Eilat Sa'ar 5

The Eilat class Sa'ar 5 corvette became part of the Israeli Navy after the Israeli Navy contracted with Northrop Gruman Ship Systems to supply three ships. Israel launched the first Eilat class ship in February 1993, followed by the second in August 1993, and the third in March 1994. The three Eilat class corvettes currently in service are the INS Eilat, the INS Lahav, and the INS Hanit.

Weapon Systems

The Eilat class corvette is equipped with three types of missile systems: Barak, Harpoon, and Gabriel II. The Barak missile system was developed by Israeli Air Industries and Rafael, and has both anti-air and anti-surface capability. The Barak missile is vertically launched from two cells in the ship's bow and has a maximum range of 10 km.

The Harpoon missile system was developed by Boeing and serves as a long range surface to surface weapon. The Eilat class corvette is equipped with two Harpoon missile batteries, each containing four launchers. The Harpoon has a maximum range of 130 km. The Gabriel II missile system is a short to medium range anti-ship weapon developed by Israeli Air Industries. The Gabriel II has a maximum range of 36 km and Eilat class corvettes carry eight Gabriel II launchers.

The Eilat class corvette can be equipped with either an OTO Melara 3 76 mm main gun, a Bofors 57 mm gun, or a Vulcan Phalanx Mk 15 25 mm CIWS weapon system. The Eilat class corvette contains six 324 mm torpedo tubes mounted midway along the length of the ship, each tube can hold one Alliant Techsystems Mark 46 torpedo. The ship can also has one helicopter hanger capable of holding an H-665 Dauphin, a Kaman SH-2F, or a Sikorsky S-76N.