![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.thetruthseeker.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/Iran-is-building-a-replica-of-a-Nimitz-class-air-craft-carrier-in-a-naval-shipyard-near-Bandar-Abbas.jpg\" "\\"Nimitz")
<\/a>Iran is building a replica of a Nimitz class air craft carrier in a naval shipyard near Banda Abbas. Click to enlarge<\/p><\/div>\n
Iranian media reports that Iran is building a replica of a US aircraft carrier for a prop in an upcoming movie strain credibility, a naval analyst told Military Times.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n The New York Times first reported that satellite photographs show the Iranians are building a non-working replica of the USS Nimitz that is two-thirds the size of the actual ship. Iranian newspapers have subsequently reported that the mockup is a prop for an upcoming movie about an Iranian airliner shot down by a US cruiser in 1988, according to<\/strong><\/span> The Guardian<\/strong><\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n But the costs of building such a big model of a ship make it hard to believe that it would be used for a movie, said Christopher Harmer, of the Institute for the Study of War.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt only makes sense to build a two-thirds model of a ship for movie if you are making a major commercial success movie,\u201d Harmer told Military Times on Monday.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n However, Harmer acknowledged it is possible the Iranians are making a lavish propaganda film along the lines of Nazi epics late in World War II.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt would be an utterly ridiculous waste of money, but it\u2019s just barely possible that the Iranians are that stupid,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n It is far more likely that the Iranians are building a replica of a U.S. aircraft carrier to practice their swarm techniques, Harmer said. After losing battles with the US Navy in the 1980s, the Iranians realized that they could not defeat the US. Navy in a conventional fight, so they have adopted Kamikaze tactics in which hundreds or thousands of small boats armed with rocket launchers or machine guns would launch suicide attacks against US warships.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n