Posted on 11/04/2004 1:45:35 PM PST by Clive
HMCS Chicoutimi, the Canadian submarine which caught fire in the middle of the North Atlantic last month, will be sea-lifted back to Canada immediately, the Defence Department announced Thursday.
It will be sent to Halifax for further repairs.
Currently, a naval board of inquiry is probing the fatal fire aboard Chicoutimi, which took the life of Lieutenant Chris Saunders, 32, and caused nine other crew members to suffer from smoke inhalation. The closed-door hearing opened three weeks ago in Faslane, Scotland, but moved to Canada this week.
"The sealift of Chicoutimi to Canada is the most effective option to repair the boat and return it to operations in a timely manner," said Vice- Admiral Bruce MacLean, Canada's navy commander, in a statement.
The submarine will be carried back to Canada by a transport vessel, "a proven method for transporting warships and submarines. This process begins by having the transport vessel's deck submerged and positioned beneath the submarine before being raised and secured for transport," the navy said.
Adm. MacLean said bringing Chicoutimi back to Halifax will allow the Canadian industry to gain experience in working on submarines.
"In the coming days, the Department will solicit bids and negotiate a contract for the return of HMCS Chicoutimi. The sealift is anticipated to occur within the next several weeks, but will depend on weather and transport vessel availability," the navy said.
The sea-lift will cost approximately $2.5-million, the navy said.
Chicoutimi is one of four Victoria Class submarines purchased by Canada from Britain. It was making its maiden voyage from Canada to Faslane, Scotland and was in the middle of the North Atlantic when the blaze happened.
The investigation is probing how the fire broke out and how well the crew and others responded to the emergency.
The Globe and Mail reported this week that the British navy was aware of insulation problems on the main power lines, but did not upgrade them. Repairs were only partly documented and the problems were never explained to the Canadian navy.
The fire aboard Chicoutimi suggests insulation failure on at least two of the main power cables, where arcing caused by seawater immersing the connections started the electrical fire, leaving the submarine without power.
With a report from Shawna Richer
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And their PM skank says we are stupid to reelect Bush....
and this is their Navy???
You know what? never mind Canada..We dont need your help or support.
You need too much Therapy
Who in their right mind would get back into that boat?
The Canadians who want to join the military should just join ours. We actually like our military and its not like we wouldn't help Canada.
In fact, the PM (Paul Martin) has reprimanded Parrish on more than one occasion for her incendiary anti Bush remarks.
She has already lost positions at near cabinet level (the kind of appointments that are stepping stones to cabinet level) which she had held under 'ti Jean and if she keeps it up she risks being put out of caucus.
She should have been put out of caucus long ago.
You know what? I think I'd rather we leave the sub where it is, cut our losses and concentrate on getting the other three subs back in the water. Then, we can look at the purchase/design of new subs for down the road. But wait, this is the libs we're talking about ... this will never happen.
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