Posted on 10/03/2016 9:57:19 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
HSV-2 ‘Swift’ in 2013 during her time in American service. U.S. Navy photo
The HSV-2 Swift started out as a sleek catamaran and testbed for two new classes of American naval ships until being transferred to the United Arab Emirates in 2014.
Now the vessel appears to have been heavily damaged — if not destroyed — in a missile strike fired from Yemeni militants. Houthi fighters claimed to have sunk the ship with a “rocket” as she traversed near the Red Sea port city of Mocha near the Bab Al Mandab Strait early Saturday.
“The warship was completely destroyed when it attempted to advance towards Mocha’s coast on the Red Sea,” a statement from the Houthi-aligned Yemen News Agency claimed.
The Houthi T.V. channel Al Masirah released footage apparently showing the attack on the ship, which does resemble the former U.S. Navy HSV-2 Swift, which was sold to the United Arab Emirates in 2015 and operated by the country’s National Marine Dredging Company.
While the attack occurred at night and is hard to make out, the video depicts a terrific explosion and fire which illuminates the vessel’s distinctive curved central section.
The UAE has revealed little, although the Saudi-led military coalition acknowledged it “embarked on a rescue operation on Saturday at dawn of the civilian passengers after Al Houthi militias targeted the civilian vessel ‘Swift,’” according to Gulf News.
The statement added that the ship was carrying medical supplies to Yemen and was transporting injured civilians for treatment. The UAE joined the Saudi intervention in Yemen, contributing soldiers, ships and fighter jets.
But in June, the UAE announced it would end its military role in the conflict.
War Is Boring could not independently confirm the video’s authenticity, but if the vessel is Swift, the damage is likely to be devastating. It’s unknown if anyone on board was injured or killed.
HSV-2 ‘Swift’ at Naval Air Station Key West in 2013. U.S. Navy photo
Swift was never designed to take a hit. A catamaran with an aluminum hull, vessels like Swift are thinly armored, and if hit with a missile they will burn. However, the aluminum, angular and low-draft hull makes the catamaran fast — up to a brisk 45 knots at sprint speed — and able to operate close to shore.
The U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command leased her from Australian shipbuilder Incat between 2003 to 2013.
America’s experience with Swift would later influence the boxy Spearhead-class fast transport vessel and the better-armed Littoral Combat Ship.
“I can say from experience that the aluminum hull design is NOT meant for taking damage,” one sailor who claimed to be stationed on Swift wrote in a Reddit post five years ago. “We’ve had a couple of our bigger dudes onboard drop a heavy squat from their shoulders in the gym and put a 2 inch gash in the deck. The aluminum hull is not rated for fire and if there was hot burning fire (say from AVgas) it would literally melt the ship in half.”
“Having said all that though, we are fast as fuck and can maneuver in places that a normal ship would not even dream of going. The superstructure is made to flex and can take a punishment as sea as well.”
Besides serving as a testbed, Swift ferried humanitarian supplies to Indonesia, the Caribbean, Central America and to Louisiana in response to Hurricane Katrina during her time in American service. These were missions which suited the ship’s speed, versatility and non-combat role.
The Navy tested her in 2007 as a commando “seabase,” but it never worked out. A similar prototype catamaran to Swift, the USS Joint Venture, is now the HSC Manannan and serves as a car ferry in the Irish Sea.
Iran has supplied the Houthis with weapons and cash, but it’s unknown what precisely struck the ship or where the weapon came from.
“This comes as a serious indicator to confirm the orientation of these militias to carry out terrorist operations targeting international navigation and relief ships in [the] Bab Al Mandab Strait,” the coalition stated.
“Coalition air and naval forces had started chasing and targeting of boats which carried out the attack.”
“The warship was completely destroyed when it attempted to advance towards Mocha’s coast on the Red Sea,”
I’d prefer a latte, but that’s just me...
...The warship was completely destroyed when it attempted to advance towards Mocha’s coast on the Red Sea....
What??? And we haven’t heard ANYTHING about this??? What the hell is going on here?
Iran is upgrading it’s terrorist organization with Obama bucks from Obama’s Iran Nuke deal stash
I guess that’s because it is no longer in U.S. service. It was being operated by the UAE and the Yemeni conflict has more or less gone off the radar.
Yemeni forces destroy UAE vessel with rockets
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXw8bKzxocg
Yemen rebels damage a small ship carrying freight belonging to Dubai. Even if true, it’s not really a big story. Not much different than the kind of piracy that happens frequently around there.
But since this had nothing to do with bashing Trump or touting Hillary's so-called "accomplishments", you didn't see it on TV.
I guess if they did we should wipe them off the face of the earth as a lesson to others not to mess with us.
Bur the O most likely well send them money instead.
It doesn’t even seem to affect crude oil prices so it is of lesser importance.
It’s not really “us”.
The ship is owned by a private company in the United Arab Emirates and carried freight. It’s just got a little more interest because the ship was originally built for the US Navy.
Of course international pirates should be brutally taken out. There’s actually less piracy around there than there was a few years ago, because action has been taken against pirates. Not sure why it’s always the job of the US government though.
so, they shot at an unarmed boat that did not belong to the USA anymore...
how is that some major victory?
Is this video of the ship?
Starts at :47 secs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58xPnztU4Cc
Mr Kitty and I watched the video of the sip taking a hit and join up in flames.
we were wondering why it isn’t on the news, too
The casualty count is going to be through the roof.
You’re right.
That’s a pretty big and flimsy target, seems to me. Hell of a hit.
Turns out, it was built in Australia, leased by the US Navy for some testing and tasks, then returned to its Australian owners, who refitted it and sold it to a Dubai company.
With freight, it has a pretty small crew. Some reports say there were no casualties.
Video: UAE Ship Towed to Eritrea after Yemeni Rebel Rocket Attack
http://www.eastafro.com/2016/10/03/video-uae-ship-towed-to-eritrea-after-yemeni-rebel-rocket-attack/
THE ARTICLE SAYS THERE WAS NO CASUALTIES——DISINFORMATION BY THE SHIPLOAD. LOL
“...after four rockets hit and nearly sank...”
I can’t imagine there weren’t massive casualties, just looking at that video. The explosion and fire would have been devastating. “Disinformation by the shipload”, is right.
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