USS Vincennes shoots down Iran Air Flight 655, killing all 290 aboard over Strait of Hormuz

The U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser USS Vincennes fires two surface-to-air missiles at Iran Air Flight 655 over the Strait of Hormuz, mistaking the commercial Airbus A300 for an Iranian F-14 fighter. All 290 passengers and crew, including 65 children, are killed. The Reagan administration defends the incident as a tragic accident and blames Iranian naval tactics. Iran calls it deliberate mass murder. The U.S. pays Iran $61.8 million in a 1996 settlement but never formally apologizes.