Combat· Persian Gulf Naval Action (Op PRAYING MANTIS)
Sassan Oil Platform
The assault on the Sassan oil platform was the Marine ground action of Operation Praying Mantis, the seizure and destruction of an Iranian gas-oil separation platform that had been used for military purposes in the Persian Gulf.
After American warships warned the occupants to evacuate and then silenced the platform's anti-aircraft guns, which had fired on the approaching force, and Marine helicopter gunships suppressed the remaining resistance, the Marines landed on the structure to clear it. The assault force secured the platform, gathered intelligence and equipment, and placed demolition charges that destroyed the installation, the burning platform becoming one of the enduring images of the operation. The Sassan assault was a textbook expeditionary raid, the Marines seizing and demolishing an enemy structure in the Gulf as part of the retaliation against Iran. It demonstrated the Marine capability to conduct a precise platform seizure at sea, a sharp and successful action within the larger naval engagement of Praying Mantis.
Record no. 835