U.S. Submarine Collides With Cargo Ship in Gulf

Associated Press ^ | Sep 5, 2005 | Associated Press

[Jet Jaguar]

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - A U.S. Navy submarine collided early Monday with a Turkish merchant ship in the Gulf, the U.S. Navy reported. No one was hurt on either vessel.

The USS Philadelphia was traveling on the surface of the Gulf when it hit the Turkish-flagged M/V Yaso Aysen, a cargo ship, at around 2:00 a.m. local time, the U.S. Navy 5th Fleet Headquarters in Bahrain reported in a statement.

No sailors or merchant seamen were injured, the Navy said.

The Philadelphia was conducting surface operations on its way to Bahrain for a scheduled port visit, the Navy said.

The submarine continued to Bahrain where inspectors will check it for damage. There were no immediate reports of damage to the Turkish ship.

The Navy statement did not say exactly where the collision took place.

The Philadelphia is part of a fleet of U.S. and allied navy vessels patrolling the Gulf, conducting what are called "maritime security operations" against weapons and drug smuggling.

AP-ES-09-05-05 0324EDT

[F14 Pilot]

bttt

[thegreatbeast]

I don't understand how this can happen.

[BigCinBigD]

USS Philadelphia? The Turks are lucky they didn't throw battery's. ;)

[Echo Talon]

First they hit an underwater mountain, now they run into a cargo ship. Someone get that dudes eyes checked. :D

[battlegearboat]

Change of Command ceremony soon.

[Birdsbane]

I can see how...in the late 70's, SSN Snook (Sub Group Five) of Sub Base San Diego surfaced beneath a barge while entering San Diego Harbor. Can't tell ya'll how I know this as I just might get in big trouble.

[Sub-Driver]

there goes one or several careers.....

[fso301]

A vacancy for submarine captain just opened up.

[wildcatf4f3]

They'd been away from women too long?

[konaice]

Somebody just lost their command.

Collision while surfaced no less!

Radar? Lookouts? Hello?

[konaice]

USS Philadelphia? The Turks are lucky they didn't throw battery's. ;)

Dammit, you made me spit my beer!!!

[Pro-Bush]

Embarrassing, at an international level! Glad it wasn't worse.

[thegreatbeast]

But Tom Clancy told me that you can hear a whale fart 2,000 miles away!

[Birdsbane]

This a link to an article from the (yuck) Washington Post concerning sub collisions. Amazingly it is accurate...

http://www.prop1.org/2000/accident/1989/890712a1.htm

[pepsionice]

Yep, this Captain dude can just start packing. No excuse will work in this case. And the Turks...they will get at least $100k each for compensation I bet.

[Birdsbane]

The Captain will most likely be re-assigned to shore or neutral duty for a few years, probably on a sub tender, and will then be given a new command. Sub commanders are not that plentiful and cost big bucks to train.

[kingu]

And the Turks...they will get at least $100k each for compensation I bet.

Umm.. Don't get hit by a US Navy ship if you intend to have financial windfalls. The Navy will pay for any real damage and will provide the investigation.

[Birdsbane]

Read the link to the Post article, it will explain how this happens.

[Randy Papadoo]

Yup...that's it! Listening to whale farts is both hilarious and addicting! Guess where the lookout was?

[kingu]

The Captain will most likely be re-assigned to shore or neutral duty for a few years, probably on a sub tender, and will then be given a new command. Sub commanders are not that plentiful and cost big bucks to train.

Admirals' mast, reassigning to shore duty, position in one of the sea commands, end of career. Only admirals on air craft carriers get away with crashing boats -- especially into sandbars. Dang if I understand why kitties like their sand play.

End result: Junior officers can now kick it up a notch because there will soon be a vacancy.

[thegreatbeast]

The U.S. fleet includes 139 submarines, all but three of them nuclear-powered. Surface ships number more than 500, ranging from aircraft carriers to oilers.

Boy, those are small numbers. I'll bet that that is but a fraction of the ships we had during WWII.

[thegreatbeast]

Read the link to the Post article, it will explain how this happens.

Actually, I don't think it explains it very well. The dragging accidents, okay, but collisions? Not so much.

[Birdsbane]

Slightly possible, but this is just the beginning of a very long investigation and Court Martial in which the Captain of the sub will end up being re-instated after some time away from subs. This whole affair will be white-washed and memory fades...

[Birdsbane]

Passive sonar as opposed to active.

[libs_kma]

"They'd been away from women too long?"

I don't think that mattered much. It was the Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. /sarcasm

[kingu]

Slightly possible, but this is just the beginning of a very long investigation and Court Martial in which the Captain of the sub will end up being re-instated after some time away from subs. This whole affair will be white-washed and memory fades...

No court martial, it will be handled as an admiral's mast, a much more informal investigation. Quiet note tucked in the jacket, a family moving to a new station. The Navy does not like paint smears on their boats. Worse for the watch officer if it comes out that they weren't performing their duties, but in the end, the Navy views the captain as being personally responsible for his boat.

If the sub was submerged this might be handled different - they know what a small bathtub that area is and can understand a lot. But the article states the sub was surfaced and cruising to port.

[wildcatf4f3]

touche'

[dsc]

"Slightly possible, but this is just the beginning of a very long investigation and Court Martial in which the Captain of the sub will end up being re-instated after some time away from subs. This whole affair will be white-washed and memory fades..."

For the past few years, the Navy has been eating COs like popcorn. Hope this guy has his 20 in, because he's history.

[varon]

The Captain will most likely be re-assigned to shore or neutral duty for a few years,

Hope they yank his drivers license while ashore. If the dude can't drive a boat without hitting another with miles and miles of empty water around him, he sure as hell doesn't belong on a congested highway ;-)

[sonofatpatcher2]

Well, Tim Russert will blame this too on W...

Tim will say it was the President's attempt to get news coverage away from his failure in New Orleans!

Gad!

[bmwcyle]

I have talked to some sub sailors recently. He told me that the submarine oficers are not the quality that existed 10 to 15 years ago.

[Dahoser]

I'd have spit my beer, too, if I were imbibing. That's funny!

[benjaminjjones]

if I were imbibing.

My neighborhood dopers are toking up early this morning, I can smell the incense coming in the window already. I don't know who they think they're fooling with that stinky stuff, I'd rather just smell pot.

[NoControllingLegalAuthority]

Sub commanders are not that plentiful and cost big bucks to train.

Maybe so, but the training manual needs another chapter.

Chapter Twenty: Have one sailor visually scanning for other vessels at all times when sailing upon the surface.

[Cvengr]

Didn't that one take down the barge and towboat in quick swoop? ..not enough time for anybody aboard the tow to even jump ship? Or was that a different incident?

[kellynla]

Captain of the USS PHILADELPHIA

[IGOTMINE]

There will no no ceremony. The new guy will just show up and take over in circumstances like this.

[antisocial]

I don't know about the ones from 10 to 15 years ago, but in the '60's there were some true bozo's captaining some of the boats. Our captain ran over a navigation buoy going into Key West basin with both lookouts shouting "Buoy off port stern". The bouy cable wrapped around the screw and we had to be towed to the pier, it was embarassing. As far as I know he wasn't even repremanded.

[Brilliant]

Someone's career is over.

[the invisib1e hand]

am I the only one getting his "Gulfs" mixed up? I'm like, "whoa, a submarine going to New Orleans?"

[snowsislander]

I have talked to some sub sailors recently. He told me that the submarine oficers are not the quality that existed 10 to 15 years ago.

No surprise after the RIFs during the Clinton years.

[Robert A. Cook, PE]

Damn.

[BluH2o]

In reading thru the responses it seems that most assume the sub was at fault. It's possible the Turkish ship didn't see the low profile of the submarine and cut across its bow. It was 2AM ... civilian vessels typically don't have a full compliment on the bridge at that hour ... the sub, I'm sure, would have adequate personnel on duty.

[bmwcyle]

It is a tuff job in the shallow waters of the Gulf. We had a few close ones on the way to the surface. The sonar supervisor has to not be afraid to call emergency deep.

[antisocial]

I agree with BluH2O, that the Turkish vessel may have been negligent.

[bmwcyle]

Modern ships today can run with charts loaded into the navigation. No one on the bridge sometimes.

[Doohickey]

Steely-Eyed Killers of the Deep ping. Another one bites the dust...

[SmithL]

Navigation by Braille is almost never career enhancing.

[SmithL]

The Turks are lucky they didn't throw battery's

Lucky indeed! Have you ever seen submarine batteries?