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Published on: FQ

January 14, 1969

Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Hawaii. An overheated missile explodes on the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, igniting the kerosene and triggering further explosions, which crack the deck in several places and spread the burning kerosene to the lower deck. Twenty-eight people die and 15 aircraft are lost. The ship is so damaged that it will not return to active service until after the end of the Vietnam War.