Destroyer Nearly Torpedoed President Roosevelt

In 1943, the U.S. Navy destroyer USS William D. Porter accidentally fired a live torpedo at the USS Iowa, which was secretly carrying U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt toward the Tehran Conference. During a practice attack, a sailor named Lawton Dawson forgot to remove the primer from torpedo tube three, causing a simulated firing command to launch the weapon. The destroyer's crew first used signal lamps to preserve radio silence, but its bungled warnings indicated the wrong direction and then told the Iowa to reverse at full speed. Commander Wilfred Walter finally broke radio silence, allowing the Iowa to take evasive action before the torpedo struck a heavy wave and exploded harmlessly.

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