USS GETTYSBURG (CG 64), Collision, 13 October 1996                

Iranian Boat Bumps U.S. Navy Cruiser in Persian Gulf
CNN www.cnn.com
October 14, 1996

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An Iranian patrol boat Sunday bumped into the USS Gettysburg cruiser in the northern Gulf waters, but there were no injuries reported on either boat.

Before the collision, warning bells sounded on the Ticonderoga Class Gettysburg, which suffered minor damage to some flight deck safety nets. There is no damage repot for the Iranian boat, the Bayandor.

The Gettysburg, with a crew of 300, is a guided missile cruiser accompanying the carrier USS Enterprise on its mission of patroling the no fly zones in Iraq. Military sources in the region said the incident did not appear to be intentional on the part of the Iranian boat.