On July 29, 1967, a tragic string of events culminated in disaster on the flight deck of the USS Forrestal resulting in the deaths of 134 sailors. As 27 fully armed combat aircraft were on deck in preparation for a bombing mission over North Vietnam, a wing mounted Zuni rocket was inadvertently launched from an F-4 Phantom. The rocket flew across the flight deck and penetrated an externally mounted fuel tank of an A-4 Skyhawk, flooding the deck with hundreds of gallons of jet fuel which quickly ignited. The fire engulfed the aircraft and spread quickly, fanned by 32 knot winds. One minute and 34 seconds later, one of that same Skyhawk's 1000 pound bombs "cooked off," with an explosion that sent shrapnel, flame, and destruction across the flight deck, wiping out the fire fighting crew, and wreaked havoc below deck. Over the next hour, eight more 1000 pound bombs exploded, each time taking the lives of another valiant team of sailors fighting the blaze. The ship was able to return to Subic Bay, Philippines, but fires continued below deck for over 24 hours.