Secret CIA Mission That Cost An Unimaginable Fortune Finally Gets Exposed

It was 1968, and America was flirting with war after Russia had deployed nuclear weapons in Cuba, 90 miles from the U.S. coast. The resulting tensions, known as the Cuban Missile Crisis, lasted only a month but instilled a permanent fear in U.S. officials that Russia might try a second round. Sure enough, shortly after the Crisis ended, Americans heard the Soviets had lost a submarine in Pacific waters. If the Soviets found the submarine first, they'd have the upper hand if they wanted to start a nuclear war. But if Americans found it first, they'd finally hold the key to Russia's nuclear secrets. The clock was ticking.

Nervous Russians

Understandably, the Soviets were in a panic. Somehow, the submarine they'd managed to misplace was one of their most advanced nuclear vessels, known as K-129. It was stocked with weapons and the Soviet Union's biggest military secrets, and after sinking for unknown reasons, it'd ended up somewhere deep in the Pacific Ocean. When the U.S. caught wind, the CIA formed a secret search party of their own.

Better Technology

Unlike the Soviets, who were using outdated methods to find the submarine, the Americans used modern Air Force tracking technology. After only a few weeks of searching, their system picked up a signal 1,500 miles northwest of Hawaii. At first, it seemed like a good sign, but problems quickly arose.

Expensive Problem

If this signal did belong to the lost submarine, they were in trouble: it was over 16,500 feet below the surface. Nobody had ever retrieved a large object from that depth before. The attempt would cost billions of dollars. However, news of Russia's growing arsenal and nuclear advancements had also reached U.S. officials, and they desperately needed intel to prevent another crisis. Was the expense worth it?

Treasure Trove Of Information

According to the researchers, not only would the submarine contain Soviet-made nuclear weapons, but even better, it'd hold top-secret code books with crucial Soviet intel. That was all President Nixon needed to secretly approve the project, and in 1969, he gave it the go. After all, the U.S. had just landed men on the moon; Americans were bursting with national pride and felt confident they'd find K-129.