Iran marks historic US failure in Tabas Desert
Gisoo Misha Ahmadi
Press TV, Tehran
43 years ago, on April 25, 1980, the United States launched what it called a rescue operation. The objective of the covert military operation, known as Operation Eagle Claw, was to airlift the US embassy staff held in the Iranian capital, after a series of failed negotiations.
Washington had severed diplomatic relations with Tehran a couple of weeks earlier on April 7, 1980.
The US Delta force launched the operation after then-US president Jimmy Carter's order. Three cargo planes and eight helicopters entered Iranian airspace using radar blind spots.
However, the mission turned out to be a humiliating failure as a sandstorm hit and brought down the group of US military aircraft in Tabas Desert, northeastern Iran, killing eight American forces.
Investigations revealed that one of the helicopters crashed into a C-130 Hercules transport plane and five other choppers were stranded in the storm. The US had no choice but to abort the mission.
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