Battle of Bubiyan

Summary

The Battle of Bubiyan (also known as the Bubiyan Turkey Shoot)[1] was a naval engagement of the Gulf War that occurred in the waters between Bubiyan Island and the Shatt al-Arab marshlands, where the bulk of the Iraqi Navy, which was attempting to flee to Iran, much like the Iraqi Air Force, was engaged and destroyed by Coalition warships and aircraft.

Battle of Bubiyan
Part of the Persian Gulf War
Date29 January – 2 February 1991 (4 days)
Location
Result

Coalition victory

  • Iraqi Navy destroyed
Belligerents
 Iraq United States United States
United Kingdom United Kingdom
Canada Canada
Commanders and leaders
Ba'athist Iraq Saddam Hussein
Ba'athist Iraq Ali Hassan al-Majid
United States Norman Schwarzkopf
United Kingdom Peter Billière
Canada Kenneth Summers
United States Ronald J. Zlatoper
Strength
5 Polnocny-class landing ships
7 Fast attack craft
1 Missile boat
2 Zhuk-class patrol boats
3 Minelayers
3 Minesweepers
2 Salvage ships
Naval:
2 Aircraft carriers (USS Ranger (CV-61) & USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71))
2 Battleships (USS Wisconsin (BB-64) & USS Missouri (BB-63)) 2 Destroyers (HMS Gloucester (D96) & HMS Cardiff (D108))
1 Frigate (HMS Brazen (F91))
Aerial:
F/A-18 Hornets
CF-18 Hornets
A-6 Intruders
SEPECAT Jaguars
F-14 Tomcats
Westland Lynxs
SH-60 Seahawks
P-3 Orions
Casualties and losses
Sunk:
4 Tank landing ships
7 Fast attack craft
2 Patrol ships
3 Minelayers
3 Minesweepers
2 Salvage ships
Damaged:
1 Tank landing ship
1 Missile boat
None

History edit

The battle was completely one-sided. Lynx helicopters of the British Royal Navy, using Sea Skua missiles, were responsible for destroying 14 vessels (3 minesweepers, 1 minelayer, 3 TNC 45 Fast Attack Craft, 2 Zhuk-class patrol boats, 2 Polnocny-class landing ships, 2 salvage vessels, 1 Type 43 minelayer, and 1 other vessel) during the battle.[2] The battle saw 21 separate engagements over a course of 13 hours. A total of 21 of the 22 ships that attempted to escape were destroyed.[3]

A Canadian CF-18 Hornet fighter recorded an official victory at the beginning of the battle against the Iraqi Navy.[4]

Also related to the Bubiyan action was the Battle of Khafji in which Saddam Hussein sent an amphibious assault to Khafji to reinforce the city against the Coalition attack. That too was spotted by the Coalition naval forces and subsequently destroyed.[5]

The last action of the Iraqi Navy was to fire a Silkworm missile from an inland launcher at the battleship USS Missouri. It was intercepted mid-flight by a Sea Dart missile from the British destroyer HMS Gloucester and successfully destroyed. That marked the first time that a ship-launched anti-air missile intercepted an incoming enemy missile in combat at sea.[5]

After the Bubiyan action, the Iraqi Navy ceased to exist as a fighting force at all,[6] which left Iraq with very few ships, all in poor condition.[7][page needed][full citation needed]

References edit

  1. ^ "That time the US and its allies destroyed the entire Iraqi Navy". 16 October 2021.
  2. ^ "The Grey Lynx at War" Archived 13 September 2012 at archive.today
  3. ^ ""The Navy in the Gulf War"". history.navy.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2015.
  4. ^ Morin, Jean H.; Gimblett, Richard Howard (1997). Operation Friction, 1990–1991: The Canadian Forces in the Persian Gulf. Dundurn Press. p. 170. ISBN 978-1-55002-257-5.
  5. ^ a b "Final trip for HMS Gloucester after Falklands' duties and Saxon Warrior exercise". MercoPress. 23 May 2011. Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 17 June 2015. In 1997, Gloucester took part in Ocean Wave 97. A deployment of 8 months which saw her visit countries including Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and the UAE as well as taking part in Exercise Flying Fish as part of the FPDA (Five Powers Defence Agreement) She sailed as part of Task Group 327.01 along with the flagship HMS Illustrious and other ships such as HMS Richmond and support ships. Part of the role of the Task Force was to oversee the peaceful handover of Hong Kong to the Chinese. 11 January 2012
  6. ^ Tucker, Spencer C.; Roberts, Priscilla Mary, eds. (27 August 2019). Middle East conflicts from Ancient Egypt to the 21st century : an encyclopedia and document collection. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. p. 244. ISBN 978-1-4408-5353-1. OCLC 1099541849. The Battle of Bubiyan Island effectively destroyed the Iraqi Navy.
  7. ^ Gulf War of 1991. Rosen Publishing. 1996.