A Brief History On January 27, 1961, the Soviet Navy proved how dangerous the lives of submariners can be, when the Whiskey class submarine S-80 managed to sink with all hands without any outside help, what we call an “Oops moment.” Digging Deeper The S-80 was in a prolific class of submarines with 236 built between 1950 and 1960. About 249 feet long with a normal crew of 52, the subs were powered by the familiar diesel-electric combination motors. On the fateful day, S-80 was patrolling the Barents Sea using its snorkel to allow the use of the diesel engines…
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A Brief History On January 19, 1995, a Bristow Helicopters Eurocopter AS332L Super Puma suffered a terrifying lightning strike while transporting 16 oil workers and a crew of two from Aberdeen, Scotland to an offshore oil rig. Much like the more famous “Miracle on the Hudson” in 2009, the skilled pilot was able to make a water landing and saved all on board. Digging Deeper Unlike the Hudson River, the North Sea is farther from shore and considerably rougher, with far fewer folks around to conduct an immediate rescue. The icy cold water in January could kill survivors within minutes…
A Brief History On January 17, 2017, the sad saga of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 came to an end of sorts, when authorities announced an end to the futile search for the lost airliner. The fact that we still cannot find the huge Boeing 777 jetliner in this modern era is amazing, but the incident fits with other airplane disappearances, some which we list here: Digging Deeper Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Model 10-E Electra that disappeared over the Pacific Ocean in 1937. Bandleader Glenn Miller in a US Army Noorduyn UC-64A over the English Chanel in 1944. Flight 19 of five…
A Brief History On January 14, 1969, we were once again reminded how navies around the world manage to make mistakes that cost lives and even entire ships. This time, 28 lives were lost and 314 sailors injured, but the USS Enterprise, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, was not lost. Digging Deeper We have commented on naval disasters we call “Naval Oops Moments,” and this time the problem was a Zuni rocket under a jet’s wing that blew up. The explosion destroyed that plane and caused a fire resulting in multiple explosions, destroying 15 jets and blowing holes in the deck.…
A Brief History On January 11, 1935, American aviatrix Amelia Earhart became the first person to fly solo from Hawaii to California, one of her many aviation firsts. She was also the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic and was a proponent of women in aviation, of which there have been many great ones, as listed below: Digging Deeper Jackie Cochran (1906-1980) was an aviation pioneer that held more aviation records during her life than any other pilot of either sex. The first woman to fly supersonic, she also helped organize female pilots for Britain and the US…
