Iran Releases Chilling Video Of Helicopter Flying Towards USS Essex

The Pentagon is firing back after Iran posted a video to social media that shows a military helicopter coming within yards of the USS Essex, an amphibious assault ship currently sailing in the Gulf of Oman.

Fox News reported that the Pentagon slammed Iran for its “unsafe and unprofessional” conduct after the naval helicopter got within 25 yards of the Essex before circling the ship three times.

“Without getting into specifics, the crew of the Essex took the appropriate force protection measures they felt that they needed to, and they acted in accordance with international law,” said John Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary. Kirby added that the incident took place last Thursday and that there was thankfully no impact on the ship’s operations.

Stars and Stripes reported that the helicopter flew near the Essex’s port side and got “as low as about 10 feet off the surface of the ocean.”

“When you have another armed force — in this case, the Iranian navy — that flies like this, you definitely run the risk of some sort of escalation and a miscalculation on either side here, and that’s not helpful,” Kirby said. “This one ended peacefully, but it doesn’t mean it was safe and professional. It absolutely wasn’t.”

The U.S. Naval Institute (USNI News) stated that the Essex is in the Persian Gulf at the moment carrying out training operations with the HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier and flagship.

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“There are rules of engagement that I’m not going to speak to from the podium, that our commanders have at their disposal to deal with potential threats,” he added. “And when you have another armed force, in this case, the Iranian Navy that flies like this, you definitely run the risk of some sort of escalation and a miscalculation or on either side here, and that’s not helpful. This one ended peacefully, but it doesn’t mean it was safe and professional.”

Kirby went on to say that any questions about the use of their pilots to fly so close to an American warship should be directed at the Iranian government.

VOA News reported that tensions are currently high between the U.S. and Iran, as talks have stalled on reviving Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. After withdrawing the U.S. from the deal in 2018, former President Donald Trump reimposed U.S. sanctions on Iran. After that, Iran violated limits on uranium enrichment that the deal had established.

It remains to be seen how this will all play out.

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