Tanker War

Q: What was the Tanker War?

The Tanker War was the maritime component of the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88) involving strikes on oil tankers and merchant shipping in the Persian Gulf from May 1984 until the end of the war. It began after the land war between Iran and Iraq became a stalemate, Iraq began stepping up attacks on Iran’s Kharg Island , and Iran started responding systematically to those attacks. The disruption in commercial shipping prompted U.S. intervention starting in 1987 and led to direct confrontation between U.S. and Iranian forces.

Q: How did the Iran-Iraq War impact the Persian Gulf?

The Iran-Iraq War settled into a stalemate on land in 1982 and led to increased conflict that spilled into the Persian Gulf , including attacks on oil tankers and merchant shipping. In 1984 Iranian forces began retaliating systematically to attacks by Iraqi forces around Kharg Island , and the first commercial tanker was sunk in 1985 by an Iraqi missile.

Q: What was Operation Earnest Will?

Operation Earnest Will was a U.S. naval mission during the Tanker War phase of the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88). It began in July 1987 primarily to escort reflagged Kuwaiti oil tankers and was the largest naval convoy operation since World War II . The operation was unprepared for mine warfare, which became one of the main hurdles to the mission.

Q: What role did the USS Vincennes play in the Iran-Iraq War?

The USS Vincennes shot down Iran Air flight 655 on July 3, 1988, after U.S. forces mistook it for a fighter jet. The downing resulted in 290 civilian deaths, and the tragedy hastened a war-weary Iran to accept a United Nations -brokered ceasefire. The incident took place during the Tanker War phase of the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88), in which U.S. forces were in direct confrontation with Iranian forces.

Iran-Iraq War [1984–1988]

Written by

Adam Zeidan

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

History

What was the Tanker War?

How did the Iran-Iraq War impact the Persian Gulf?

What was Operation Earnest Will?

What role did the USS Vincennes play in the Iran-Iraq War?

Tanker War, maritime component of the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88) that involved strikes on oil tankers and merchant shipping in the Persian Gulf, especially from May 1984 until the end of the war.

Conflict in the Persian Gulf

The Iran-Iraq War began with a strong offensive by Iraqi forces. A zealous Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Iran turned the tide into a fervent Iranian counteroffensive in 1981. But the land conflict ultimately settled into a stalemate in 1982. The stalemate drove the conflict increasingly into the Persian Gulf, including an Iraqi strike on a Turkish oil tanker in May 1982 as it was loading oil from Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal. Iraqi forces stepped up attacks around Kharg Island in 1984, primarily using air power but also submarine (naval) mines, and Iran began responding in kind. In 1985 an Iraqi missile sank a Liberian tanker, Neptunia, which was hauling 60,000 tons of kerosene.

U.S. intervention

Iran attacked tankers headed to and from Kuwait and other Gulf Arab states that had backed Iraq, and Kuwait began negotiating with the Soviet Union to protect its ships. Diplomatic efforts ultimately led to a deal with the United States instead, which began escorting reflagged Kuwaiti tankers in July 1987. The mission, dubbed Operation Earnest Will, marked the largest naval convoy operation since World War II. Iranian mine laying outpaced U.S. minesweeping and proved to be the biggest hurdle in international efforts to ensure the flow of oil to the rest of the world. In a notable incident early in the operation, Bridgeton, a reflagged Kuwaiti tanker, survived the impact of a mine, and U.S. Navy ships that were assigned to escort the tanker, apparently unprepared to encounter minefields, followed behind it for the remainder of its journey. U.S. intervention also involved direct confrontations between U.S. and Iranian forces. On July 3, 1988, the USS Vincennes shot down a passenger plane, Iran Air flight 655, after mistaking it for a fighter jet. The tragedy, which left 290 dead, accentuated the heavy toll the war had taken on civilians in Iran and was seen as hastening Iran’s acceptance of a United Nations-brokered ceasefire on July 17. The war ended on August 20.