Former INS Keshet Commander Describes Covert Wartime Missions

A former commander of INS Keshet described covert wartime missions far from Israel’s coast in an interview published November 14. The officer, identified as Lt. Col. ע׳ and now commanding the Sa’ar 6 missile ship INS Oz, took command of Keshet three weeks after the war began. He described a mission involving complex systems and complete operational secrecy, without identifying its location, target or date. “Beyond that, we cannot say where we were or what we did,” the commander said. He described crews spending days or weeks without phones or contact with home, and said he orders sailors to call their families after returning. Keshet also worked on submarine detection, and capabilities developed aboard it are being developed for other ships, he said. The commander said the Reshef ships being built at Israel Shipyards made a fundamental overhaul of Keshet uneconomic. Keeping the vessel would require a lengthy upgrade, including at least a year in dock. Equipment is being removed for use as spare parts aboard other Sa’ar 4.5 ships. The report said major dismantling was expected to finish within days, before the ship moved to a shipyard for removal of its engines and machinery. In a November 5 farewell record, the IDF marked Keshet’s retirement after 44 years of service. Built at Israel Shipyards and launched on January 26, 1982, it was later upgraded to the Sa’ar 4.5 configuration. Its ultimate destination remains undecided. The former commander favored preserving it at a naval museum or as an underwater museum.