Kamal Ghorui
The United States Navy has begun demining operations in the troubled Straits of Hormuz. The effort is being spearheaded by two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers the USS Frank E. Peterson and the USS Michael Murphy. These warships are the first wave of an effort to secure this vital maritime chokepoint, pivotal for global energy flows. These two vessels are not equipped for hunting mines, but their sonar systems can be used to locate mines, according to The War Zone (TWZ). “Today, we began the process of establishing a new passage, and we will share this safe pathway with the maritime industry soon to encourage the free flow of commerce,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, the commander of US Central Command.
The United States Navy will also use unmanned systems to help in this demining operation. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps has said that they have lost track of the mines they had laid in the narrow stretch of water, according to the New York Times.US President Donald Trump has stated on social media that “We’re now starting the process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz, all 28 of Iran’s mine dropper boats are also lying at the bottom of the sea.”The US Navy is also sending a pair of Avenger-class mine clearing vessels, USS Chief and USS Pioneer, to the Persian Gulf. These ships will take part in mine clearing operations.Before the conflict began, the United States Navy had forward deployed three Independent-class Littoral Combat Ships (LCS)in the Persian Gulf. These vessels were moved out of the theatre, as per TWZ. The LCS are equipped with stand-off mine countermeasures, allowing the sailors to detect and destroy these mines from a distance.
US Navy’s second mine hunting spell in Persian Gulf
From July 1987 to September 1988, in the last phase of the almost eight years long Iran-Iraq war, the US Navy found itself performing similar duties in the same area. In what was dubbed Operation Earnest Will, the US Navy’s seventh fleet found itself hunting Iranian mines and escorting merchant shipping out of the Persian gulf.During that conflict American frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts hit an Iranian mine, injuring 10 sailors. This resulted in the Americans launching Operation Praying Mantis, which saw the destruction of numerous Iranian small watercraft that were harassing commercial ships as they moved through the Straits of Hormuz. The Americans also destroyed an Iranian base located atop an oil platform.
