naval engagement, notable, Cold War

Operation Praying Mantis

Name: Operation Praying Mantis
Location: Persian Gulf, United Arab Emirates

Operation Praying Mantis was a naval engagement fought in 1988 at Persian Gulf, in what is now United Arab Emirates. Its exact site is not recorded; the atlas places it at Persian Gulf. It was part of the Tankers War, which ran from 1984 to 1988. The recorded result: United States victory.

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Fought1988

WherePersian Gulf, United Arab Emirates26.000N, 52.000E, placed at the location, approximate

OutcomeUnited States victory

BelligerentsUnited StatesagainstIran

Part ofTankers War1984 to 1988

Where it sits in the Tankers War

5 placed engagements of the Tankers War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date	1988 (year precision)
Place	Persian Gulf, United Arab Emirates 26.000N, 52.000E
Kind	Naval engagement, Cold War
Strength	1 aircraft carrier; 1 amphibious transport dock; 4 destroyers; 1 guided missile cruiser; 3 frigates; AH-1T attack helicopters; A-6E Intruder attack jets	2 frigates; 1 missile boat; 6 Boghammar speedboats (estimated); 2 F-4 fighters; ZU-23 guns on 2 platforms
Casualties and losses	2 killed; 1 helicopter crashed (cause unknown); Civilian assets: 1 tanker damaged; 1 supply ship damaged; 1 barge damaged	1 frigate sunk (45 crew killed); 1 gunboat sunk (11 crew killed); 3 speedboats sunk; 1 frigate crippled; 2 platforms destroyed; 1 fighter damaged; Total: 56 killed; 2 ships and 3 boats sunk
Commanders	Anthony A. Less	Mohammad-Hossein Malekzadegan

Placed at Persian Gulf; the exact site is not recorded. with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

Iraqi attack on USS Stark 1987, 87 km N
Battle off Hormuz 1625, 89 km N
Siege of Bahrain 1559, 145 km W
Battle of Kanzan 1915, 235 km W
Conquest of al-Hasa 1913, 247 km W

In the same war

Before: Iran–U.S. naval skirmish on 8 October 1987 1987
All 5 engagements of Tankers War

Elsewhere in 1988

Operation Praying Mantis is one of 4,429 engagements of the 20th century in the atlas and one of 5 in present-day United Arab Emirates.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q2026308, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Operation Praying Mantis, revision 1384617084, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.