Operation Eagle Claw – Special Forces HistoryĤ0th Anniversary of Operation Eagle Claw. “The Desert One Debacle”, The Atlantic, by Mark Bowden, May 2006. The Holloway Report: Did it Reflect all the Facts and Lessons Learned?, by William F. Iran Hostage Rescue Mission Report, Naval History and Heritage Command, August 1980. One result was the establishment of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and other specialized units that would bring ‘jointness’ to the U.S. The failed rescue attempt prompted a review by the U.S. The Carter administration certainly lost credibility – as it had failed to recover the hostages either through diplomatic or military means. The failure of Operation Eagle Claw was an embarrassment for the United States. The mission would cost the lives of eight men, seven helicopters, and a C-130. The commander, Charlie Beckwith, aborted the mission and gave the order for withdrawal of the rescue party from Iran.Īt that point disaster struck when one of the helicopters – while repositioning at Desert One – collided with a parked C-130 loaded with fuel bladders causing an explosion. That left only five to conduct the mission – and the operation required six. One developed a maintenance problem on the ground. Two never made it to the rendezvous location. There was an insufficient number of helicopters with which to conduct the raid. Operation Eagle Claw was cut short because one of the abort criteria had been reached. The rescue was to take place over two days. The planning and practice for the rescue mission had taken place in the previous months prior to the execution of the raid. There was also a small Air Force combat control team to coordinate movements on the desert landing strip. An Army Special Forces team from Det A (Berlin) – specially trained in mountain operations – would assault the foreign ministry where three diplomats were being held. A unit of the 75th Ranger Regiment would provide security at Desert One. These teams also set up a network for the transport of men, equipment, and hostages in and around the city. Two small teams had previously entered Iran to conduct a recon of the rendezvous site in the desert, the hide sites used for the second night, the embassy, and other locations. From there the hostages would be transported to a seized airstrip outside Tehran where fixed-wing aircraft would evacuate them out of the country. Once the choppers refueled the ground force (Delta) would board the helicopters and fly to new locations closer to Tehran.ĭuring the second night the rescue party would then enter Iran’s capital city, storm the embassy compound, free the hostages, and then move them to a nearby soccer stadium. At this first location the ground force would link up with eight RH-53D Sea Stallion helicopters flown by Marine pilots that took off from a Navy carrier ( Nimitz) in the Arabian Sea. The rendezvous location was located southeast of Tehran. The secret mission was complicated, involving the movement of the ground force element – known as Delta Force – landing in three MC-130 fixed-wing aircraft at a location called Desert One. The Army Special Forces unit tasked with the mission was to rescue 53 hostages being detained by Iran. Embassy in Tehran, Iran ended in failure on April 24, 1980. effort to rescue American hostages in the U.S.
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