Spruance Fires 5-Inch Deck Gun at Iranian Vessel, First Such Action Since 1988
The USS Spruance fired its 5-inch MK 45 deck gun at the Iranian cargo ship Touska on April 19, marking the first time a U.S. warship used a deck gun against another vessel in nearly four decades (the 1988 Praying Mantis engagement). Touska was not sunk but boarded and seized, and the broader Iran-US naval clash remains context for ongoing tensions in the Persian Gulf.