U.S. Navy USS Spruance Destroyer Shot Down 12 Drones and 4 Missiles During Iran Campaign.

The U.S. Navy says USS Spruance, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, shot down 12 drones and four anti-ship cruise missiles during its extended deployment supporting the campaign against Iran. The destroyer’s combat record combines air defense, Tomahawk strikes, and maritime interdiction, illustrating the range of missions a single American surface combatant sustained during prolonged operations.

U.S. Navy USS Spruance (DDG 111) Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer launches a Tomahawk land-attack missile during Operation Epic Fury on February 28, 2026. The U.S. Navy later credited the destroyer with downing 12 drones and four anti-ship cruise missiles during its extended deployment. (Picture source: U.S. Department of War/Defense)

Key Tactical Insights:

• Multiple combat missions: U.S. Navy USS Spruance’s destroyer reported interceptions accompanied Tomahawk strikes and blockade operations, documenting offensive and defensive employment during the same deployment rather than an assignment limited to protecting other warships.

• Layered air defense: U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyers combine Aegis radar and weapons control with missile defenses and close-range protection. These capabilities provide successive engagement options, although the Navy has not identified which weapons achieved Spruance’s reported kills.

• Missile endurance: Sixteen aerial targets destroyed does not establish how many air defense missiles were fired. Without ammunition expenditure and reload details, the deployment totals cannot establish the destroyer’s remaining missile capacity.

U.S. Navy Third Fleet disclosed the combat figures in a November 13, 2026, release reproduced by Seapower Magazine, as USS Spruance (DDG 111) returned to Naval Base San Diego. The figures summarize its nearly 12-month deployment; they do not describe interceptions that all occurred on the homecoming date. 

USS Spruance departed San Diego on November 21, 2025, with the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group. KPBS reported that the destroyer remained in the Middle East after the carrier headed home late in the summer, extending its assignment beyond the flagship’s departure. Its return therefore closes a separate period of sustained surface operations supporting the Iran campaign.

Related Topic: U.S. Navy Destroyer USS Michael Murphy Supports Iran Blockade With 12 Contested Hormuz Transits

According to Third Fleet, the destroyer launched dozens of Tomahawks against Iranian military targets between February and August, conducted maritime blockade operations and disabled the cargo vessel Touska. It also traveled more than 88,000 nautical miles and completed 43 underway replenishments. These activities place the air-defense results within a broader deployment involving strike warfare, maritime control and substantial logistical support. 

Iranian drones during the campaign

Iranian drones formed part of a wider missile-and-drone threat confronting American forces during Operation Epic Fury. In its February 28 announcement launching the operation, U.S. Central Command said U.S. forces had defended against hundreds of Iranian missile and drone attacks following the initial strikes. That was a theater-wide statement, not a count of threats engaged by Spruance or an indication that every attack targeted ships. CENTCOM also identified Iranian drone launch sites among the opening targets. 

The maritime threat continued beyond the opening phase. On May 31, 2026, CENTCOM reported strikes against Iranian radar and drone command-and-control facilities at Goruk and Qeshm Island. It said American fighters also destroyed two one-way attack drones threatening ships in regional waters during an ongoing ceasefire. Those engagements were separate from Spruance’s reported combat record, but illustrate the continuing danger to maritime traffic. 

One-way attack drones carry their destructive payload toward a target and are expended in the attack. For defending forces, their presence alongside cruise missiles requires identifying different threats and assigning suitable weapons while preserving ammunition for subsequent engagements. However, Third Fleet’s homecoming account does not identify the models of the 12 unmanned aircraft credited to Spruance, their launch locations, or whether they approached simultaneously with missiles. It would therefore be premature to describe all 12 as Shahed aircraft or claim the destroyer defeated a coordinated saturation attack.

What a U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer brings to air defense

A U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer is a surface warship designed to conduct several missions: defending against aircraft and missiles, attacking surface ships, hunting submarines, and striking targets ashore. It can operate independently or escort aircraft carriers and other naval formations. Spruance belongs to this class, whose combat architecture centers on the Aegis weapons system, radar, fire control, and vertical missile launchers. 

Aegis links detection and tracking with weapons control, allowing the ship’s combat team to manage engagements against aerial threats. The SPY-1 radar associated with Spruance-class destroyers supports this process, while the Mk 41 Vertical Launching System accommodates different weapons for defensive and offensive missions. Launch cells are therefore a shared resource: carrying land-attack missiles also affects the space available for other missile types.

The broader Aegis air-defense arsenal is available for other missile types. It includes Standard Missiles. SM-6, for example, is designed to engage aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles, with an active radar seeker supporting extended-range engagements. This explains a capability available within the fleet’s defensive architecture; it does not establish that Spruance fired SM-6 during these encounters. 

At close range, the Phalanx Close-In Weapon System provides another defensive layer. Its radar-guided 20-millimeter gun is designed to engage threats that penetrate other defenses. Electronic warfare equipment adds further defensive options within the class. Such layered protection gives commanders multiple ways to respond, but the weapons actually carried, their integration and engagement conditions determine the options available in a particular encounter. Phalanx Close-In Weapon System (CIWS)

The outstanding question is ammunition consumption. Destroying a target is not necessarily equivalent to firing one interceptor, and replenishment totals alone do not show missile reloads. The U.S. Navy’s disclosure documents Spruance’s reported combat results, but leaves unresolved how much defensive ammunition those engagements consumed and how quickly the ship can restore its full combat inventory.

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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.