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Iran Ajr

1978 Japanese-built landing craft used by Iran

Field	Value
display_title	ital
section1	{{Infobox ship/image
image	Port quarter view of Iranian minelaying ship Iran Ajr after American capture Operation Prime Chance 1986 DN-SC-87-12579.jpg
image_caption	Iran Ajr, 1986
section2	{{Infobox ship/career
country	Iran
flag
name	Iran Ajr
builder	Teraoka Shipyard - Minamiawaji, Japan
christened	Arya Rakhsh
acquired	by purchase, 1978
renamed	Iran Ajr (1980)
identification	*
fate	Seized and scuttled by U.S. Navy, 26 September 1987
notes	Originally acquired by Imperial Iranian Navy as part of pre-1979 Revolution defense build-up. Was intended to be the first of a class of four.
section3	{{Infobox ship/characteristics
header_caption
type	Landing ship/Minelayer
displacement	*614 t empty
*{{Convert	2,274	t	LT	abbr	on}} full load
length	53.85 m
beam	10.81 m
draught	3 m
propulsion	2 × diesel engines, 2 screws
speed	11 kn
complement	30
armament	* 2 × 12.7 mm machine guns

2,274 t full load
Variable number of mines of various types

Iran Ajr (), formerly known as the Arya Rakhsh, was a Japanese-built landing craft used by Iran to lay naval mines during the Iran–Iraq War. Built in 1978, the 614-ton, 54-meter ship was powered by two diesel engines and featured a bow ramp for unloading cargo. She was scuttled in 1987.

Iran–Iraq War

On 21 September 1987, U.S. forces involved in Operation Prime Chance – the covert part of Operation Earnest Will, the mission to protect U.S.-flagged petroleum-carrying ships in the Persian Gulf – tracked Iran Ajr and dispatched United States Army helicopters from the United States Navy guided-missile frigate to shadow her. When the aviators reported that people aboard Iran Ajr were laying mines, the U.S. commander in the Persian Gulf ordered the pilots to "stop the mining." The helicopters fired on the ship, killing some of the crewmen and chasing others into the water. A team of United States Navy SEAL commandos later boarded the ship, confirmed the presence of mines, and detained the 26 surviving Iranians.

Rear Admiral Harold Bernsen said later that the detainees "were given the opportunity to seek political asylum. I think that was stated in Washington." Bernsen was "not actually present" when the offers were made by "an officer on my staff," whom he refused to identify. There were no State Department personnel present at the time, he said, but it was within his authority to make the offer in conformity with the policies of the US Department of State. "I think it was done very simply, and very generously."

On 26 September, EOD MU5 Detachment 5 scuttled the ship in international waters.

When the U.S. Navy guided-missile frigate struck a mine in the Persian Gulf in April 1988, U.S. Navy explosive ordnance specialists matched the serial numbers of nearby unexploded mines to the ones aboard Iran Ajr. This evidence of Iranian involvement in the mining of Samuel B. Roberts led to the biggest surface-warfare naval battle since World War II, the retribution campaign of 18 April 1988 called Operation Praying Mantis.

The captured colors of Iran Ajr are in the U.S. Navy Museum.

References

"7807196 Iran Ajr". Maritime Connector.
(2012). "Iran Ajr/Hejaz Class". globalsecurity.org.
Peniston, Bradley. (2006). "Capturing the Iran Ajr". No Higher Honor.
(4 October 1987). "Rear Admiral Harold J. Bernsen, commander of the U.S....".

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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