Naval History and Heritage Command

The ketch USS Intrepid, outfitted with a large explosive charge to destroy the enemy fleet in Tripoli harbor, is apparently intercepted while entering the harbor and is destroyed in a violent explosion. Lt. Richard Somers, commanding USS Intrepid, and his dozen volunteer officers and men perish in the mission.

The German submarine U-652 attacks the destroyer USS Greer (DD 145), which is tracking the submarine southeast of Iceland. Though the destroyer is not damaged in the attack, USS Greers depth charges damage U-652. The attack leads President Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue his shoot-on-sight order, directing the Navy to attack any ship threatening U.S. shipping or foreign shipping under escort.

The icebreakers USS Burton Island (AGB 1) and USCGC Northwind complete the first transit of Northwest Passage through the McClure Strait.

A P2V-5 Neptune from VP-19 is attacked by two Soviet MiG-15s and crashes in the Sea of Japan, 40 miles off the coast of Siberia. One crewman is lost and the other nine are rescued by a USAF SA-16 amphibian.

USS Bushnell (AS 15) and USS Penguin (ASR 12) begin relief operations in Marathon, Fla., after Hurricane Donna.