", ohjusvene, literally "missile boat" in Finnish.-History:...

s are equipped with Surface-to-Air missiles.

Size has also increased, some designs reaching up to corvette

Corvette

A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...

size, 800 tonnes including a helicopter

Helicopter

A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...

, giving them extended modes of operation. In April 1996 during Israel's Operation Grapes of Wrath

Operation Grapes of Wrath

Operation Grapes of Wrath is the Israeli Defense Forces code-name for a sixteen-day campaign against Lebanon in 1996 in an attempt to end shelling of Northern Israel by Hezbollah. Israel conducted more than 1,100 air raids and extensive shelling...

, IDF naval forces used Sa'ar 4 and Sa'ar 4.5 fast attack craft to shell the Lebanese coast with 76 mm fire, in conjunction with artillery and air attacks.

Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

and North Korea

North Korea

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

have some of the largest numbers of FACs in operation today. North Korea alone operates more than 300, while Iran

Iran

have been seen developing "swarm boats" to be used as harassing vessels in the heavily contested littoral waters of the Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

. To counter the threat, the US Navy has been developing a ASUW Littoral Defensive Anti Surface Warfare doctrine, along with vessels such as the littoral combat ship

Littoral combat ship

A Littoral Combat Ship is a type of relatively small surface vessel intended for operations in the littoral zone . It is "envisioned to be a networked, agile, stealthy surface combatant capable of defeating anti-access and asymmetric threats in the littorals." Two ship classes are the first...

Types

FAC (G): fast attack craft (gun)
FAC (M): fast attack craft (missile)
FAC (P): fast attack craft (patrol)
FAC (T): fast attack craft (torpedo)
FAH (M): fast attack hydrofoil

Hydrofoil

A hydrofoil is a foil which operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to airfoils.Hydrofoils can be artificial, such as the rudder or keel on a boat, the diving planes on a submarine, a surfboard fin, or occur naturally, as with fish fins, the flippers of aquatic mammals, the...

(missile)

History

Types

See also