WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The U.S. Navy did something over the weekend it hasn't done since World War II — sink a ship with a torpedo fired from a submarine.
A U.S. torpedo hit the Iranian Frigate IRIS Dena in international waters more than 40 nautical miles off the coast of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan authorities said 87 people died and several more were injured.
For South Florida submarine veterans, the moment carried deep significance. WPTV anchor and Navy veteran Mike Trim has been listening to the local submarine veteran community.
WATCH:
Trim spoke with West Palm Beach Navy veteran Bill Andrea, the former national commander of the United States Submarine Veterans Incorporated, about what the milestone meant to the submarine community.
Andrea said the reaction among fellow veterans was one of pride.
"Well, I talked to the current commander of USSVI, and he said that it was really spectacular, and I guess you could call it a morale builder, that the submarines are actually doing what they're capable of doing," Andrea said.
Unbeknownst to many, torpedoes don't actually hit the ship.
"(Torpedoes) go under the warship, and they explode and cause a huge air bubble, and now there's nothing to support that ship in the water," Andrea said. "One end is supported by water, so is the other end, and it sort of breaks the back of the boat, and they sink."
Andrea said this tactic hasn't been done in so long because most of America's wars and conflicts in recent decades have been inland — including Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea and Vietnam.
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