[William R. Moore]

The other night, a US destroyer and a Japanese container ship collided.

I expect the Captain is gonna get benched, however, this raises a few questions:

What happened to the radar watch? Presumably, our radar can pick up a ship a couple football fields long on a converging course.

Now, if someone was asleep or playing Tour of Duty or something instead of watching their screens, what exactly was the OOD doing? If the Navy was using some automated system to sound an alert, what happened?

 

[CaptainGyro]

I don't know William...it's amazing how a chunk of steel a thousand feet long and ten stories high can just jump out in front of you in a split second. Could happen to anybody.

 

[dfariswheel]

Late word says the cargo ship suddenly TURNED AROUND and tried to head back out.

That's not a good move in a very crowded shipping channel at night.
The Japanese are reportedly looking at this incident as a case of incompetent operation of the cargo ship.

Sounds like the Navy captain was in his cabin, possibly asleep.
No matter, in the very PC Navy his career is toast.

 

[CaptainGyro]

The cargo ship may have decided to do a 180, but it's not a "sudden" maneuver. You can measure their turn rate with a calendar.

 

[Skeptic49]

The turn depends on the ship type and accessories. Some of the container ships are self docking for deliveries to "undeveloped" locations.

Pictures of the cargo ship are lacking. The Japan News services got good shots of the Destroyer.

Geoff
Who watched Fox news a bit, but overdose tends to impair my sleep.

 

[William R. Moore]

The cargo ship has scratched paint on the port side of the bow.

And yes, it takes acres to turn one of those cargo ships. The bow/stern thrusters they use for docking might help out, but the Navy radar watch is still is deep do-do. As is the OOD.

I got to watch our cruise ship depart from the pier at Cozumel. The bow thruster moved the bow (and presumably the stern thrusters did the stern also) out from the pier until the main engines could pull her away. I'm not sure what would happen with the ship under way. One would think that would be an emergency option.

 

[WaltGraham]

A few folk's careers are over.

I worry a lot less about that than the sailors' whose lives are over.

 

[CaptainGyro]

Looks like the ACX Crystal sustained some real damage. There's some ripping of the hull, as well as the crushing above the anchor. From the location, it appears that her anchor itself may have been involved.

 

[csmkersh]

The USS Fitzgerald was damaged below her waterline and caught sailors asleep in their bunks.

The commander, OOD and who ever was in charge of the radar detail can kiss their careers goodbye.

My sympathy goes out to the families of the dead.

 

[GunGeek]

The cargo ship may have decided to do a 180, but it's not a "sudden" maneuver. You can measure their turn rate with a calendar.

I have been on the SF bay when cargo ships come in. They do a reduced 20kts in the bay, and you'd be amazed at how fast those ships approach. In a sail boat, the second you see one headed for you, you begin to get out of the way...and if you do, you'll actually be out of their way when they steam past. If you don't...well, one time there was a cargo ship that came into the bay with a sail boat's mast stuck in its anchor...I doubt the ship ever knew that sail boat was even on the water. Somewhere on their journey, they killed someone in a sail boat and never knew it.

In crowded sea lanes, like in a bay, a 20kt ship can very quickly be a navigation hazard. I don't know the circumstances, but I can think of many where the Navy ship would have next to zero reaction time.

 

[William R. Moore]

In today's news, the cargo ship is in dry dock and has damage below the water line, including a 'cut in the hull'. OTOH, we're talking MSM here-who says "left side" instead of "port side".

Many years ago, I took a dip in the Pacific on a Kali beach somewhere south of LA. Coming out of the water after being splatted by a big wave, I saw a 6-8 foot chunk of wood that obviously had been part of a gunwale. I had a moments reflection about what would have happened if that had been in a slightly different place. The news that night had an item about a missing sailboat and all aboard.

Dunno about international law of the sea, but under COLREGS the smaller, more agile ship should get out of the way. OTOH, if something that big is gonna do something beside remain on course, they're supposed to give notice. When I said 'acres' above as turning radius, I should have said square miles. Crew was allegedly PI.

 

[dfariswheel]

Incredibly, a late report says there was NO crew on the bridge of the freighter at all.
Apparently, it was on auto-pilot.
This after making a U-turn in the shipping channel.

 

[GunGeek]

Incredibly, a late report says there was NO crew on the bridge of the freighter at all.
Apparently, it was on auto-pilot.
This after making a U-turn in the shipping channel.

I saw a tracking trace of their course, looked rather erratic. What it didn't show was scale, so I couldn't tell if that course was over a few miles, dozens of miles, or hundreds of miles. Clearly the media doesn't think about their stories enough to consider such information could be helpful in painting a picture.

 

[William R. Moore]

Clearly the media doesn't think about their stories ..................

And if they did, exactly how much of their stuff would actually get published? Might interfere with the approved narrative of whatever the subject is.

 

[leadhead2]

WTH Didn't the cargo ship hit our ship??
Sounds to me the cargo ships captain should
be in the fault.
Denny

 

[csmkersh]

Would I be too presumptuous if I wondered aloud about a possible act of terror by some "peaceful" member of ISIS?

Track of container ship before and after

http://www.sunjournal.com/files/imagecache/medium/2017/06/20/AP17170266276753.jpg

Something smells of dead fish and live rats.

 

[CaptainGyro]

Various sources show the point of the collision as the location of the container ship's first, hard ninety degree turn to starboard. If that's the case, her track prior to that appears perfectly normal. All of the maneuvering after the collision seems to be a return to the vicinity of the accident, and then some meandering in a small area, possibly for damage control or to render assistance to the destroyer.

It's a shame we can't see the destroyer's track. That might lend some much-needed perspective.

 

[csmkersh]

... turn to starboard....

Should be turn to port or left.

A leg telling a flyboy Navy terms.

 

[CaptainGyro]

Sorry Top, but it's starboard. Their initial heading was easterly, and they turned south.

The short way.

 

[phantom4570]

Here's a youtube video with the track of the container ship