--- title: "That time the Navy almost blew up the President of the United States" description: "If you mess up in the military, your friends and peers will never let you forget it...even when you almost assassinate the president." date: "2021-10-30" modified: "2022-10-26" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/popular/navy-almost-blew-up-president/" categories: - "History" - "Navy" - "War History" - "World War II" --- # That time the Navy almost blew up the President of the United States ![]() If you mess up just one glorious time in the U.S. military, your friends and peers will never let you forget it. It's always been this way, even in World War II. From November 1943 until she was lost in 1945, the destroyer USS *William D. Porter* was greeted by home ports and other [U.S. Navy]() ships with: "Don't shoot, we're Republicans!" That's what happens when you almost assassinate the president. ![president FDR]() *Yes, that President. (Wikimedia Commons)* In 1943, the USS *Iowa* was ferrying President [Franklin Delano Roosevelt]() and U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull, along with the top brass of the entire United States military in the middle of the biggest, most dangerous war ever. It was a very special, important mission. They were on their way to meet their Allied counterparts in Cairo and Tehran, including British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. The whole thing was almost derailed by one torpedo fired at the *Iowa,* by a destroyer in the *Iowa's* own convoy, the *William D. Porter.* And it was a fast-running, powerful 500-pound torpedo. ![torpedo almost killed president]() *"Whoops." (Wikimedia Commons)* The *Porter* was a hard-luck ship that hadn't even seen combat yet. As she left Norfolk, she scraped the side of her sister ship, almost tearing her apart. While on convoy duty crossing the Atlantic, one of her depth charges slipped out of its hold and detonated, sending the convoy into a tizzy. Later, a large wave washed everything on the destroyer's deck into the ocean, including a sailor that was never found. Once things calmed down a bit, the crews settled in for some target practice as the President watched on. The *Iowa* launched target balloons, which the ships fired at in turn, including the *Porter*. Next, the skipper of the *Porter* ordered torpedo practice with *Iowa* as the target. But when the simulated order to fire a torpedo accidentally launched an armed torpedo, the bridge understandably flipped out. ![uss iowa navy ship]() *Yes, that USS Iowa. (Wikimedia Commons)* Under strict radio silence to avoid attracting German u-boats, the crew of the *Porter* began to furiously signal *Iowa*. Unfortunately, in their haste, they mentioned nothing about a torpedo, instead telling the battleship that the destroyer was backing up at full speed. Eventually, they radioed the *Iowa* anyway. After a brief disagreement about radio procedures, the huge battleship moved out of the way of the oncoming torpedo, which exploded in the wake of the battleship, with President Roosevelt aware of the torpedo and watching it come. The guns of the battleship turned on the *William D. Porter*. The ship was ordered to make its way to Bermuda, its entire ship's company under arrest. It was surrounded by U.S. Marines when it arrived in Bermuda. The crew was dismissed to landward assignments, and its skipper was sentenced to 14 years in prison – a sentence President Roosevelt commuted to no punishment because he considered it an averted accident. ![navy ship in pacific]() *The "WIllie Dee" sinks in the Pacific, June 1945. (Wikimedia Commons)* The destroyer itself would go on fighting the war while continuing its hard luck, accidentally shooting down American planes and strafing her sister ship with gunfire. In June 1945, a Japanese kamikaze pilot who missed his initial target sank into the sea next to the *Porter*. It exploded directly underneath the ship, however, and sent her to the bottom. ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()