53K views · 544 reactions | #OTD in 1967, USS Forrestal was rocked by a series of fires and explosions after a glitch caused a Zuni rocket on an F-4B Phantom to fire and hit the fuel tank of an A-4 Skyhawk on deck. The disaster killed 134 sailors and injured 161. Among the survivors was John McCain. | U.S. Naval Institute | Facebook

The tragic USS Forrestal fire On 29 July 1967, a fire broke out on board the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal after an electrical anomaly caused a Zuni rocket on an F-4B Phantom to fire, striking an external fuel tank of an A-4 Skyhawk. The flammable jet fuel spilled across the flight deck, ignited, and triggered a chain reaction of explosions that killed 134 sailors and injured 161. At the time, Forrestal was engaged in combat operations in the Gulf of Tonkin, during the Vietnam War. The ship sur

12K views · 162 reactions | YKTV 1967 Forrestal Fire: "If you didn't know where sickbay was you could follow the trail of blood." Museum volunteer and pilot Bob Williams was in the cockpit ready to be launched from the USS Forrestal on July 29, 1967 when a Zuni rocket on an F-4B Phantom fired and struck an A-4 Skyhawk. The resulting explosions and fire took the lives of 134 people. | Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum | Facebook