Following the downing of an American attack helicopter of the AH-64 Apache type, the United States and Iran exchanged attacks again last night. The helicopter was patrolling, according to the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), at around 03:30 local time off the coast of Oman over the Persian Gulf, when, according to Iranian reports, it ignored warnings from Revolutionary Guard fast boats and came under fire. The two crew members were located and rescued within two hours by an unmanned U.S. Navy boat of the Corsair type.
After American President Donald Trump, in an initial interview with the Wall Street Journal, had downplayed the incident, he was later convinced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, of the necessity of retaliation, according to the paper. He announced it via social media, which was interpreted as a pre-warning to the Iranian side in order not to jeopardize the ongoing negotiations between the two sides during the officially applicable ceasefire in the Gulf.
Noteworthy rescue of the Apache crew
From 17:00 local time, the United States carried out, in at least three waves, attacks in “self-defense” on targets in Iran, according to their own statements against air defense and radar installations. Iran responded with missile and drone strikes against the headquarters of the 5th US Fleet in Bahrain as well as U.S. Army bases in Jordan and Kuwait. No damage was initially reported. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that the country’s armed forces would not leave any attack or threat unanswered and urged the United States to withdraw from the region.
Notably about the triggering incident is the rescue of the Apache crew by an unmanned boat of Task Force 59, which the U.S. Navy established in 2021 specifically for deploying such systems. The Corsair, manufactured by Saronic Technologies, is according to the company a 24-foot (7.32-meter) long vessel with a payload capacity of up to 454 kilograms, a speed of over 35 knots (65 km/h), and a range of more than 1,000 nautical miles (1,852 kilometers).
