Remembering Iran Air Flight 655 - 290 Civillians Killed by US Missile Attack

Iran Air Flight 655 (IR655) was a civilian jet airliner shot down by U.S. missiles on 3 July 1988, over the Strait of Hormuz, toward the end of the Iran–Iraq War. The aircraft, an Airbus A300B2-203 operated by Iran Air, was flying from Bandar Abbas, Iran, to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, over Iran's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf on its usual flight path when it was destroyed by the U.S. Navy's guided missile cruiser USS Vincennes, killing all 290 passengers and crew aboard, including 65 children,[1] ranking it twelfth among the deadliest disasters in aviation history.

It was the highest death toll of any aviation incident in the Indian Ocean and the highest death toll of any incident involving an Airbus A300 anywhere in the world. Vincennes entered into Iranian territorial waters after sending one of its helicopters to buzz Iranian speedboats located inside Iranian waters, and the helicopter drew warning fire from the speedboats. IR655 was within Iranian airspace at the time it was shot down.


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