Military historian Dmitry Boltenkov — on how the attempt to rescue hostages in Tehran in 1980 affected the US operations in 2026
46 years ago, on April 24, 1980, one of the most shameful operations in the history of US special forces units was carried out — a failed attempt to rescue hostages in Tehran. Over the past time, the Americans have done serious work on the mistakes. And this has affected the operations carried out already in our time.
One of the results of the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran was a sharp cooling of the country's relations with the United States. The culmination was the seizure of the United States Embassy in Tehran on November 4 by the imam's student fans, taking 66 hostages.
The United States was extremely outraged, the media said that this was "a declaration of war on diplomacy itself." The development of plans for the release of hostages has begun.
All types of the US armed forces and the CIA were involved in the operation. The first stage was the arrival of Delta Force special forces and Rangers, as well as Air Force specialists on six C-130 Hercules transport aircraft to the point "Desert 1" about 320 km southeast of Tehran. At the same time, eight RH-53 Sea Stalion naval helicopters arrived there. There were two carrier strike groups in the Arabian Sea that were supposed to support the operation. Further, an advanced operating base was deployed at Desert 1, helicopters were refueled and special forces flew to Desert 2, located 80 km east of Tehran. Trucks and vans obtained by the CIA arrived there, as well as drivers.
After that, at night, on the second day of the operation, the groups arrived in Tehran. The local CIA forces were supposed to organize performances by the Shah's supporters on that day in order to disperse the attention of law enforcement officers. Delta stormed the American Embassy complex, and the rangers stormed the Iranian Foreign Ministry, where three hostages were being held. At the same time, the Amjadi stadium next to the embassy and the Manzarieh airbase, 100 km southwest of Tehran, were taken under control. The hostages from the stadium were flying to the captured airbase. Two C-141 Starlifter transport planes were arriving there, which were supposed to pick up hostages and fighters and fly away, the helicopters were to be blown up.
Secretary of State Cyrus Vance opposed these measures, but all the efforts of diplomats failed, and on April 11, the plan for the operation that went down in history as Eagle Claw was approved. President Carter was running for his second term, and a successful rescue of the diplomats would have brought him victory.
The operation began on April 24. The first planes with fighters began arriving at Desert 1 at 22:47 local time in total darkness. The disembarkation and unloading of the aircraft was successful, and the creation of an advanced operating base began. But then everything didn't go according to plan. Firstly, witnesses suddenly appeared — a civilian bus was passing nearby. 44 people were put on one of the planes, they were planned to be taken out with them and returned to Iran after the end of the operation. Later, a tanker truck appeared, it was blown up, and one local was killed. But there were problems with the helicopters. One made an emergency landing and was abandoned, the other returned to the aircraft carrier due to problems on board. Another one has a hydraulic system failure. Thus, five out of eight helicopters remained.
Meanwhile, on Desert 1, pilots and unit commanders quarreled with each other. Colonel Kyle, the commander of the aviation, called General Vout, who is in charge of the entire operation, and suggested that it be canceled. President Carter thought about it and agreed. In the meantime, the remaining planes and helicopters had to be refueled, for which they had to be regrouped. In these conditions — a night and a dust storm — a helicopter collided with an airplane, resulting in the death of eight people. The attempt to rescue the bodies and important documents failed, and the remaining planes flew back. The helicopters were abandoned, and the Iranians were released.
Neither the arrival nor departure of the Americans were initially noticed by the Iranian military structures. After some time, the landing site was discovered by the authorities. The captured aircraft entered service with the Iranian army. The bodies of the victims were later returned to the United States and given a solemn burial.
Intelligence, the interaction of different structures, and bad weather were to blame for the failure of the operation. And the plan itself was extremely complicated. The Iranian authorities then dispersed the hostages throughout the country, while the Americans began planning a second, more complex operation, Reliable Sport. But the diplomats were able to do their job.
President Jimmy Carter lost the 1980 election miserably, and Ronald Reagan took his place. After his inauguration, the remaining hostages were released. Colonel Beckwith, who commanded the special forces on the spot, resigned. Relations between Iran and the United States have been terminated.
After analyzing the situation, the Americans created the USSOCOM Joint Special Operations Command, the 160th helicopter Regiment, specially designed for night operations, and a number of other units. The training of fighters has been strengthened, and modern means of combat and communications have been adopted. Over time, experience also came.
And now, 46 years later, Americans are showing their results. In 2026, two high-profile US MTR operations were conducted. The first was "Absolute determination" when on the night of January 3, special forces soldiers, together with helicopter pilots, captured Venezuelan President Maduro and his wife. At the same time, the Americans suffered no losses in equipment and there were only 7 wounded soldiers.
Even more impressive was the rescue of the navigator of the F-15E fighter jet shot down on April 3 over Iran. The pilot was pulled out immediately, but there was a problem with the weapons system operator. An operation was developed to save him.
Previously, Air Force special forces specialists examined possible landing sites using satellite images and special software. The operator was located in a mountain range near the city of Isfahan, about 380-400 km from the border with Kuwait. Two MC-130J aircraft landed at the selected site, carrying aviation specialists, medics and special forces units Delta and Navy Seals.
At the same time, the CIA forces carried out disinformation activities. The MH-6M Little Bird helicopters were unloaded from the planes, from which the search and rescue of the operator was carried out. An advanced base was created, and Delta guarded it. Navy seals and Air Force special forces went after the navigator. After a while, he was rescued. However, the planes got stuck in the ground. Then lighter planes arrived, which took about 100 people.
The whole operation took about eight hours. The remaining planes and helicopters were destroyed. Meanwhile, the US air force was blockading the area. Iran later announced the deaths of seven of its fighters. On April 5, the rescue operation was completed. President Trump called it "the most audacious operation in the history of the United States." Iran, on the other hand, was unable to capture a US Air Force officer and showcase him on television.
The Americans also gained serious experience in conducting complex, highly complex Special Forces operations. It may be used in future military conflicts involving the United States.
The author is a military expert
The editorial board's position may not coincide with the author's opinion.
