Buzz
The interplay of life and warfare at sea has often thrust humanity into bizarre and hazardous confrontations with nature. Over the centuries, armed forces have faced numerous marine creatures during their missions, fostering both reverence and dread for the ocean's depths. From intense encounters with predatory species to unexplained phenomena that have propelled scientific discovery, there have been moments when the military clashed with sea creatures and instances where these creatures retaliated.
Throughout history, tales of sea monsters have abounded, but this account focuses solely on factual events. Here are ten documented cases where global military forces confronted creatures from the deep.
10. The Gulf of Tonkin Incident
The Vietnam War was sparked by a 1964 altercation between U.S. and North Vietnamese naval vessels, with the USS Maddox at the heart of the conflict. During one night, 380 shells were launched, and multiple depth charges were deployed to neutralize North Vietnamese torpedo boats. Surprisingly, aerial reconnaissance reported no enemy vessels in the area.
In 1966, a sonar engineer shared an intriguing account with marine biologist Todd Newberry. The radar displayed objects resembling torpedoes, yet their behavior was peculiar, suggesting an independent will. Newberry hypothesized these were pyrosomes, rare marine organisms.
Pyrosomes consist of thousands of tiny individuals forming a massive, translucent structure, reaching lengths of up to 60 feet (18 meters). Picture a colossal, tube-shaped jellyfish devoid of tentacles. These creatures not only appear on sonar but are also visible from afar due to their bioluminescent glow.
This luminescence earned them the name 'pyrosomes,' meaning 'fire body.' It explains the mysterious lights reported that evening, which were mistakenly identified as enemy aircraft or searchlights.
9. USS Stein Squid Encounter
In 1978, the USS Stein, a U.S. Navy frigate, was conducting classified operations in the Pacific Ocean when its submarine detection system malfunctioned. Upon returning to port, technicians discovered deep gashes, each measuring four feet (1.2 meters), in the sonar dome. Embedded within the cuts were large, unidentified teeth.
Upon detailed examination, the tooth-like formations were determined to be claws from a squid's suction cup. The largest squid documented by researchers measured nearly 43 feet (13 meters) in length and weighed more than 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms). The claws recovered from the USS Stein are believed to originate from a squid exceeding three times this size.
Navy biologist F.G. Wood, who analyzed the claws, could not dismiss the possibility that they belonged to a previously unknown species. The largest squid species are preyed upon by sperm whales, which often bear massive wounds and scars resembling the damage inflicted on the sonar system. Given the frequent battles between these two creatures, it is plausible that the colossal squid mistook the ship for a whale.
8. Shark Encounters During WWII
In the early 1940s, during the height of World War II, the US Navy's research and development division assessed the threat of shark attacks. They concluded that sharks showed little interest in unfamiliar objects in the water and posed minimal risk to personnel. It was mistakenly believed that the noise and chaos of a sinking ship would deter sharks.
In reality, sharks had not been a significant concern in earlier conflicts. World War I naval battles occurred in frigid waters, but the tropical seas of WWII brought sharks into the equation, making them a new and unexpected hazard.
For Lieutenant Arthur George Reading and Radioman Everett Hardin Almond, who survived a plane crash at sea in 1943, sharks posed a dire threat. Reading recounted a harrowing 16-hour struggle, using his binoculars to fend off relentless shark attacks. He witnessed Almond sustain severe injuries, with blood attracting five sharks that viciously tore apart his leg. Despite Reading's efforts to keep Almond afloat and fight off the predators, a shark's tail struck him, breaking his jaw. The two were separated, and Almond succumbed to the attacks.
7. History's Deadliest Shark Attack
In 1945, the USS Indianapolis, a U.S. Navy cruiser, was tasked with delivering enriched uranium for the atomic bomb, “Little Boy.” After completing its mission, the ship, carrying 1,195 crew members, headed for the Philippines. Just past midnight, it encountered a Japanese submarine, which torpedoed and sank the vessel in just 12 minutes.
Three hundred sailors perished with the ship, leaving 900 survivors stranded in the open ocean. For those who survived the initial attack, their ordeal was far from over.
Hundreds of sharks were drawn to the chaos—explosions, blood, and thrashing bodies. After devouring the dead and injured, they turned on the living. Armed with whatever they could find, the sailors battled oceanic whitetip sharks for three and a half days. By the time rescue arrived, only 316 men remained, with many succumbing to dehydration, exposure, or choosing suicide over facing the relentless predators.
6. Military Dolphins in Action
Since the 1960s, dolphins and whales have been employed by various military forces. Through specialized training, these marine mammals can perform a range of tasks, such as transporting equipment and detecting underwater threats like torpedoes and mines. Dolphins can even be taught to remove divers' facemasks, compelling them to surface.
They can also tag divers by deploying floating buoys or attaching clamps to their legs, enabling swift retrieval by boats. Speculation suggests dolphins can be equipped with harnesses fitted with lethal devices, such as pistol-like 'bangsticks' or explosive gas-injecting 'wasp knives.'
In a recent incident in Palestine, Hamas provided evidence of a dolphin harness with a speargun attachment. Hamas claims this belonged to an Israeli military dolphin, part of a hostile aquatic unit that pursued one of their divers.
5. The UB-85 Sea Monster
On April 30, 1918, Captain Günther Krech and his crew were apprehended by the British warship HMS Coreopsis. During interrogation, Krech claimed their submarine had been rendered unable to dive due to damage inflicted by a sea monster. He described the creature as having horns, small, sunken eyes, a small head, and rows of terrifying teeth. According to Krech, the beast climbed onto the submarine, causing it to flood.
However, declassified records reveal a different story. A crew member named Göttschammer recounted how Krech, feeling cold, demanded a heater be installed in the officers' quarters. This required running cables through the main hatch, preventing it from sealing properly.
When the British warship appeared, the crew attempted to dive, but the hatch failed immediately, flooding the submarine with seawater. Forced to resurface, they had no option but to surrender. The tale of the sea monster was born out of embarrassment and operational failure.
4. Russian Arctic Naval Operations
A significant portion of Russia lies within the Arctic Circle, where the Northern Fleet, a division of the Russian navy, supports military and research activities. Landing on many of these remote islands—if possible—often means encountering polar bears, which are frequently hungry and aggressive.
Leonid Kruglov, a Russian journalist, recounted an expedition to Alexandra Land, stating, 'The bear relentlessly pursued us, undeterred by rocket flares, shouts, or warning shots.' Extreme hunger had pushed the bears to override their natural instincts in their desperate search for food.
However, during a 2019 landing attempt on another island, the challenge came not from bears but from walruses. A fully grown male walrus can weigh as much as a Dodge Charger (4,400 pounds or 1,995 kilograms). Before the landing craft could reach Wilczek Island, an aggressive walrus intercepted it.
It was believed the walrus was a mother protecting her calf. The massive animal managed to climb onto the boat, causing it to capsize. Fortunately, the crew was near enough to the shore to swim to safety. They were later rescued through the swift and coordinated efforts of the Northern Fleet.
3. The Misunderstood Orcas
Surprisingly, orcas were once widely feared by humans, fueled by myths, folklore, and misinformation that depicted them as ruthless killers. Up until the 1970s, U.S. Navy divers were trained to avoid orcas at all costs, believing they would attack humans on sight. While orcas, often called killer whales, are indeed apex predators capable of hunting even blue whales, there has never been a documented case of a wild orca attacking a human.
In 1956, Iceland sought help from the U.S. Navy to tackle orcas disrupting their herring fisheries. The U.S. deployed an anti-submarine air squadron armed with 50-caliber machine guns, aircraft rockets, and depth charges to eliminate the orcas.
In British Columbia, salmon fishermen pressured their government to install heavy artillery on hillsides overlooking waterways to deter orcas. It wasn’t until orcas were kept in captivity that humans recognized their intelligence and generally friendly nature.
2. HMS Brilliant's Whale Encounters
During the 1982 Falklands War, the British deployed the anti-submarine frigate HMS Brilliant to the South Atlantic to safeguard aircraft carriers from Argentinian forces. Whales in the area frequently triggered sonar alarms, as their large echoes were mistaken for submarines. In the heat of the moment, torpedoes were fired, killing two whales. A helicopter from the ship also killed a third whale.
Torpedoes were often launched at sonar signals resembling submarines, which were likely whales. These marine giants not only disrupted sonar systems but also endangered ships. A year into the campaign, HMS Brilliant collided with a whale, damaging its hull and forcing it to return for repairs. Similar incidents occurred with other ships, highlighting the significant risk and unintended casualties whales faced during the conflict.
1. Nuclear Submarines Under Attack
In the 1970s, Ohio-class submarines played a crucial role in America’s nuclear deterrent triad, which included land, air, and sea-based systems for atomic warfare. These submarines, designed to respond if the Cold War escalated, remain the largest ever constructed by the U.S. Navy, weighing 18,750 tons (17,000 metric tons) and costing billions of dollars.
While deployed, the submarines began experiencing sporadic issues, such as damaged sonar domes, electrical cables, sound probes, and leaking oil lines. Initially, there were suspicions that Russia had developed advanced technology capable of sabotaging equipment undetected.
However, the real culprit was far smaller and not Russian at all. The cookiecutter shark, measuring about 18 inches (46 centimeters), latches onto larger prey and removes chunks of flesh. Fishermen have long observed circular wounds on large fish like tuna, but it wasn’t until the 1970s that the shark’s stomach contents revealed conical plugs of flesh it had extracted.
Today, submarines safeguard their vulnerable areas with durable fiberglass coverings to prevent such attacks.
