U.S. Forces Destroy 17 Iranian Warships and One Submarine in Operation Epic Fury Strikes.

U.S. Central Command says American forces destroyed 17 Iranian naval vessels and one submarine during Operation Epic Fury, a major campaign targeting Iranian military infrastructure across multiple domains. The strikes significantly reduce Tehran’s ability to threaten shipping in the Persian Gulf and disrupt traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. Central Command reports that American forces destroyed 17 Iranian naval vessels and one submarine during Operation Epic Fury, a large-scale campaign targeting Iranian military infrastructure and combat forces across the region. According to CENTCOM’s ongoing battle damage assessment, the operation has struck hundreds of Iranian targets, including missile launch sites, air defense systems, command nodes, and naval facilities. The maritime losses represent a significant blow to Iran’s naval strike capability in the Persian Gulf, particularly its ability to threaten commercial shipping and energy transit routes through the Strait of Hormuz.
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U.S. Central Command announced that American forces destroyed 17 Iranian naval vessels and one submarine during Operation Epic Fury, significantly degrading Tehran’s maritime capabilities in the Persian Gulf. (Picture source: U.S. Central Command)

The naval losses represent one of the most substantial reported degradations of Iranian maritime warships in decades and appear aimed directly at the operational backbone of Iran’s asymmetric naval doctrine. Iranian naval power is divided between two separate forces with different missions and equipment: the conventional Islamic Republic of Iran Navy (IRIN) and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN). While the IRIN operates larger surface combatants and submarines intended for broader maritime defense, the IRGC Navy is responsible for asymmetric operations in the confined waters of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.

Defense analysts assess that most of the 17 vessels destroyed during Operation Epic Fury likely belonged to the IRGC Navy, which maintains a large fleet of fast-attack craft designed to overwhelm larger naval forces through swarm tactics. These platforms include missile boats and high-speed patrol craft, such as the Peykaap missile boats, the Zolfaghar fast-attack craft, the Seraj high-speed boats, and the Ashura-class patrol vessels. These vessels are typically armed with anti-ship missiles, rockets, torpedoes, and naval mines and are designed for rapid hit-and-run attacks against both commercial shipping and military vessels operating in the Gulf.

Iran’s asymmetric maritime strategy relies on deploying large numbers of these small vessels simultaneously to saturate the defenses of larger warships. By attacking from multiple directions at high speed, these craft are intended to complicate targeting solutions for advanced naval defense systems. The reported destruction of 17 vessels, therefore, likely represents a direct blow to the operational concept that underpins Iran’s strategy to contest U.S. naval superiority in the region.

Particularly significant in the U.S. CENTCOM (Central Command) assessment is the reported destruction of one submarine. Iran maintains a mixed submarine fleet composed of both Russian-built and domestically developed platforms. The most capable of these are the three Russian-built Kilo-class submarines Tareq, Noor, and Yunes, each displacing approximately 3,000 tons submerged and capable of launching torpedoes and deploying naval mines. These submarines provide Iran with its primary underwater strike capability and can operate not only in the Persian Gulf but also in the Gulf of Oman and the northern Indian Ocean.

However, defense specialists consider it more likely that the submarine destroyed during Operation Epic Fury belongs to Iran’s fleet of smaller coastal submarines. Iran operates more than twenty Ghadir-class midget submarines, specifically designed for operations in shallow waters such as the Strait of Hormuz. These submarines can deploy naval mines, launch torpedoes, and conduct ambush attacks against surface vessels, making them a key element of Iran’s maritime denial strategy. Iran has also introduced the domestically produced Fateh-class submarine, a medium-sized platform with a displacement of roughly 600 tons, designed to bridge the capability gap between the Ghadir mini-submarines and the larger Kilo-class boats.

Even the loss of a single submarine would reduce Iran’s capacity to conduct covert maritime operations, particularly mine-laying missions intended to disrupt tanker traffic. Naval mines remain one of Iran’s most effective tools for threatening commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global chokepoint through which approximately 20 percent of the world’s seaborne oil trade passes.

In addition to its submarine force, the conventional Iranian Navy maintains several larger surface combatants. These include the domestically produced Mowj-class frigates, such as Jamaran, Sahand, and Dena, each displacing roughly 1,300 to 1,500 tons and equipped with anti-ship missiles, naval guns, and air defense systems. Iran also continues to operate several aging Alvand-class frigates, originally built in the United Kingdom during the 1970s but subsequently upgraded with Iranian missile systems and electronic warfare equipment.

While none of these larger warships have been confirmed among the vessels destroyed, the loss of numerous smaller combatants would still significantly affect Iran’s ability to conduct swarm attacks and harassment operations in the Gulf. Iran’s naval strategy depends heavily on dispersing large numbers of fast-attack craft across coastal bases and islands throughout the Persian Gulf, allowing them to quickly converge on targets transiting the region's narrow waterways.

U.S. forces possess extensive capabilities designed to counter this type of threat precisely. Carrier-based strike aircraft, long-range precision weapons, maritime patrol aircraft, armed drones, and advanced surveillance systems enable U.S. commanders to track and engage small naval targets at sea and in coastal staging areas. Precision-guided munitions and cruise missiles enable the rapid destruction of concentrations of fast attack craft before they can disperse or launch coordinated attacks.

The reported destruction of multiple vessels during Operation Epic Fury, therefore, suggests that U.S. strikes may have targeted Iranian naval bases, docking facilities, or staging areas where fast attack craft are typically assembled prior to operations. Neutralizing these assets while they are concentrated in port can be significantly more effective than attempting to engage them individually once dispersed at sea.

Despite these reported losses, Iran still retains a sizable maritime force capable of threatening regional shipping. The IRGC Navy maintains hundreds of fast patrol craft and missile boats, supported by coastal anti-ship missile batteries, naval mines, unmanned aerial systems, and shore-based radar networks. These capabilities remain central to Tehran’s strategy of deterring Western naval operations and maintaining the ability to disrupt maritime traffic if a conflict escalates further.

Nevertheless, if confirmed, the destruction of 17 vessels and a submarine during Operation Epic Fury represents a notable setback for Iran’s maritime forces. The losses highlight the vulnerability of concentrated naval assets to precision strike operations and underscore the continuing importance of U.S. naval and air superiority in maintaining freedom of navigation in one of the world’s most strategically vital maritime corridors.

Written by Alain Servaes – Chief Editor, Army Recognition Group
Alain Servaes is a former infantry non-commissioned officer and the founder of Army Recognition. With over 20 years in defense journalism, he provides expert analysis on military equipment, NATO operations, and the global defense industry.