The Saar 4 is the 4th generation of the Israeli Fast Attack Boats. This class is also known as the "Reshef" Class - translates in English as "Flash".

The earlier classes of fast attack boats Saar 1, Saar2 and Saar 3 showed their reliability and capabilities in trails. But the Israeli Navy found out that they had one big disadvantage: these boats had a short operational range.

The naval architects of Lurssen (The German ship building company, who also designed the Saar 1-3 boats) offered to Israeli Navy representatives the Model 143 (later FPB 57) .

This boat was bigger and had more than twice of the operational range. However, Israel decided not to install the bigger and more powerful MTU 20 Diesel engines, Therefore, Saar 4 was slower than the Saar 2 and Saar 3 boats.

The Saar 2, Saar 3 and the Saar 4 had the same propulsion, 4 x Diesel engines MTU 16 - 16V 396  developing  2,560 kW. each.

After modification of the Model 143 according to Israel's requirements, it was decided to build them in the Israeli shipyard in Haifa bay.

In the 70's, Israel became self-sufficient in ship construction, as Israel shipyards assumed all construction work for missile boats and landing craft.

The original “Saar 4” was designed as a full size missile boat, with a full displacement of 450 tons, almost twice as that of the earlier Saar 2 and Saar 3 missile boats. The Saar 4 could carry more weapons, storage, fuel, operate at longer ranges, serve on extended missions and at higher sea states.

Saar 4 provided a unique solution for the operational requirements of the Israeli Navy, which were defense of sea-borders of Israel in the Mediterranean and Red Sea.

The combination of such missions requires exceptional fire-power , high survivability, independence, endurance and seakeeping, to enable flexibility in deployment and on missions.

The hull, main deck and major bulk-heads are a mild steel construction with transverse frames and closely spaced longitudinals. The bridge structure is made from welded marine aluminum alloy to save top weight and to improve seakeeping and stability.

The hull form is designed to perform well in high sea state and maintain good seakeeping and crew comfort.

The Saar 4 class has demonstrated good performance and handling at rough sea conditions. It is designed to operate at sea state 5 and has operated in the open seas.

The first pair of Saar 4 boats INS Reshef and INS Keshet (www.inskeshet.org) were ready to serve the Israeli Navy during the Yom Kippur War (1973).

Gabriel missiles were fitted to the Saar 4 boats, these missiles proved their effectiveness during the Yom Kippur War (1973), as Israeli missile boats sank 7 “Osa'' and “Koomar'' missile boats, one torpedo boat "K-123" , one "T-43" mine layer and other small crafts with zero loss.

INS Reshef was the first Israeli missile boat to  launch a missile that hit an enemy-target, INS Reshef fired 2 Gabriel missiles on Syrian mine layer T-43, which later sunk.

INS Keshet was the first missile boat to fire a missile in the Dumyat-Baltim battle against the Egyptian navy and hit an enemy target -  an “Osa'' missile boat.

Saar 4 missile boats proved themselves as being very effective vessels, with their 76mm bow and stern guns and six Gabriel sea-to-sea missiles. These boats participated in naval battles in the Yom Kippur War (1973) when they destroyed Egyptian and Syrian vessels, hit shore targets and damaged oil facilities.

During the middle 70's, the new Saar 4 boats had 40mm Bofors bow gun. These guns were installed before on the Saar 1 boats (the Saar 1 had 3 x 40 mm Bofors guns).

During Operation Litani (1978), while patrolling the Lebanon cost line, INS Yaffo was hit by P.L.O's fire, INS Yaffo was hit by an  85 mm anti-tank shell, which penetrated directly into her 76mm Carousel but didn't detonate!. The shell was defused later in Haifa Port.

In late 70's, USA supplied the Israeli Navy the new Mac Donnell Douglas HARPOON -(RGM-84D ) sea-to-sea missiles, One of the rear Gabriel launcher was removed and instead 2 or 4 Harpoon missiles were fitted.
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It was possible to replace additional Gabriel launcher with Harpoon missiles and reduce the total number of Gabriel missiles to 4.

Saar 4 boats participated in Lebanon War (1982. They shelled P.L.O positions using 76 mm guns and Gabriel missiles, that had been modified for firing at shore targets

After the news from the Falkland Islands conflect that the Argentinian Air Force hit and sunk the British Destroyer Sheffield, using a lethal French-made air-to-sea missile, the Aerospatiale MM 38 Exocet, the Israeli Navy decided to update its electronic warfare systems and to modify the Anti-missile decoy launchers system.

Later in the middle 80's, the Navy decided to replace  the 40mm bofors bow gun with the new American-made Phalanx CIWS. The basis of the system is a 20mm M61 Vulcan rotary cannon  linked to a radar system for acquiring and tracking targets.

Later still, from late 80's to early 90's, the Navy decided to classify the Saar 4 as anti-submarine boats (ASW). Therefore, after Saar 4.5 (Nirit) and Saar 5 (Lahav) became operational, Saar 4 stern 76mm Oto Melara was removed and the boats were equipped with various sonar systems, including an EDO towed array system, ASW torpedoes and torpedo decoys systems.

These boats protected Israeli sea borders from early 70's to the late 90's when most of them were decommissioned

The last Saar 4 was INS Komemiut became operational in the late 70's.

New constructions included the stretched Saar 4 class boats, which are basically equivalent to the Saar 4.5 that grew larger by 4 meters, to accommodate a hangar and landing deck for the light. American Bell 206 and later the Aerospatiale Panther helicopters - these boats are similar to the CM 62 of Lurssen. Two ships of the “Chochit'' class were built, the first one was INS “Aliya'' launched in 1980, followed by INS Geula in the same year.

Two additional stretched “Noshav'' class boats (Saar 4.5) were built without these social facilities, providing additional Missiles (INS Keshet & INS Romach).

All Saar 4 boats were built in pairs.

INS Reshef - Sold to Chile -currently LM.32 Angamos 
INS Keshet - Sold to Chile - currently LM.31 Chipana

INS Kidon - Decommissioned & sunk as a memorial to Israeli Naval Commandos
INS Tarshish - Sold to Chile - currently LM Papudo                
        
INS Yaffo - Decommissioned
INS Romach - Sold to Chile - currently LM.30 Casma

INS Nizhon - Decommissioned
INS Atzmaut - Decommissioned

INS Moledet - Sold to Sri Lanka
INS Komemiut - Sold to Sri Lanka

After Saar 4 proved its effectiveness inaction, other navies looked for the same platform, the shipyards of AMN-Cherbourg and Lurssen-Germany built similar Fast Attack Boats.

Part of the list:

Victory Class - Singapore (Saar 4.5)
Albatros Class - Germany
Gepard Class - Germany
La combattante Class - Greece, Qatar, Nigeria,Tunisia
Minister-Class - South Africa (Built in S.A) (Saar 4.5)
Dogan Class -Turkey

The Combat Information Center (ClC) is the nerve-center of the ship, where all systems are operated and controlled. The main computer was digital compared to the old analog computer of Saar 2 and Saar 3.

The Air and Surface Radar was - Thomson-CSF TH-D 1040 Neptune - later the boats installed the Israeli-made Elta Search Radar.

This multimode radar performs long-range air surveillance, combined with surface surveillance Fire control - Selenia Orion RTN 10 X.


Electronic support measures (ESM) systems:

An integrated naval system provides very fast responses to incoming threats. The data obtained from the system's receivers, as well as from on-board Electronic Support Measures (ESM) systems, covering the electromagnetic spectrum associated with radar signals, sketches and completes the tactical naval picture. A built-in digital audio recorder provides technical and intelligence analysis of unfamiliar signals. The system has two operators. The system is fully integrated with the ship's command and control, navigation, and communications systems.

Israel used these systems together with chaff decoy launchers and proved their abilities to decoy incoming STYX Missiles during the Yom Kippur War (1973).

20mm Oerlikon Guns

Saar 4 boats had a light battery of 20mm Oerlikon guns for use against sea and air targets. The original design consists of two 20mm Oerlikon Guns. These stations were power-operated and hold two 20mm Oerlikon guns. Each gun was fed by drum magazine of 60 rounds.

After the first trails, it was decided to remove these power-operated dual guns and to install a single manual 20mm gun.

These guns were located on each side of the bridge structure and had a crew of two, the Gunner who aims and fires, and second gunner who reloads the drum magazine of 60 rounds and in emergencies, would replace the first gunner.

12.7mm -heavy machine gun (0.5)

Saar 4 boats had three 12.7mm heavy machine guns, one on bridge structure and the other two located on each side of the boat, below the bridge structure. Each heavy machine-gun was fed by an ammunition box which held 200 rounds, Each of these machine guns was operated by one crewman.

Along the years, the light battery proved its effectiveness against terrorists and enemy craft and during the Yom Kippur War (1973) shooting down Styx missiles.

IAI/MBT Gabriel Mk. 1 missile:

The ship's short range anti-ship missile is the IAI/MBT Gabriel. Saar 4 had six Gabriel missiles launchers which used optical control or dual mode semi-active and active radar homing .

The Gabriel missile has a 140 kg warhead arranged in a penatrator cone, whose total H.E was 70 kg. Enough to inflect heavy damage to a destroyer.

Gabriel's range is from 6 to 20km and missile velocity is 0.6 Mach. Gabriel missile design dates back to the mid 1960'ss. It was successfully employed in the Yom Kippur War (1973) and has been upgraded by life-extension programs. IAI/MBT has employed these upgrading programs in different missile systems, using various types of seekers based on advanced signal processing techniques, artificial intelligence, multi-tasking, multi-processing, and secure communication systems.

IAI/MBT Gabriel Mk. 2 and Gabriel Mk. 3 short range missiles:

Improved model of the Gabriel with extended range and better control and homing - Range 36 Km.
After proving its success in the naval battle-field, Gabriel was exported to other navies around the globe.

RGM-84D  Mac Donnell Douglas  Harpoon
Over-the-Horizon Anti-ship Missile

The Harpoon is a subsonic, sea skimming guided missile utilizing active radar guidance. The Missile was developed as a response to Russian Styx sea-to-sea missile that showed its destruction abilities when sunk the Old Israeli Destroyer (EX British Z class) Eilat in 1967.

Its warhead design and low-level sea-skimming cruise trajectory assure high survivability and effectiveness. Harpoon missile is capable of striking surface targets at a maximum range of 120 kilometers (60 nautical miles). Harpoon missiles are deployed on Israeli Navy surface ships and submarines.

Harpoon missiles can be launched from airplanes too.

Since the late 70's, Israeli ships ships are usually equipped with one or two launchers that carry 2 or 4 containers of Harpoon missiles each.

Harpoon is 4.57 meters long, weighs 520kg (628kg before launch), and is powered by a Teledyne turbojet generating 660 pounds of thrust. Harpoon's warhead weighs 500 pounds (225 kg)

Upon launch, the missile is boosted to cruise speed by a solid propellant booster. In mid-course, the missile flight is controlled by an altimeter and inertial guidance system. At a preplanned point, the missile's radar is activated and searches for the target. When a target is detected, the missile uses its own radar for guidance terminal homing.

With a high impact velocity, the missile's blast fragmentation charge uses delayed action to penetrate the target's hull and inflict maximum damage. The Harpoon was never used by Saar 4 boats in action.

• Length 58.0 meters
• Beam 7.62 meters
• Displacement full load 450 tons
• Light load 415 tons
• Speed 32+ knots
• Light load reaching up to 35 knots (trails)
• Propulsion 4 MTU  Diesel engines- MTU 16 - 16V 396  developing 2,560 kW - Germany
• Range 4000+ Miles at 17.5 knots, 1500+ Miles at 30 knots
• 2 x 76mm Oto Melara gun  - Italy
• 6 IAI  Gabriel Missiles (sea to sea) - Israel
• 2 x 20 mm Orlikon
• 3 x 0.5" guns
• Crew  47+
• Anti-missile decoy launchers system - Israel
• Electronic Warfare Systems - Israel

Late 70's

• One  76mm Oto Melara gun - Italy
• One 40mm Bofors
• 4 - 5 IAI  Gabriel Missiles (sea to sea) - Israel
• 2 or 4 Harpoon missiles (Ability to carry 4 missiles instead og each Gabriel auncher) - USA
• 2 x 20 mm Orlikon
• 3 x 0.5" guns
• Crew  47+
• Anti-missile decoy launchers system - Israel

late 80's and late 90's

• MTU16 16 V 538 TB91 engines, Max. power - 3380 hp (per engine)
• Range 4000+ Miles at 17.5 knots, 1500+ Miles at 30 knots
• One Phalanx CIWS 
• 4-5 IAI  Gabriel Missiles (sea-to-sea) - Israel
• 2 or 4 Harpoon missiles (Ability to carry 4 missiles instead of each Gabriel auncher) - USA
• 2 x 20 mm Oerlikon
• 3 x 0.5" guns
• Crew  47+
• Anti-missile decoy launchers system - Israel
• Electronic Warfare Systems - Israel
• Anti-submarine Torpedoes launcher
• Depth charges - Israel
• Sonar systems, including an EDO towed array system  ( towed "fish" Sonar)
• Torpedo decoy systems