A Cold War-era naval operation took a dangerous turn on March 21, 1984, when the 80,000-ton USS Kitty Hawk collided with the Soviet nuclear-powered attack submarine K-314 in the Sea of Japan. The American carrier was travelling at about 15 knots when the submarine surfaced in its path. Both vessels suffered damage, but neither side reported casualties or treated the incident as an act of war. The collision happened while the US Navy was taking part in Team Spirit 84-1, a major US-South Korean military exercise that the Soviet Pacific Fleet was closely monitoring.
