On November 15, 1969, the Cold War in the icy waters of the Barents Sea became very real when the US submarine USS Gato collided with the Soviet submarine K-19. Lucky for both crews, neither sub sank and no lives were lost. Throughout history, ships have found ways to run into each other or other objects, sometimes on purpose, but usually by accident. Today we list 5 of these unfortunate occurrences. Question for students: What ship collisions would you add to the list?
Digging Deeper
1. USS Gato vs. USSR K-19, 1969.
While both ships were patrolling the arctic waters of the Barents Sea North of Scandinavia and Murmansk, the K-19, a Soviet nuclear powered ballistic missile Hotel Class submarine, and the USS Gato, an American nuclear powered attack submarine, were 200 feet below the surface when they accidentally struck each other.
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