The USS Stark Incident
Riflemusket reminds us that May 17th marked the 28th anniversary of the USS Stark incident. An errant Iraqi pilot launched two Exocet anti-ship missiles at the USS Stark, both missiles struck their target, but only one exploded. The resulting damage killed 37 sailors and wounded 21 others, while the fires aboard the ship burned all night.
Captain Glenn R. Brindel saved his ship, but he was punished for not defending the ship against the attack and he was allowed to retire. At first, the Iraqis claimed that they had executed the pilot, but after the last was against Saddam Hussein, it was disclosed that the pilot was still alive.
In 2011, the US and Iraqi government signed an agreement which required the Iraqi government to establish a fund of $400 million to compensate prisoners of war and hostages in the first Gulf War, and those killed or injured in the 1987 attack on Stark.
But every year, members of the Stark’s crew gather on May 17th to remember the event so that we never forget;
SN Doran H. Bolduc, Lacey, WA
RMSA Dexter D. Grissett, Macon, GA
FCCS Robert L. Shippee, Adams Center, NY
BM1 Braddi O. Brown, Calera, AL
FC3 William R. Hansen, Reading, MA
SMSA Jeffrey C. Sibley, Metairie, LA
FC3 Jeffrey L. Calkins, Richfield Springs, NY
GMG3 Daniel Homicki, Elizabeth, NJ
OS3 Lee Stephens, Pemberton, OH
SN Mark R. Caouette, Fitchburg, MA
OSSN Kenneth D. Janusik, Jr., Clearwater, FL
TM2 James R. Stevens, Visalia, CA
SN John A. Ciletta, Jr., Brigantine, NJ
OS1 Steven E. Kendall, Honolulu, HI
ET3 Martin J. Supple, North Olmsted, OH
SR Brian M. Clinefelter, San Bernardino, CA
EMCS Stephen Kiser, Elkhart, IN
FC1 Gregory L. Tweady, Champaign, IL
OS3 Antonio A. Daniels, Greeleyville, SC
SM1 Ronnie G. Lockett, Bessemer, AL
ET3 Kelly R. Quick, Linden, MI
ET3 Christopher DeAngelis, Dumont, NJ
GMM1 Thomas J. MacMullen, Darby, PA
SN Vincent L. Ulmer, Bay Minette, AL
IC3 James S. Dunlap, Osceola Mills, PA
EW3 Charles T. Moller, Columbus, GA
EW3 Joseph P. Watson, Ferndale, MI
STGSN Steven T. Erwin, Troy, MI
DS1 Randy E. Pierce, Choctaw, OK
ET3 Wayne R. Weaver, II, New Bethlehem, PA
RM2 Jerry Boyd Farr, Charleston, SC
SA Jeffrei L. Phelps, Locust Grove, VA
OSSN Terrance Weldon, Coram, NY
QMCS Vernon T. Foster, Jacksonville, FL
GM3 James Plonsky, Van Nuys, CA
IC2 Lloyd A. Wilson, Summerville, SC
SMSN Earl P. Ryals, Boca Raton, FL
Category: Navy
Thank God the 2nd missile was a dud. Otherwise, I suspect the list of dead would be much longer.
I agree Hondo and always have. God be with their families still. They gave their all.
The dud’s rocket motor started a fire that probably caused more damage than the warhead would have. What I heard long ago. Kind of like HMS Sheffield. Lots of dud exocets. I never forget the USS Stark. I even asked some of the upper echelon of Saddam’s military if it truly was a mistake. They all said it was, and they freaked when it happened. Saddam did not want to go up against Ron R & the US. I do not blame him.
I looked at each name on the list and chose one to Google, that of Kelly R. Quick. There was no rhyme or reason for that selection but it’s not a name I will soon forget. His dad threw the check back at its sender, the Iraqi government and made a friend in a deeply religious woman who took the losses to heart. This is from 2011:
“Joanne Holmquist, who did not personally know the Quick family at the time, made a promise to Kelly’s father Robert she would honor his son the rest of her life. Holmquist reached out through empathy, and her devout belief in her Catholic faith, to bring as much comfort to Robert and his family as she could.
She devotes a mass yearly to Kelly at St. Mary’s Church in Swartz Creek, “lets balloons fly off into the sunset” in the sailor’s honor, and puts a tribute into a newspaper each year. She has kept good on her promise.”
“I will never forget this of Jo,” said Robert. “She said to me your son is my son. A total stranger reached out, and that struck me. She became a close friend. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for her.”
http://swartzcreekview.mihomepaper.com
Love it, that’s a good person…
Never heard of this before. Why didn’t the captain fight his ship? Why no retaliation against Iraq?
Yef. This is a tribute and honor posting. There is a great deal of info on the matter if you want to learn about it.
Short answer, Yef, is that published reports indicate that for whatever reason the USS Stark didn’t detect the incoming missiles until some seconds before impact. The missiles were fired from 22 and 15 miles away, and the Iraqi pilot turned away after firing the second missile.
The missiles used – the Exocet – are designed to fly close to the water (“sea-skimmers”), thus making them difficult to detect. The first hit took out the ship’s command center, making further actions (including weapons control) somewhat more difficult.
I’ll defer to our Navy vets regarding the appropriateness of the actions taken by the ship’s captain before/during the incident and the Navy’s actions afterwards.
Without looking, I suspect that the AAR by the navy found that the CIWS system was down for maintenance at the time. Regardless of what the report actually says, it may have just exposed a problem with the first gen system’s FC ability and they hung that on the captain rather than admit to the soviets that our billion dollar defense system sucked at the time.
As far as the damage control aspect, look at the draft and list after the hit in that picture above. The Stark survived that hit. The skipper sure as shit did his job fighting for the ship.
Fair winds, and following seas Shipmates.
I remember this. I hope somebody settled the pilot’s hash after we steamrollered them in ’03.
But, I thought he was Iranian.
Negative. Had the attack been by an Iranian aircraft, my guess is that we’d have retaliated bigtime.
During the Iran-Iraq War, reportedly we provided some behind-the-scenes support for Iraq (the Iranian hostage crisis hadn’t even ended when the Iran-Iraq War started). I’m personally convinced that’s the only reason we didn’t retaliate against Iraq for the USS Stark.
The USS Stark relieved the USS Hepburn in the Gulf … as the Hepburn steamed east towards Pearl … we heard the news!
I was a BT1(SW) fully qualed BTOW, Oil King, EOOW and REP V Locker Officer at the time! My first Persian Gulf deployment was 1982 and second was 1987. I am a two time Veteran of the Iraq and Iran War!
Here is a very good account of exactly what happened:
http://www.casematepublishing.com/dlc/9781935149361/America's%20First%20Clash%20with%20Iran-Ch01.pdf
Thank you for that link Master Chief.
I was a scrawny kid just about to finish my junior year in high school with in this incident happened.that fall I made my decision to join the Navy.
It took me until early January 1991 until I transited the Strait of Hormuz and cruised those waters.
The lessons learned from that day made our training more real and effective.
Rest in peace shipmates.
Some incredible acts of bravery on that ship that day.
It humbles me and makes me proud to be a Sailor able to call these men shipmates.
Dang. That’s some sobering reading.
Thanks for posting it, Master Chief.
To those we lost that day:
http://previews.123rf.com/images/perkmeup/perkmeup0611/perkmeup061100053/623837-A-lone-red-rose-lying-on-top-of-a-folded-American-flag-My-hero–Stock-Photo.jpg
Rest in peace, shipmates.
A fair wind and following seas, shipmates.
The Skipper, XO and CIC Officer took a hard hit on this. All retired and or resigned commission. The ship could have done more.
Our CIWS on Hepburn was always operating and pointing in the right direction.
In the case of the Stark (the Hepburn’s relief) their CIWS did not fire. The CIWS should have made pie tins out of the missles.
However, it was a bad day and I was not the Skipper, so what do I know?
RIP members of USS Stark.
The CO was aware of the aircraft and the XO was in CIC on “regular business”. Since he was standing at the TAO console when the first missile hit, I can only assume he was distracting the TAO from the task at hand with “regular business”; something that drove me bat shit crazy my entire career.
WCO and WCC were also not manned and the SLQ-32 was not set up in auto QR to fire chaff.
My OSs and EWs thought I was bi-polar because of how I would flip out coming into CIC and finding watch stations unmanned even during condition III steaming. But I always had this list of names posted somewhere in CIC and the story why they were there.
The ADT was also down, but probably would not have made much difference. OSs/DSs who knew how to set that thing up and make it work properly were few and far between.
To be fair, I would not have had the SLQ ever set on Auto unless the ship was going down and the order to abandon had been passed. The SLQ was notorious for misinterpreting signals as Vampires; if it was in Auto chaff you’d have had the MK 36s popping off rounds at least once an hour.
Either way, IIRC Stark didn’t even have rounds in the tubes so it wouldn’t have mattered.
I was on the Kittyhawk when that happened. We had just pulled off station and gone through the Suez.
Our Skipper, and I agree with him, was convinced that it was not an accident and they waited till we were in the Canal and before the – I think it was the Ranger – replaced us.
I do remember that everyone was talking about how we would be able to launch a retaliation strike from the Mediterranean and what it would take.
RIP, shipmates.
Basil Moncrief, my father’s best officer when he commanded Waddell was the TAO. They gave him a medal and he resigned. Don’t have anything else to say.
I don’t know if it’s still there, but when I was in EW “A” School in Pensacola there was a framed newspaper clipping of the casualty list on the bulkhead as you went into simulator modules. The two EW’s names were highlighted on it. For those that don’t know, Navy Electronics Warfare Technicians (EWs, now merged with Cypto Tech (Technical)(CTT)) are primarily responsible for Anti-Ship Missile Defense.
As far as the reasons no actions were taken by the Stark, all I know is there is an official investigation report, and then there’s what we were told as trainees. And an admonition that “this is why we log EVERYTHING.”