Map of the collision
Posted on 06/19/2017 10:20:48 AM PDT by Kaslin
Last Updated Jun 19, 2017 11:37 AM EDT
TOKYO -- Japan's coast guard is investigating why it took nearly an hour for a deadly collision between a U.S. Navy destroyer and a container ship to be reported.
A coast guard official said Monday they are trying to find out what the crew of the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal was doing before reporting the collision off Japan's coast to authorities 50 minutes later.
The ACX Crystal collided with the USS Fitzgerald off Japan's coast, killing seven of the destroyer's crew of nearly 300. The ships collided early Saturday morning, when the Navy said most of the 300 sailors on board would have been sleeping. Authorities have declined to speculate on a cause while the crash remains under investigation.
A track of the much-larger container ship's route by MarineTraffic, a vessel-tracking service, shows it made a sudden turn as if trying to avoid something at about 1:30 a.m., before continuing eastward. It then made a U-turn and returned around 2:30 a.m. to the area near the collision.
The impact crushed the starboard side of the Fitzgerald. The ship was listing as it sailed into its home port in Yokosuka, Japan, Saturday, CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy reports. The commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet said the sailors' actions kept the ship from sinking.
"This was not a small collision," Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin said. "It was right near the pilot's house, and there is a big puncture."
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
“Something stinks in japan”
Yes, it’s the crew of the Fitzgerald.
The most advanced ship in the world got hit by a lumbering container ship on the open seas.
It was a sudden U-turn. Big difference.
This could be like 2012 USS Porter collision. Total incompetence.
That is why it hit the Fitzgerald.
That is why it hit the Fitzgerald, or rather rammed the Fitzgerald
“””I’ve seen the freighter’s track; I’d like to see the DDG’s.”””
I was Army also but I do know soldiers or sailors need to be on watch/guard at night and to be extra vigilant. This thing stinks.
“What I’m not going to do is disparage our Sailors when we don’t have enough facts.”
When the most advanced warship in the world gets hit by a container ship...on the open seas...the crew of the warship was most definitely negligent and incompetent.
The Fitz has a top speed of 40kts and can do a 180deg turn in less than a mile. It can see and track every surface vessel for 50 miles in every direction.
Courts Martial is appropriate for all involved.
Manslaughter the appropriate charge.
Fox News reported it several days ago.
Most Naval Warships do not have a transponder , so you wont be seeing the Fitzs track, perhaps after the inquiry on board INS will be shared.
The Fitz could EASILY avoid an intentional ramming by a cargo ship at sea.
Easily.
Yes, the idea that the Fitz crew was incompetent enough for this to occur is inconceivable and an insult to the Navy.
This resulted from a deliberate act by someone on the Fitz.
It was the container ship that made a sudden U-turn in the crowded area, not the Fitzgerald.
Thank you.
There does not appear to be any.
irony 1 |ˈīrənē, ˈiərnē| noun (pl. ironies) • a state of affairs or an event I'm truly sorry that it went
so very far over you head.
the expression of one's meaning by ,
using language that normally signifies
the opposite, typically for humorous
or emphatic effect: “Don't go overboard
with the gratitude,” he rejoined with heavy irony.
that seems deliberately contrary
to what one expects and is
often amusing as a result:
Further: the CO of the ship has standing orders which are reiterated every night that he must be awoken if any contact has a CPA closer than a certain distance of a set number of miles. The distance might vary according to conditions, (traffic, fog, etc), but generally any projected CPA closer than a few miles, and the captain will be on the bridge. The CPA of three miles, for example, might be projected to occur a half hour in the future, but the captain will be brought to the bridge from his “at sea” cabin which is only a few steps away. And when in doubt: get the captain!
Now, looking at the six turns made by the ACX Crystal, it looks to me as if the person at the helm took the decision to make a U-turn and come back in pursuit of lining up a collision attack against the Fitzgerald. There is no innocent explanation for those six turns ending up in a ramming. There are some reports that the Crystal turned off its AIS radar transponder, radios, and running lights.
Wasn't the captain injured in his cabin? You've made a strong case for the ramming being intentional... which would be supported by the oddity of not reporting the incident for over an hour... but WHAT could possibly be the motive?
Why wasn’t the Captain awakened according to protocol?
it would take the container ship at least 5-8 miles to do a 180.
At least.
Map of the collision
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