Although a variety of retired warships have been employed as targets in past US Navy SINKEX operations, the ex-USS Simpson was the final frigate to be retired from service.

The theme of this year’s recently concluded UNITAS 2025 naval exercises was “A Legacy of Maritime Partnerships,” fittingly including drills and operations with multiple allied partners from the Americas, Europe, and Asia. UNITAS—Latin for “unity”—remains the longest-running multinational naval exercise in the world, and this year saw more than 8,000 military personnel from 25 nations taking part.

While the 66th iteration of UNITAS was conducted in the US Naval Forces Southern Command/US 4th Fleet area of responsibility off the East Coast of the United States, it remained primarily a show of force to deter Chinese aggression beyond the Indo-Pacific.

The exercises also came in advance of the United States Navy’s 250th anniversary celebrations, which have been taking place this month.

The US Navy’s Showcase SINKEX

During UNITAS 2025, the US Navy operated with its allies and partners in an amphibious ship-to-shore landing and force withdrawal at the United States Marine Corps’ Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, but also engaged in a series of live-fire exercises. That included a SINKEX of a retired US Navy warship, reported to be the retired Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Simpson (FFG-56).

“SINKEX, short for ‘sink at-sea live-fire training exercises,’ is a program run by the United States Navy that arranges for decommissioned Naval warships to be used in live-fire training. This gives Navy personnel the opportunity to use real ammunition on practical targets and apply what they learn to future conflict, practicing gunnery, missile drills, torpedo accuracy, and even special warfare operations,” explained the US Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD).

FFG-56 was used as a floating target, which was struck by MH-60R and MH-60S helicopters operating from the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock USS Arlington (LPD-24) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116). The US Navy didn’t disclose what type of ordnance was used during the SINKEX, but the Lockheed Martin/Sikorsky rotary aircraft can be armed with the AGM-114 Hellfire and AGM-119B Penguin anti-ship missiles, as well as the Kongsberg Naval Strike Missile.

“Our live fire sinking exercise (SINKEX), a keystone event of UNITAS 2025, demonstrated the lethality our warfighters bring in security of the region every day,” the US Navy’s Destroyer Squadron 40 announced in a post on Facebook. “Each SINKEX is conducted in strict compliance with applicable US environmental laws, regulations, and permit requirements to minimize potential environmental harm.”

The USS Simpson Had an Eventful Life Before Her Sinking

Although a variety of retired warships have been employed as targets in past US Navy SINKEX operations, the ex-USS Simpson was the final frigate to be retired from service—although technically, the three-mast wooden-hulled USS Constitution, one of the six original frigates authorized by the Naval Act of 1794, is still in commission.

At the time of her decommissioning in 2015, FFG-56 also had the distinction of being the only US warship in service to sink an enemy vessel in combat.

On April 18, 1988, USS Simpson took part in Operation Praying Mantis, the response to the mining of US warships in the Persian Gulf. Four days earlier, USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) had hit an Iranian M-08 mine, and FFG-56, along with the Belknap-class guided-missile destroyer USS Wainwright (CG-28), and the Knox-class frigate USS Bagley (FF-1069) were dispatched to hunt down the Iranian forces.

USS Simpson then came under fire from the Iranian Navy’s Kaman-class missile patrol boat Joshan, which was armed with US-made Harpoon missiles dating back to the pre-Islamic Revolution. The Iranian boat fired several salvos at the US vessels, but missed their target.

The US warships responded, and unlike the Iranians, they didn’t miss!

The first missile fired by USS Simpson slammed into the Joshan, followed by three more missiles from the frigate and the guns fired by USS Wainwright further struck the Iranian boat, which soon sank. It has been recorded as the only ship-versus-ship missile duel in US Navy history, with opposing missiles airborne at the same time.

The Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate was awarded the Joint Meritorious Unit Award and the Combat Action Ribbon for this operation, and the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for the deployment. Following the decommissioning of USS Bagley and USS Wainwright in 1991 and 1993, respectively, USS Simpson became the last modern US Navy warship to sink an enemy vessel in action. The 30-year-old frigate was subsequently decommissioned in October 2015.

While it was sunk in the SINKEX drills last month, it may have been a fitting end for the warship—although, given her illustrious record, one might argue she should have been saved and preserved, rather than meeting the end of her life as target practice!

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.

Image: Wikimedia Commons.

The post America’s Recent SINKEX Exercise Was a Message to China appeared first on The National Interest.