USS Guardian has run aground

[ManilaBoy45]

USS Guardian Runs Aground

US Navy Minesweeper Runs Aground on Reef in the Philippines
Jan 16, 2013 11:12pm

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A U.S. Navy minesweeper has run aground on a reef in the Sulu Sea in the Philippines.
The ship remains stuck on the reef. No injuries were reported among the ship’s crew of 81 and there were no indications of a fuel leak.

A Navy statement said the USS Guardian (MCM-5) ran aground on the Tubataha Reef at 2:25 a.m. local time while transiting in the Sulu Sea. The reef is located almost 400 miles south of the Philippine capital of Manila.

According to the statement released by the Navy’s Seventh Fleet, the Avenger-Class mine countermeasures ship was en route to its next port of call when the grounding occurred in the middle of the Sulu Sea.

“The ship is currently stuck on the reef, approximately 80 miles east-southeast of Palawan Island,” said the statement late Wednesday. “The crew is currently working to determine the best method of safely extracting the ship.”

(Aerial Photo by AFP WESCOM)

 

[ManilaBoy45]

Re: US military news thread

Philippines to Seek Damages for US Navy Ship Mishap

Updated: Fri, 18 Jan 2013 11:40:25 GMT | By Agence France-Presse

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The USS Guardian remained trapped on the Tubbataha Reef, about 130 kilometres (80 miles) southeast of the western island of Palawan, on Friday, even after most of its crew members were removed in a bid to get it refloated.

Philippine officials said the 224-foot (68 metre) minesweeper, based in Susebo, southern Japan, was destroying corals in the Unesco World Heritage Site where entry is restricted and permits are required.

She questioned why the ship, which had just made a port call in Subic Bay in the Philippines, was passing through Tubbataha."There was an absence of good faith here. They did not even report (the grounding.) Our rangers just discovered them there. I don't know what they wanted," she said.

The US Navy should be liable for entering the marine reserve without a permit, damaging corals and for non-cooperation with local officers, she said, adding that the fine would depend on the extent of the damage.

The local office of the environmental group the World Wildlife Fund also criticised the US navy, saying it was "both baffling and lamentable" that the USS Guardian would enter Tubbataha without a permit.

 

[Jeff Head]

Re: US military news thread

US Navy Minesweeper Runs Aground on Reef in the Philippines
Jan 16, 2013 11:12pm

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A U.S. Navy minesweeper has run aground on a reef in the Sulu Sea in the Philippines.
The ship remains stuck on the reef. No injuries were reported among the ship’s crew of 81 and there were no indications of a fuel leak.

A Navy statement said the USS Guardian (MCM-5) ran aground on the Tubataha Reef at 2:25 a.m. local time while transiting in the Sulu Sea. The reef is located almost 400 miles south of the Philippine capital of Manila.

(Aerial Photo by AFP WESCOM)

Well, the sun just set on some commanding officer's career...and maybe that of the navigator too.

What were they doing there in the first place? It's well known that there are reefs and shallows there so why go through in the first place?

Hope they can get the vessel off safely without too much damage. The Avenger class are actually not bad mine warfare vessels with good sensors and very good equipment to deal with all types of mines...tethered, moored, bottom, etc. But the US Navy has historically underfunded the Mine Warfare training budgets, maintenance budgets, and new upgrades.

One thing a lot of people are not aware of is that the hulls of these fourteenAvenger Class vessels were constructed of
Oak, Douglas Fir, and Cypress wood because of those particular wood's strength, flexibility and low weight. The hull is then coated with a glass-platic resin. All of this gives the vessels a very low magnetic signature.

 

[bd popeye]

Re: US military news thread

Yep.. that CO of the Guardian career is toast..burnt toast in fact

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YOKOSUKA, Japan (NNS) -- While the U.S. Navy continues operations to free the grounded USS Guardian (MCM 5) from Tubbataha Reef, all 79 crew members were temporarily removed today and safely transferred by small boat to the nearby support vessels USNS Bowditch (T-AGS 62) and MSV C-Champion.

"Seventh Fleet ships remain on scene and essential Guardian Sailors will continue conducting survey operations onboard the ship as needed until she is recovered," said Vice Adm. Scott Swift, U.S. 7th Fleet commander. "Several support vessels have arrived and all steps are being taken to minimize environmental effects while ensuring the crew's continued safety."

Small boats continue to be used to transfer personnel between Guardian and Military Sealift Command ships Bowditch and C-Champion.

After the Sasebo-based Guardian ran aground Jan. 17, initial efforts to free the ship on high tide were not successful. The ship remains stuck on the reef, approximately 80 miles east-southeast of Palawan Island.

The Avenger-class mine countermeasures ship had just completed a port call in Subic Bay, Olongapo City, and was en route to her next port of call when the grounding occurred. The U.S. Navy is operating in coordination with the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

The cause of the grounding is under investigation.

 

[joshuatree]

Re: US military news thread

Yep.. that CO of the Guardian career is toast..burnt toast in fact

What about due to extenuating circumstances, ie malfunction leading to loss of power? So far, no details have been revealed on cause.

 

[bd popeye]

Re: US military news thread

What about due to extenuating circumstances, ie malfunction leading to loss of power? So far, no details have been revealed on cause.

Ultimately the CO of any ship takes the responsibility for this sort of accident. these days the USN is very quick to fire commanding officers.. very quick indeed..

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2012• Capt. Chuck Litchfield was fired June 18 as CO of the amphibious assault ship Essex, in the wake of Essex’s May 16 collision with the replenishment oiler Yukon as both ships were en route to San Diego.

2011• Capt. Eric Merrill was fired July 15 as commanding officer of the submarine tender Emory S. Land after the ship hit a channel buoy June 21 while heading into Mina Salman, a port of Bahrain.

2010• Cmdr. Neil Funtanilla, CO of the destroyer The Sullivans, was relieved May 18 in Manama, Bahrain, after a non-judicial hearing found he was “derelict in the performance of his duties.” The destroyer struck a buoy in the Persian Gulf in March.

2010• Cmdr. Herman Pfaeffle was relieved as CO of the frigate John L. Hall for loss of confidence in his ability to command on June 22 after hitting a pier April 16 in Batumi, Georgia

 

[Jeff Head]

Re: US military news thread

What about due to extenuating circumstances, ie malfunction leading to loss of power? So far, no details have been revealed on cause.

Does not matter...short of some kind of enemy action incapacitating him through absolutely no fault of his or his crew. Even then the CO may go down.

The CO takes responsibility. He is responsible for what that vessel does, and what his crew does with that vessel. The training and behavior of the crew is his responsibility as it relates to the vessel and how it impacts the Navy and the country.

So, someone may go down with the CO who was directly involved...but the Commanding Officer is going to go down (and have it on his record meaning he will not get another command) if the vessel collides with another ship, a rock, a pier, a bouy, etc., etc., or takes any other action that is harmful or embarassing to the US Navy or the United States of America.

It is an awesome job...and it has awesome responsibilities.

A CO has to inspire the crew...and command their respect and obedience and loyalty. Takes a very special leader..and sometimes a hard leader...but that is what it takes and if you, or the vessel, or the crew mis-steps in any major way...the CO is first in line to fall off the ladder.

 

[ManilaBoy45]

Re: US military news thread

Damaged US Warship Sinking Into Sulu Sea

(The Philippine Star) | Updated January 19, 2013 - 1:00am

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MANILA, Philippines - An environmental disaster looms at one of the nation’s five World Heritage Sites as a freshly refueled US Navy minesweeper has started sinking in waters around Tubbataha Reef.

Informed sources told The STAR yesterday that the 1,300-ton, 68-meter-long USS Guardian, which ran aground on the reef at around 2 a.m. Thursday, had started taking in water and sinking, prompting 72 of the 79 crew to abandon ship. No injuries were reported.

The seven who remained aboard, including the commanding and executive officers, would try to free the ship from the reef with minimal environmental impact, according to a statement from the US Navy’s 7th Fleet.

 

[bd popeye]

Re: US military news thread

Informed sources told The STAR yesterday that the 1,300-ton, 68-meter-long USS Guardian, which ran aground on the reef at around 2 a.m. Thursday, had started taking in water and sinking, prompting 72 of the 79 crew to abandon ship. No injuries were reported.

Wait a minute. If the ship is grounded on a reef..and she is. How is the Guardian sinking? Maybe just maybe she's taking on water.

According to Huffington Post there's no leakage. Just reef damage.

Here's what the Huffington Post has to say.

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MANILA, Philippines -- Most of the sailors on a U.S. Navy minesweeper that struck a coral reef in the Philippines left the ship Friday for safety reasons after initial efforts to free the vessel failed, the Navy said.

The ship ran aground Thursday while in transit through the Tubbataha National Marine Park, a coral sanctuary in the Sulu Sea, 640 kilometers (400 miles) southwest of Manila. There were no injuries or oil leaks, and Philippine authorities were trying to evaluate damage to the protected coral reef, designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

The U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet said 72 of the 79 crew of the USS Guardian were transferred to a military support vessel by small boat. A small team of personnel will remain aboard and attempt to free the ship with minimal environmental impact, the statement said. The remaining seven sailors, including the commanding and the executive officer, will also be transferred if conditions become unsafe.

Philippine officials said the weather was choppy Friday with strong winds and rough seas.

The World Wide Fund for Nature Philippines said that according to an initial visual inspection, the 68-meter- (74-yard-) long, 1,300-ton Guardian damaged at least 10 meters (yards) of the reef. Aerial photographs provided by the Philippine military showed the ship's bow sitting atop corals in shallow turquoise waters. The stern was floating in the deep blue waters. The Navy said the cause of the grounding, which took place around 2 a.m. Thursday, was under investigation.

Angelique Songco, head of the government's Protected Area Management Board, said it was unclear how much of the reef was damaged. She said the government imposes a fine of about $300 per square meter (yard) of damaged coral.

In 2005, the environmental group Greenpeace was fined almost $7,000 after its flagship struck a reef in the same area.

Songco said that park rangers were not allowed to board the ship for inspection and were told to contact the U.S. Embassy in Manila. Their radio calls to the ship were ignored, she said. The U.S. Navy statement said that "the government of the Philippines was promptly informed of the incident and is being updated regularly."

Philippine military spokesman Maj. Oliver Banaria said the U.S. Navy did not request assistance from the Philippines.

 

[bd popeye]

Re: US military news thread

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another photo.. does not look like she's sinking to me. I hope the whole situation is solved soon.

when I get home I'll post better photos...