Date: July 3, 1988
Fatalities: 290
A controversial incident during tense times in the Gulf, owing to the Iran-Iraq War, the Airbus A300, a civilian airline, was shot down by surface-to-air missiles fired from US military cruiser USS Vincennes, killing all on board.
The flight was in Iranian airspace, over Iranian territorial waters and on its usual flight path, yet, according to the US government, Vincennes mistook it for an F-14A Tomcat fighter plane. Crew on the American ship made 10 attempts to contact the Iran Air aircraft on military and civilian radio frequencies, with no response, before firing.
In 1996 the US government and Iran reached a settlement at the International Court of Justice, the former expressing “deep regret over the loss of lives”, but not admitting legal liability or formally apologising. The US agreed to pay $213,103.45 compensation per passenger, about £346,000 in today’s valuation.
