USS Yorktown Bumped by Soviet Ships

Date: February 12, 1988 • Location: Novy Svet, Ukraine

While claiming the right of innocent passage through Soviet territorial waters in the Black Sea, the American cruiser USS Yorktown and destroyer USS Caron were bumped by Soviet warships.

Innocent passage is a concept in the law of the sea that allows for a vessel to pass through the territorial sea of another state, subject to certain restrictions.