--- title: "The Coalition destroyed the entire Iraqi Navy during the first four days of Desert Storm" description: "When Desert Shield turned into Desert Storm in 1991, much of Iraq's once-vaunted armed forces tried to run away into Iran. The Iraqi Navy didn't make it." date: "2021-10-16" modified: "2021-10-16" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-trending/us-navy-gulf-war/" categories: - "Gulf War" - "History" - "Navy" - "War History" tags: - "Gulf War" - "Navy" --- # The Coalition destroyed the entire Iraqi Navy during the first four days of Desert Storm ![iraqi navy]() *Iraq's Assad-class missile corvette Assad Al Tadjier. (Department of Defense)* In the opening days of 1991's [Operation Desert Storm](), ships and aircraft from the United States, Great Britain, and Canada intercepted the Iraqi Navy as it tried to flee into Iran. The resulting battle in the waters between the Shatt al-Arab waterway and Bubiyan Island was one of the most lopsided naval engagements in history, and the Iraqi Navy essentially ceased to exist. Operation Desert Storm kicked off in earnest on Jan. 17, 1991, as Saddam Hussein's Iraqi forces refused to leave Kuwait, the neighbor it had invaded just a few months earlier. When the deadline to leave passed, Coalition forces took action. One of those actions involved the massive naval force in the Persian Gulf that the allies had spent months building up. In the face of this overwhelming opposition, Iraq's Navy decided to follow the example of Iraq's Air Force. They would immediately gear up, head out, and attempt to escape to Iran and away from certain death. Unlike the Air Force, the Navy never quite made it. ![iraqi navy]() *Iraq's Air Force: Property of Iran.* Coalition naval forces were actually the first to respond to Iraqi aggression. A joint American-Kuwaiti task force captured Iraqi oil platforms, took prisoners on outlying Iraqi islands, and intercepted an Iraqi attempt to reinforce its amphibious invasion of the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji. Their reinforcements never arrived because the Coalition annihilated the ships they were riding on. Any remaining Iraqi Navy vessels that weren't on fire tried to escape to Iranian territorial waters in a mad dash not to die a fiery, terrible death. They were counting on the idea that small, fast, and highly maneuverable missile craft could make littoral waters too dangerous for heavy oceangoing ships. ![iraqi navy]() *Back when Battleships weren't museums. (National Archives)* In the end, upwards of 140 Iraqi ships were either destroyed by Coalition forces or fell into the hands of the Iranian Navy. American and British ships, along with British Lynx helicopters and Canadian CF-18 Hornets, made short work of the aging flotilla in what became known as the "Bubiyan Turkey Shoot." The only shot Iraq's navy was able to fire in return was a Silkworm missile battery, from a land-based launcher, at the American battleship USS Missouri. The missile was destroyed by a Sea Dart missile from the UK's HMS Gloucester, rendering it as effective as the rest of Iraq's Navy. ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()