The U.S. Navy has, for the first time, revealed its version of a Yemeni Houthi rebel missile attack on the USS Mason (DDG-87) last Oct. 9 in the Red Sea, saying the destroyer used decoys and fired missiles in self-defense.

The navy initially said the Mason used unspecified countermeasures to defeat two anti-ship missiles (ASMs) -- likely Chinese-made C-802 ASMs supplied to Iran, a Houthi ally -- during the attack that lasted for about an hour starting 7:00 p.m.

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It was the first time the navy confirmed the Mason fired its weapons to ward-off the missiles.

Iran has supplied C-802 to its Houthi allies fighting to overthrow the Yemini government backed by Saudi Arabia. The C-802 is the export version of China's YJ-8 ASM and carries a 190 kg warhead to a distance of 120 km. The YJ-8 arms China's Xian H-6 strategic heavy bombers.

American sources at the time said the Mason used onboard defensive measures after the first missile was fired. The destroyer was north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, roughly in the same area where the attack on the HSV-2 Swift took place. Like the Mason, the Swift was attacked at night.

The Mason was sent to patrol the area after the Houthis last Oct. 1 nearly sank the HSV-2 Swift, a high-speed catamaran that used to belong to the U.S. Navy, with a C-802.

This was likely the same missile fired at the Mason, which was deployed along with two other Navy warships in response to an earlier Houthi attack on the Swift. The Swift was serving the United Arab Emirates Navy when it was hit.

U.S. Navy sources said the Mason launched a RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (which is designed to destroy ASMs) to intercept one of the Chinese ASMs while the other was apparently hunted down by two Standard Missile-2s used as surface-to-air missiles.

The destroyer also used a "Nulka" rocket-propelled, missile decoy that lures enemy missiles from their targets. An Australian/American weapon, the Mk-53 Nulka Decoy Launching System is an active missile decoy designed to ″seduce″ ASMs away from their targets. It hovers in mid-air to ensure its detection and destruction by the incoming ASM.

TagsU.S. Navy, Yemeni Houthi rebels, USS Mason, C-802, YJ-8 ASM, HSV-2 Swift, RIM-162 Evolved SeaSparrow Missile