1984 Arabi Island incident

1984 Arabi Island incident
	Part of Iran–Iraq War and Tanker war
Date	5 June 1984
Location	Arabi Island, Persian Gulf
Result	Saudi Arabian victory
Belligerents
Saudi Arabia	Iran
Strength
13 F-15 Eagles	13 F-4 Phantoms
Casualties and losses
None	2 F-4 Phantoms lost; 2 pilots killed

On 5 June 1984, an air battle between Saudi Arabia and Iran took place near Arabi Island in the Persian Gulf.

Background

Saudi Arabia had been one of the Arab states backing Iraq during its war with Iran. Iranian Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini threatened to attack Saudi Arabia and other Arab states supporting Iraq.^[1]

Air battle

Two Iranian Air Force F-4 Phantoms from Bushehr Air Base, had intruded into Saudi airspace, setting up for an attack on oil tankers. The planes were tracked by a United States Air Force E-3 Sentry AEW&C aircraft, which directed two patrolling Saudi F-15 Eagles armed with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles to intercept the Iranians.^[2]

The Saudis shot down one Iranian Phantom, killing 1st Lts Homayoun Hekmati and weapon systems officer Seyed Sirous Karimi. The second Iranian F-4 was damaged, and made an emergency landing at Kish Airport. The aircraft could not be repaired and was written off. This caused the Iranians to scramble 11 additional F-4s from Bushehr. The tense standoff reportedly lasted "several minutes" before the Iranian jets returned to their airbase.^[1]

In response, the Royal Saudi Air Force scrambled 11 additional F-15s. Seeing this, the Iranians backed down, and the Saudis returned to base.^[3]^[4]

References

1 2 "Saudi Arabian fighters shot down two Iranian fighter-bombers in... - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved 16 December 2025.
↑ "Saudi F15 Fighters Down 2 Iranian Jets Over Persian Gulf". The Washington Post.
↑ Smith, William E."Pushing the Saudis too far". Time, 18 June 1984. Retrieved: 26 January 2008.
↑ Halloran, Richard. "2 Iranian fighters reported downed by Saudi Air Force". The New York Times, 6 June 1984, p. 1. Retrieved: 26 January 2008.

[:0-1] 1 2 "Saudi Arabian fighters shot down two Iranian fighter-bombers in... - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved 16 December 2025.

[2] "Saudi F15 Fighters Down 2 Iranian Jets Over Persian Gulf". The Washington Post.

[3] Smith, William E."Pushing the Saudis too far". Time, 18 June 1984. Retrieved: 26 January 2008.

[4] Halloran, Richard. "2 Iranian fighters reported downed by Saudi Air Force". The New York Times, 6 June 1984, p. 1. Retrieved: 26 January 2008.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

v t e Iran–Saudi Arabia relations
Diplomatic posts	Ambassadors of Iran to Saudi Arabia Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Tehran Ambassadors of Saudi Arabia to Iran
Diplomacy	Safari Club 2023 Iran–Saudi Arabia summit
Conflicts	Iranian Revolution 1979 Khuzestan insurgency Arab separatism in Khuzestan Qatif conflict 1979 Qatif Uprising Iran–Iraq War Action of June 5, 1984 Qatar–Saudi Arabia diplomatic conflict Qatar diplomatic crisis 2011 Egyptian revolution 2011 Bahraini uprising Saudi-led intervention in Bahrain insurgency in Bahrain 2011 Libyan civil war Syrian civil war Hezbollah involvement Iranian involvement Saudi involvement Spillover in Lebanon Axis of Resistance Funding of the Axis of Resistance Iranian intervention in Iraq Yemeni crisis Houthi insurgency Operation Scorched Earth Operation Blow to the Head Yemeni revolution Yemeni civil war Saudi-led intervention in Yemen Houthi–Saudi Arabian conflict Houthi takeover in Yemen Second Libyan civil war
Incidents	1987 Mecca incident Khobar Towers bombing 2011–2012 Saudi Arabian protests 2016 Saudi Arabia mass execution Execution of Nimr al-Nimr 2016 attack on the Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran 2019 Saudi Arabia mass execution 2011 alleged Iran assassination plot 2015 Mina stampede 2017 Lebanon–Saudi Arabia dispute 2017–2020 Qatif unrest 2018 Riyadh missile strike International Maritime Security Construct United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 May 2019 Gulf of Oman incident 2019 Afif attack Abha International Airport attacks Abqaiq–Khurais attack
Iranian relations with GCC member states	Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar United Arab Emirates
Related	Iran–Saudi Arabia football rivalry Iran and state-sponsored terrorism Iran–Israel proxy conflict Arab League–Iran relations United States–Gulf Cooperation Council relations Arab–Israeli alliance Warsaw Middle East conference Russia–Syria–Iran–Iraq coalition Opposition to military action against Iran Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition Gulf Cooperation Council Iran International Shia–Sunni relations Shia Islam in Saudi Arabia
Category:Iran–Saudi Arabia relations

v t e Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy war
Background	Iranian Revolution 1979 Khuzestan insurgency Arab separatism in Khuzestan Qatif conflict 1979 Qatif Uprising
Conflicts	Assadist–Saddamist conflict (until 1990) Iran–Iraq War Action of June 5, 1984 Qatar–Saudi Arabia diplomatic conflict Qatar diplomatic crisis 2011 Egyptian revolution 2011 Bahraini uprising Saudi-led intervention in Bahrain insurgency in Bahrain First Libyan civil war Syrian civil war Hezbollah involvement Iranian involvement Saudi involvement Spillover in Lebanon Axis of Resistance Funding of the Axis of Resistance War in Iraq (2013–2017) Iranian intervention in Iraq Yemeni crisis Houthi insurgency Operation Scorched Earth Operation Blow to the Head Yemeni revolution Yemeni civil war Saudi-led intervention in Yemen Houthi–Saudi Arabian conflict Houthi takeover in Yemen Second Libyan civil war
Incidents	1987 Mecca incident Khobar Towers bombing 2011–2012 Saudi Arabian protests 2016 Saudi Arabia mass execution Execution of Nimr al-Nimr 2016 attack on the Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran 2019 Saudi Arabia mass execution 2011 alleged Iran assassination plot 2015 Mina stampede 2017 Lebanon–Saudi Arabia dispute 2017–2020 Qatif unrest 2018 Riyadh missile strike International Maritime Security Construct United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 May 2019 Gulf of Oman incident 2019 Afif attack Abha International Airport attacks Abqaiq–Khurais attack
Iranian relations with GCC member states	Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar United Arab Emirates
Related topics	Iran and state-sponsored terrorism Iran–Israel proxy conflict Arab League–Iran relations United States–Gulf Cooperation Council relations Arab–Israeli alliance Warsaw Middle East conference Russia–Syria–Iran–Iraq coalition Opposition to military action against Iran Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition Gulf Cooperation Council Iran International Shia–Sunni relations Shia Islam in Saudi Arabia
Category:Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy war

Background

Air battle

See also

References