IV 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 256

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives in remembrance of 

the brave servicemen who perished in the disastrous April 24, 1980, 

rescue attempt of the American hostages in Iran. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 3, 2005

Mr. SAXTON (for himself, Mr. HAYES, Mr. MILLER of Florida, Mr. AKIN, Mr. 

ANDREWS, Mr. HOSTETTLER, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. 

LOBIONDO, Mr. HEFLEY, Mr. KLINE, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, 

and Mr. MCINTYRE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives in 

remembrance of the brave servicemen who perished in 

the disastrous April 24, 1980, rescue attempt of the 

American hostages in Iran.

Whereas on November 4, 1979, Islamic extremists stormed 

the United States Embassy in Tehran and took 66 American hostages, 13 of whom were released on November 19 

and 20, 1979; 

Whereas after months of diplomatic negotiations, planning, 

and intergovernmental debate, a complex rescue mission 

dubbed ‘‘Operation Eagle Claw’’ was approved by President Carter on April 16, 1980; 
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Whereas on April 24, 1980, a Task Force comprised of 

United States Army Special Operations Forces, Army 

Rangers, Air Force Special Operations Wing personnel, 

and United States Navy, Marine, and Air Force pilots 

succeeded in moving thousands of miles undetected until 

reaching a remote location in the Iranian desert known 

by the code name ‘‘Desert One’’; 

Whereas due to mechanical failures and weather problems 

only 6 out of 8 helicopters successfully arrived at Desert 

One; 

Whereas at Desert One, a combination of helicopters and 

MC–130/EC–130 gunships rendezvoused with the intention of rescuing the hostages 200 miles away in Tehran 

the following evening; 

Whereas 6 helicopters was the minimum number of helicopters that could successfully complete Operation Eagle 

Claw; 

Whereas the bravery, dedication, and level of operational expertise of the men who participated in the mission were 

evident from the onset and tested by the mechanical and 

weather problems suffered in route to the rendezvous 

point; 

Whereas within minutes of the arrival of the MC–130 Combat Talon at Desert One, the ground security force 

stopped a bus with 44 Iranians aboard and then a gasoline truck was blown up when it tried to pass through a 

roadblock that shielded the western entrance to Desert 

One; 

Whereas once all of the helicopters had arrived, the rescue attempt was dealt its final blow when it was learned that 

one of the helicopters had lost its primary hydraulic sys-
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tem and was unsafe to use fully loaded for the final assault on Tehran; 

Whereas once the aircraft began moving into position to return to their respective launching points, one of the helicopters collided with a C–130 aircraft on the ground; 

Whereas flames engulfed the helicopter and the C–130 and 

resulted in the death of 5 airmen and 3 Marines; 

Whereas other soldiers were burned but survived, while their 

fellow soldiers acted bravely in restoring order and managed to evacuate the wounded men and salvageable 

equipment back to friendly territory; 

Whereas Members of Congress were dismayed with the poor 

equipment, lack of funding, and inattention given to our 

special operations forces that came to light because of 

this aborted mission; 

Whereas in response, legislation was enacted to form the 

United States Special Operations Command; 

Whereas USSOCOM continues to prove its immense value to 

our national defense as witnessed by the sterling performance of our special operations forces in Afghanistan, 

Iraq, and many other countries of the world; and 

Whereas we owe a great debt of gratitude to the members 

and families of our Special Operations Forces: Now 

therefore be it

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

2 (1) recognizes the bravery, sacrifice, and patri3 otism of the soldiers, airmen, sailors, and Marines 

4 who participated in Operation Eagle Claw; and 
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1 (2) commends all of the Special Operation 

2 Forces currently in service.

Æ