Video: Rough cut clip from a documentary about the USS Forrestal fire
posted at 6:40 pm on August 20, 2007 by Bryan
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If you’ve ever been on an aircraft carrier flight deck during flight operations, you’ve been up close to one of the most intricate and dangerous environments in the world. A wrong move or momentary lapse of attention can cause fatal accidents, to say nothing of equipment failures or just bad luck. On July 27, 1967, a fire erupted on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal, during combat flight ops in the western Pacific.
Forrestal arrived on Yankee Station on July 25 and immediately began combat operations, her aircraft flying 150 sorties during the next 4 days, without the loss of a single aircraft. At 10:52 A.M. on July 29, the second launch was being readied when a Zuni rocket accidentally fired from an F-4 Phantom parked on the starboard side of the flight deck aft of the island. The missile streaked across the deck into a 400 gallon belly fuel tank on a parked A-4D Skyhawk. The ruptured tank spew highly flammable JP-5 fuel onto the deck which ignited spreading flames over the flight deck under other fully loaded aircraft ready for launch. The ensuing fire caused ordinance to explode and other rockets to ignite. Spread by the wind, the flames engulfed the aft end of the stricken ship turning the flight deck into a blazing inferno.. Berthing spaces immediately below the flight deck became death traps for fifty men, while other crewmen were blown overboard by the explosion.
So I’m at one of the many local Starbucks today enjoying a million calorie orange creme frappuccino, and ended up sitting next to a man who was once stationed on the Forrestal and who is currently working on a documentary about the fire. Here’s a clip from that doc, which is in the rough cut stage.
The film is called USS Forrestal: The Burning Ballet.
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From the way things sound, it’s a wonder that anyone survived.
baldilocks on August 20, 2007 at 6:58 PM
WOW
pat on August 20, 2007 at 6:58 PM
I served with U.S. Navy Attack Squadron 85 and was the Forrestal for two Mediterraen Cruises from 1974 to 1976. Each time we had routine General Quarters drills onboard ship, it was required viewing to watch the actual footage taken onboard ship when the fire first broke out and ensuing chaos that occurred afterward. It was some of the most frightening footage I have ever seen. When you were onboard the Forrestal, the first thing you noticed was that you were never less than eight feet away from some sort of firefighting gear, while the words “LEARN NOT TO BURN” were embossed on every bulkhead (wall) of the ship, reminding every person on board of the dangers of fire while at sea.
pilamaye on August 20, 2007 at 6:59 PM
What’s remarkable about modern carriers is just how nearly unsinkable they are. Any other ship takes the equivalent of 8 x 1000 lb. bomb hits and it’s all over.
That, and it’s a testament to how, since we lost the USS Lexington at the battle of the Coral Sea in 1942 because of fires caused by internal explosions, damage control became and remains the unofficial religion of the US Navy.
Spurius Ligustinus on August 20, 2007 at 7:00 PM
I’m going off of memory here, but was this the incident that Senator McCain was involved in?
Think he barely avoided an explosion or some such thing…
John from OPFOR on August 20, 2007 at 7:03 PM
I should qualify to say that any other modern ship couldn’t withstand the damage that USS Forrestal did. It’s possible that the Iowa-class battleships could’ve withstood eight 1000-pounders.
Spurius Ligustinus on August 20, 2007 at 7:03 PM
Yes, McCain was on Forrestal. Interestingly, there were three major incidents on carriers during the Vietnam conflict: Oriskany and Enterprise also suffered significant damage from ordnance explosions, and both of them survived, too.
Spurius Ligustinus on August 20, 2007 at 7:07 PM
John from OPFOR on August 20, 2007 at 7:03 PM
I thought he was the pilot in the A-4
billy on August 20, 2007 at 7:07 PM
I was in high school in 1967 but I remember somewhat the coverage on TV. Many men lost their lives in the incident.
2theright on August 20, 2007 at 7:13 PM
From the Naval Aviation News:
billy on August 20, 2007 at 7:15 PM
McCain was the pilot on the plane that got hit with the missle that was launched. He barely escaped alive
Oddly I knew a Club owner in my home town whos son died on the forrestal that day. I use to work for him
William Amos on August 20, 2007 at 7:16 PM
Yeah, McCain’s plane was the one that was hit by the rocket. He barely escaped with his life.
There’s a school of conspiracy thought I’ve seen on lefty sites that McCain was actually at fault, and that it was covered up by his father the admiral.
juliesa on August 20, 2007 at 7:17 PM
John from OPFOR-
McCain was caught in the middle this Forrestal disaster and I think he ejected to save himself.
My older brother was on the Enterprise at the same time and heard about if through fellow sailors and pilots.
In 1969, another of these Zuni missiles also exploded onboard the Enterprise, killing several dozen personnel (but my brother was home by them). Not a great ordnance design, clearly.
McCain’s not my choice for President (because of Shamnesty) but is a hero nevertheless.
So’s my bro.
profitsbeard on August 20, 2007 at 7:18 PM
My husband was stationed on the USS Nimitz and told me a similar, yet not as horrible story.
This excerpt is from Wikipedia:
He was below deck watching this happen on the television screens. He said it was the most terrifying thing he could ever have imagined.
heatherrc77 on August 20, 2007 at 7:25 PM
Video from the McCain campaign:
http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/2148898/
One thing about McCain, he doesn’t quit
bnelson44 on August 20, 2007 at 7:31 PM
We watched that foottage many times for training purposes while I was in the Navy as a Damage Controlman on a aircraft carrier (U.S.S. Carl Vinson CVN-70). Lots of lessons re-learned the hard way that terrible and bloody day.
Yakko77 on August 20, 2007 at 7:58 PM
I’m working from memory too but I was under the impression McCain was the pilot of the plane that fired the missile — due to an electrical short, not due to anything he did wrong. And he still had balls enough later to continue flying missions over Nam. He also turned down a chance to be released from the Hanoi Hilton early because of propaganda coup it would have given the North. He’s done a lot of things I disagreed with since then but no one who’s been paying attention can deny that the fact that young John McCain was a true American hero.
bdfaith on August 20, 2007 at 8:15 PM
I don’t know if they still do it, but when I was in boot camp in 1980, the ship’s films were required watching during firefighting training. Really drilled home the point of how important it was to learn the techniques they taught us.
Kowboy on August 20, 2007 at 8:23 PM
I would encourage every person in our nation to see this documentary when it is finished.
I’ve seen the official Navy footage of this fire and it is indeed chilling. It’s also great testimony to the heroism of the average American sailor. Many sailors lost their lives attempting to fight the fire because they were armed with only one thing…courage. The catastrophe spread so fast, there was absolutely no time for Fire Fighting Equipment (FFE) to be deployed to those on the flight deck. The sailors never hesitated.
The first wave of sailors who rushed in with fire hoses charged with foam were obliterated in a secondary ordnance explosion. If I recall correctly, the second wave of damage control was also without FFE and perished as well. What those two waves bought with their lives was precious time, no matter how brief. Once FFE was actually available on the flight deck and hanger deck, the resulting fires were able to be brought under control.
Those sailors who died paid the ultimate price not fighting an enemy of the United States. Rather, they were fighting an enemy of mankind…out of control fire. Those who perished to hold back the hungry flames until they could be extinguished should be honored as much as those who finally conquered the blaze.
The Forrestal will forever be an example of near-disaster, courage and fortitude for the US Navy.
American_Jihadist on August 20, 2007 at 8:25 PM
Recommended reading: “Sailors to the End” by Gregory A. Freeman
Amazon.com: Paperback – Hardcover
My website: References: Freeman
Rusty Bill on August 20, 2007 at 8:26 PM
Absolute disaster, fits the meaning hell on earth.
canopfor on August 20, 2007 at 8:38 PM
Additional information:
Andrew Toppan at Haze Gray and Underway has a short photoessay on the three Vietnam-era carrier fires.
Other photos available at the U. S. Naval Historical Center:
Oriskany
Forrestal
Rusty Bill on August 20, 2007 at 8:43 PM
I thought it was McCains first flight off the Oriskany when he was shot down?
csdeven on August 20, 2007 at 9:29 PM
My son serves as a DC on a destroyer in the gulf.
It takes a special breed for that job. Thanks for serving.
csdeven on August 20, 2007 at 9:32 PM
Yeah I have seen this video a few times. The first time was in Boot Camp. Like someone above stated The Navy learned some hards lessons after that fire.
jaybird on August 20, 2007 at 9:39 PM
My uncle Larry was on the Forrestal when it happened (no kidding). I was just a little kid but I remember it quite well. We heard of the accident on the news and of course the whole family was very concerned. It took two days to find out he was OK. He was on night shift and asleep in his bunk a couple of decks below and aft of the accident. He was lucky, lots of others were not.
Maxx on August 20, 2007 at 9:52 PM
Meanwhile, John “Blood & Guts” Kerry was getting 3 Purple Hearts.
Labamigo on August 20, 2007 at 10:23 PM
Thank you. Tell your son there are lots of us back home who appreciate and are thankful for his service.
*salutes*
Yakko77 on August 20, 2007 at 10:28 PM
Wow. My Dad, father-in-law, and three uncles served in the Pacific fleet, and I can only imagine this chaos.
Jaibones on August 20, 2007 at 10:54 PM
On a side note, my grandfather served in the Navy during WWII. He was on the USS Stanly DD-478. The story of his ship was shown on the History Channel show “Dogfights” and showed the suicide attack by 2 suicide rockets (”Baka” bombs), one of which hit but thankfully did little damage as it went clean through the ship and didn’t explode and the second one just missed them.
Yakko77 on August 20, 2007 at 11:14 PM
Yep.
It was required viewing when I went through basic.
The Ugly American on August 20, 2007 at 11:40 PM
Wow.
Griz on August 20, 2007 at 11:50 PM
The fire on the Forrestal was a disaster. While the men who fought and died saving the ship were courageous, the fire was an accident waiting to happen. The training film many sailors see in boot camp and different classes is incredibly good and blunt.
During that era most damage control funds were passed on to maintenance and other uses, much of the equipment was in disrepair. The training at the time was woefully lacking to be polite about it. The Forrestal, Oriskiny, and Enterprise fires were part of a chain of disasters that drove the Navy to increase training, and begin a multi-decades long upgrade in material.
The Navy new the problems existed long before the fires occured, and most captains were warned about the problems well before these disasters happened.
Events like the fire on the Forrestal need to be retold continuously or the lessons we learned from them will be forgotten until another disaster occurs.
Rode Werk on August 21, 2007 at 2:51 AM
The below link is from the USN training film. I viewed it as a young sailor in the early 70’s during fire fighting training and then showed it to many, many other young sailors as an instructor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chuiyXQKw3I
I think we need to realize that US Military training is “that good”. In the less distant past, the USS Samuel B. Roberts hit a mine in the Persian Gulf that should have sunk her… but for her damage control team’s exceptional inability to give up.
When the USS Stark was hit by a missile, the same type missile which put a like British ship underwater, the damage control efforts of the crew were the ONLY reason the ship survived to be repaired and placed back in service.
I salute our military today and thank them for continuing to serve a country I proudly served for almost 30 years.
fmsguy on August 21, 2007 at 7:40 AM
We were made to watch “trial by fire” when I was in boot camp in the early 80’s. Reinforces the point that every sailor is a firefighter first.
.
Just before I retired, we had a major fuel oil leak in one of our engine rooms. The entire ship did exactly what it had to do to prevent a total disaster, and that is due to the constant training. The damage control and firefighting techniques used today, are from lessons learned from that specific fire.
rightside on August 21, 2007 at 8:20 AM
My Dad sereved on the Forrestal, and lived to tell about it…Lucky for me.
Rick1 on August 21, 2007 at 9:25 AM
I retired from active duty in 1996 after 24 years in the world’s finest and most powerful Navy. I was embarked in FORRESTAL (considered the first of the “super carriers” with Commander Carrier Group SIX back in 1978. Stories of the accident and subsequent fire were still resounding a full 11 years after the fire. “Sailors to the End” is a very detailed description of what happened and why; some Aviation Ordinance types took some shortcuts in the preparation and arming of missiles being mounted on aircraft preparing to sortie over North Vietname. The film many posters have already mentioned – “Trial by Fire” was required viewing at recruit training and at Damage Control training centers (and may still be). I still remember that part of the film where you could see a flight deck Chief Petty Officer running towards the conflagration armed with a Purple K dry chemical fire extinguisher just before the first WWII-era 1,000 pound bomb exploded. He died instantly.
.
There’s already a documentary available, although I can’t recall its title. It’s on VHS. It’s extremely sobering and retells many stories of true heroism – like one sailor manning after steering who remained at his post and complied with orders from the bridge with the full knowledge that he’d soon be dead. I still get goosebumps when I think how so many of those brave shipmates paid the ultimate sacrifice to save the ship.
Corky on August 21, 2007 at 10:58 AM
The film I refered to is called “Situation Critical: The USS Forrestal.”
Corky on August 21, 2007 at 11:23 AM
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