From the April 5, 2013 Yahoo! News, AP "U.S. sub sinking 50 years ago led to safety changes" by David Sharp.
The first sign of trouble that day in 1963 was a garbled message about a "minor difficulty" at 1000 feet on a routine test dive.
Minutes later, the crew of the rescue ship, USS Skylark heard "exceeding test depth" and then listened as the sub disintegrated under pressure. The nuclear submarine Thresher and 129 men were gone.
It was the deadliest U.S. sub disaster in American history and a blow to national pride during the height of the Cold War.
This weekend, there will be memorial services in Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Kittery, Maine. The Thresher was built at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery and based in Groton, Connecticut. The Thresher was the first in its class and the world's first fast attack submarine when it was commissioned.
The 278 foot long submarine could dive deeper and stay underwater for an unlimited amount of time.
It hit bottom at 8,500 feet on April 10, 1963.
Always Sad When Something Like That Happens.
No comments:
Post a Comment