and it knocked out the radios in BOTH the Seahawks too... tight??? that's pure bullsh!t
There are a number of uncommon items in the article, such as a photo of the interior of the Captain's "stateroom", the fact that he had to be rescued from "outside the ship's 'skin'", and discussion of the size of the underwater damage to the USS Fitzgerald.
In addition, this is a Navy publication; not the usual MSM junk...
Sumbodys got a lot of splainin to do.
Heads up for an information-loaded Naval Institute article on the USS Fitzgerald collision...
The one thing that astonishes me — over 200 people on Fitzgerald survived (including several who were awake at the time of the collision). All 20 people from Crystal survived.
And yet no one seems to have any idea what happened. Only just now are people starting to know the time of the collision. Did the US Navy really have absolutely no information about the collision other than what the Japanese Coast Guard told them? (OK, sure the collision knocked out communications for a while — but surely one of the first questions asked once it was restored would be “What happened?”)
People are pouring over the navigation tracks of Crystal, looking at where the damage occurred on both vessels, and making speculations about how they were maneuvering at the time of the crash. In other words, they are using the same clues that would be used if both vessels had sunk with all hands. Where are the witness statements??
and it knocked out the radios in BOTH the Seahawks too... tight??? that's pure bullsh!t
“As for the ship, five days after collision active damage control efforts are ongoing to prevent further damage to the hull. The force of Crystal’s impact combined with the flood not only dented but twisted the ship’s hull. Crews are continuing to pump water in and out of the ship to keep Fitzgerald stable.”
If the article is accurate in its description of the level of damage the crew should be considered for a Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) for saving the vessel. This is really massive damage. If the keel has been broken it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that the ship could end up being declared a constructive loss.
No, it isn't.
Your first clue should be a lack of .mil or .gov address, but there's always Wikipedia. " a private, non-profit (EIN:52-0643040), professional military association"
You'd think they'd have a satellite phone for backup communications - or something.
“The impact not only ripped a hole in the steel superstructure in the stateroom but also shifted the contents and shape of the steel so Benson was “squeezed out the hull and was outside the skin of the ship,””
I’m guessing that woke him up.
Anyone else have curiosity about how fragile the communications are in the even of a hostile fire hit?
Yes, this was a major crash, but I would have expected a bit more communication redundancy for just such a damage event.
reminds me of these BS stories from the Navy..
USS Iowa. turret explosion.
USS Philadelphia, sinking late WW2
I’m embarrassed. Our warship couldn’t stay out of the way of a bumbling freighter, and it lost all communication for an hour!
Navy needs a cleanout.
Still don’t understand how this destroyer didn’t see the Crystal.
We've got some serious design flaws in our warships if this is the case...
In the first detailed account from one of those directly involved, the cargo ship's captain said the ACX Crystal had signalled with flashing lights after the Fitzgerald "suddenly" steamed on to a course to cross its path.
The container ship steered hard to starboard (right) to avoid the warship, but hit the Fitzgerald 10 minutes later at 1:30 a.m., according to a copy of Captain Ronald Advincula's report to Japanese ship owner Dainichi Investment Corporation that was seen by Reuters.
The U.S. Navy declined to comment and Reuters was not able to independently verify the account.
Take it at face value. Until we get confirmation, I'll hold off on further speculation.
“.....fought to save the ship for an hour before the first calls went out for help,....”
This suggests that EVERYONE was soooooo busy trying to save the ship that they didn’t have time to send out a MADAY. /s
The radiomen and communications people were too busy manning the pumps. /s
In all their training they forgot to assign someone to send out an SOS. /s
Man, I never even thought of using the sat phone or a radio in a helicopter, my bad. /s
WOW, I mean how unlikely that when the container ship RAMMED the Fitzgerald that it was EXACTLY right smack dab in the Captain’s quarters? It was almost as if it was on purpose.
The Navy will not admit that their ship (and by extension, ALL their ships) can be disabled by an electronic device (EMP?).