USS Missouri BB-63
Gulf War Guns
These two videos, both filmed in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm, capture the battleship USS Missouri (BB-63) in combat action off the coast of Kuwait. In the first, Missouri fires her massive 16-inch guns against Iraqi shore targets. What makes the footage exceptional is the accompanying Pioneer UAV coverage: a remote-control drone was launched from the ship, flew over the impact area, and transmitted live video back to Missouri — giving the gun crews real-time battle damage assessment before the Pioneer was recovered back aboard. It was one of the first combat uses of unmanned aerial vehicles for naval gunfire spotting. The second video shows Missouri launching Tomahawk cruise missiles in January 1991 — she fired 28 Tomahawks during Desert Storm, among the first ships ever to employ them in combat. Missouri was one of the last battleships ever to fire her guns and missiles in anger before the Iowa class was retired from service.