HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command
HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command
HQ$History - United States Special Operations Command
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AH-6 helicopter fire sank this Iranian Boghammer during a<br />
firefight on 8 October 1987.<br />
Island, within 15 miles of each other, and sent<br />
patrol boats and helicopters on regular patrols.<br />
In November 1987, two MH-60 Blackhawk helicopters<br />
arrived to provide nighttime combat<br />
search and rescue (CSAR). As EARNEST WILL<br />
continued, SOF were rotated on a regular basis;<br />
eventually, some personnel rotated back to the<br />
Persian Gulf for second and third tours. In<br />
1988, the Army replaced the AH/MH-6 helicopters<br />
and crews with OH-58D Kiowa helicopters.<br />
On 14 April 1988, about 65 miles east of<br />
Bahrain, the U.S. frigate Samuel B. Roberts<br />
(FFG-58) hit a mine, blowing a 30 by 23 foot hole<br />
in its hull. Ten sailors were injured. The <strong>United</strong><br />
<strong>States</strong> struck back hard, attacking the Iranian<br />
frigate Sabalan and oil platforms in the Sirri<br />
and Sassan oil fields on 18 April during<br />
Operation PRAYING MANTIS. After U.S. warships<br />
bombarded the Sirri platform and set it<br />
ablaze, a UH-60 with a SEAL platoon flew<br />
SEALs approaching the Rashadat Gas/Oil Separation Platform<br />
after naval shelling.<br />
toward the platform but was unable<br />
to get close enough because of the<br />
roaring fire. Secondary explosions<br />
soon wrecked the platform.<br />
Elsewhere, U.S. forces wreaked<br />
havoc on Iranian vessels, sinking two<br />
and damaging five others. In the<br />
northern Persian Gulf, Iranian forces<br />
fired two Silkworm missiles at the<br />
mobile sea barges, but chaff fired by<br />
the frigate Gary decoyed the missiles.<br />
Later that day Iranian F-4 jet fighters<br />
and patrol boats approached the<br />
mobile sea bases, but fled when the<br />
Gary locked its fire control radars on<br />
them.<br />
Thereafter, Iranian attacks on neutral ships<br />
dropped drastically. On 18 July, Iran accepted<br />
the <strong>United</strong> Nations cease fire; on 20 August<br />
1988, the Iran-Iraq War ended. On 16 July, the<br />
last AH-6 and MH-6 helicopters departed from<br />
the theater. In December 1988, the Wimbrown<br />
VII entered a Bahraini shipyard for reconversion<br />
to civilian use. The final EARNEST WILL convoy<br />
was run that month. The U.S. Navy had<br />
escorted 259 ships in 127 convoys since June<br />
1987. The mobile sea base Hercules was not<br />
withdrawn until September 1989. The remaining<br />
SEALs, patrol boats, and helicopters then<br />
returned to the <strong>United</strong> <strong>States</strong>.<br />
<strong>Special</strong> <strong>Operations</strong> Forces provided the critical<br />
skills necessary to help CENTCOM gain control<br />
of the northern Persian Gulf and counter<br />
Iran’s small boats and minelayers. Their ability<br />
to work at night proved vital, since Iranian units<br />
used darkness to hide their actions. The most<br />
important lessons to come out of<br />
Operation EARNEST WILL were<br />
the need to have highly trained<br />
<strong>Special</strong> <strong>Operations</strong> Forces capable<br />
of responding rapidly to crises anywhere<br />
around the globe and the<br />
vital need for interoperability<br />
between conventional and <strong>Special</strong><br />
<strong>Operations</strong> Forces. Additionally,<br />
based on EARNEST WILL operational<br />
requirements, USSOCOM<br />
would acquire new weapons systems—the<br />
patrol coastal ships and<br />
the MARK V <strong>Special</strong> <strong>Operations</strong><br />
Craft.<br />
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