Posted on 10/24/2008 12:28:53 PM PDT by GATOR NAVY
The destroyer Barry ran aground Thursday as it was preparing to dock at a port in the Black Sea, the Navy confirmed Friday.
The incident happened at about 10:30 a.m. local time, as the Norfolk-based ship was entering the Turkish port of Samsun.
The ship ran aground in silt as it was maneuvering in the ports turning basin, about 200 yards from the pier. A harbor pilot was on board at the time, a Navy official said.
Tugs were able to free the ship with assistance from Turkish coast guard divers, and the vessel is currently moored at a Samsun pier.
Commercial divers conducted an initial assessment of the destroyer Friday and found no damage. A U.S. diving team is expected to do a follow-up inspection today.
Depending on the results, the ship will continue on its mission. The Navy also plans to investigate how the grounding happened.
The Barry left Norfolk in August to join a standing naval maritime group overseas and provide regional security. More recently, it has been operating on its own in the Black Sea, including a stop in the Georgian port town of Poti.
Thursdays incident happened during a scheduled port visit.
ruh rohhhh - there goes another captains career.
I just have to think the ‘Providential Hand’ is telling us something here...
I’m not so sure, if a harbor pilot was guiding the ship.
Not likely to cost the Capt. Harbor pilot controls the ship in the harbor.
Whatever they paid the pilot, it was too much.
We should not be in any port where we have to turn control of a naval vessel over to foreigners.
Double entendre alert...
The port of Samsun. Too bad this doesn't have a distance scale. I'm guessing they were shooting for somewhere around berths 10-12.
Not if there was a pilot onboard.
Little to the left, little more, just a little more...BAM! Right, right, go right!
“Port” and “Starboard”, landlubber!
Not necessarily. If the charts were properly updated and the pilot directed the vessel onto said uncharted hazard, then the skipper is probably gonna be okay. The board of inquiry will hammer the old man if there were any shortcuts, mistakes or gundecking of chart updates.
It isn’t turning the ship over - capt retains command - just the pilot has the helm. It is common naval practice - did it in Yoko, Subic Bay, Shimonseki straights - true in panamana canal, suez canal etc....
Oops! And I forgot, “Aaaaaaaaaarh!”
here’s hoping that another destroyer Barry runs aground before election day.
Barry runs aground? Sounds like another Ayers-inspired phrase on behalf of Obama - did he write another nautical-themed book?
Silt in a poorly maintained, marked and charted harbor, without accurate information in a coastal/harbor/pilot guide? Silt happens. There will be an inquiry, but if the capt and crew were following standard procedures, especially with a pilot on board, the report will exonerate the crew.
There are two instances where a CO totally relinquishes responsibility to a pilot-the Panama Canal and when entering or exiting a drydock.
Navy Regs Chapter 8 The Commanding Officer Section 2 The Commanding Officer Afloat
Article 0856. Pilotage.
1. The commanding officer shall:
a. pilot the ship under all ordinary circumstances, but may employ pilots whenever,in his or her judgment, such employment is prudent;
b. not call a pilot on board until the ship is ready to proceed;
c. not retain a pilot on board after the ship has reached her destination or a point where the pilot is no longer required;
d. give preference to a licensed pilot; and
e. pay pilots no more than the local rates.
2. A pilot is merely an advisor to the commanding officer. The presence of a pilot on board shall not relieve the commanding officer or any subordinate from his or her responsibility for the proper performance of the duties with which he or she may be charged concerning the navigation and handling of the ship. For an exception to the provisions of this paragraph, see Rules and Regulations Covering: Navigation of the Panama Canal and Adjacent Waters, which directs that the pilot assigned to a vessel in those waters shall have control of the navigation and movement of the vessel. Also see the provisions of these regulations concerning the navigation of ships at a naval shipyard or station, or in entering leaving drydock.
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