The CIA Spent $4,000,000,000 to Lift a Russian Nuclear Missile Submarine From 3 Miles Deep — Only One-Third Was Recovered

The CIA Spent $4,000,000,000 to Lift a Russian Nuclear Missile Submarine From 3 Miles Deep — Only One-Third Was Recovered

On July 4, 1974, the CIA dropped a giant mechanical claw nicknamed “Clementine” three miles to the floor of the Pacific Ocean to lift the wreckage of the Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129 — a $800 million operation, roughly $4 billion in today’s dollars, disguised as a deep-sea manganese-mining venture funded by Howard Hughes. Project Azorian was the most expensive intelligence operation ever attempted at the time. The claw snapped mid-li…