A U.S. helicopter struck an Iranian vessel with two Hellfire missiles in the Arabian Sea after the ship closed on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and deck-gun fire failed to stop it, two U.S. officials briefed on the episode told CBS News.
The officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly, said a Navy surface ship first engaged the approaching craft with its 5-inch, 54-caliber Mark-45 gun, a standard automated cannon on destroyers and cruisers. The rounds missed. It was not clear whether those shots were meant as warnings or as aimed fire.
A helicopter then launched and hit the Iranian ship with two Hellfires. Officials did not say whether the aircraft was an MH-60R Seahawk or a Marine AH-1Z Viper — both can carry the missile. They also did not identify which escort fired the gun. Destroyers with the Lincoln strike group have included USS Spruance and USS Michael Murphy; other guided-missile destroyers were in the Arabian Sea at the time.
The condition of the Iranian vessel and its crew has not been released. U.S. Central Command, asked for comment, said, “We have nothing for you on this.” The Pentagon had not issued a public account when the officials spoke.
The clash fits a longer run of close calls. In early February, U.S. Central Command said an Iranian Shahed-139 drone “aggressively” approached the Lincoln and was shot down by a fighter. The carrier group arrived in the region in late January as part of a large deployment President Trump called an “armada.” Since U.S. operations against Iran began, Central Command has said American forces damaged or destroyed more than 90 Iranian naval vessels.
The Lincoln is one of two U.S. carriers that have operated in the Middle East during the conflict. Carriers sit at the center of strike groups built to keep hostile craft at a distance. A ship that gets inside that ring forces a fast choice: warn, fire the gun, or use a precision missile from the air.
What happens next depends on facts still unstated — casualties, the Iranian ship’s status and whether Tehran answers in public. Until then, the Arabian Sea remains a place where a few minutes of maneuver can turn into an exchange of fire.
