I suspect that the land route through Israel and Jordan would a lot faster than by ship through Hormuz. Buying Mistrals for Egypt is not the way to go to transport troops or equipment. However, 2 Mistrals in the Arabian Sea equals another front against Iran that by passes Syrian airspace.

Sorry Cracker. Wrong conclusions from available data. Sea has always been far far cheaper and faster to ship than land for big heavy cargo. Movie battalions by sea is far faster and easier than over land, especially in that part of the world. Think, a train may be able to move an armoured battalion faster, but, there are no trains linked between Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Roads are mired in checkpoints, and then theres the political fallout that would have to be faced in the arab world for having arab troops transition through Israel. Negatives for Egypt, Saud's and Israel. Load in Egypt, sail at 25 knots non stop 24 hours a day, its a very fast transit for large troop and equipment concentration. Then theres the benefit of sending contiguous forces. An important aspect in arab iffy logistics chains. Lastly, yes, power projection. These are essentially pocket aircraft carriers. They have an enormous force projection capability, in a very short period of time. between the 2, they can use 20-30 assault helicopters, thats a helluva lot of power. As an addendum, as an unmentioned yet likely clause, in case of dire emergency, these 2 ships should be able to take most of the Saud family and a large portion of their wealth should the citizens finally rise up against the nastiest theocratic monarchy on earth.