The USS Oriskany, an Essex-class aircraft carrier, underwent fire in 1966 and changed naval safety measures entirely. The loss was 44 with major material damage caused directly by the mishandling of a magnesium flare. This incident pointed out overworked crews and inadequately prepared munitions as well, thus spurring full-scale reform for naval operations.
The USS Oriskany was sent to Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin for its second tour of Vietnam. By October, the air wing of the carrier was reaching its limits with pilots flying two missions a day. On 26 October, two apprentice airmen tried to stow an unused magnesium flare in locker A-107-M. The flare either ignited through being triggered by the lanyard left on it or spontaneously combusted due to a basic design defect. Panicked, the airmen locked in the burning flare in the ammunition locker; there were over 250 flares, along with several rockets there.
Fire was the cause of these successive explosions: A series of explosions was caused by a subsequent fire. The 5,400°F inferno was too powerful to be controlled; it had warped and fused the locker door shut. Thus, the flames quickly spread and incinerated a liquid oxygen tank and the fuselage of a UH-2 helicopter. Thick smoke penetrated the ventilation system of the ship, suffocating many of her crew members.
The crew displayed great heroism in an attempt to gain control of the fire and rescue personnel entrap- ped on board. For instance, Lt. Cdr. Marvin Reynolds wrapped himself in a wet blanket and breathed through an open porthole until he received a breathing mask and a firehose. Cdr. Richard Bellinger escaped via a porthole, while Cdr. Charles Swanson and two ensigns rescued ten officers from their quarters.
Crew members frantically moved aircraft, bombs, and jet fuel away from the fire, tossed five-hundred-pound bombs overboard, and sprayed hosing water onto sizzling bombs to extinguish them. After three hours of frenzied firefighting, the inferno was finally brought under control, but by then, 44 lives had been lost and 156 crew members hurt. Material loss consisted of two helicopters and an A-4E jet destroyed and three more Skyhawks badly damaged.
The Navy court-martialed five sailors, charging them with manslaughter. But all were acquitted after it was discovered a defect in the Mark 24 flares made them prone to igniting when jarred. Capt. John Iarrobino, the skipper of the Oriskany, argued the real fault lay with the manufacturer of the flare.
The USS Oriskany fire exposed the hazards of overworking crews and correctly designed munitions. The reaction of the crew was swift and brave enough to ward off detonations of bombs and fuel stores that would have sunk the ship. This incident served as a cold lesson and paved the way for important reforms in naval safety.