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Two US navy vessels have collided in the Strait of Hormuz near Iran, lightly injuring 15 sailors, the US navy said. A nuclear-powered submarine, the USS Hartford, and amphibious transporter the USS New Orleans collided early on Friday, the US Navy Fifth Fleet said.
The incident is being investigated and damage to both ships is being evaluated, a navy statement said.
The New Orleans’ fuel tank was ruptured in the crash, causing a spill of 25,000 gallons of diesel.
No injuries were reported aboard the New Orleans, according to the statement from the Fifth Fleet, which is based in Bahrain.
The atomic propulsion system of the submarine was not damaged by the incident, the statement said.
The US Fifth Fleet…patrols an area of about 7.5 million square miles of sea in the Middle East and eastern Africa. You’d think with that much room they could keep from running into each other.
By the time the weekend talk shows roll around, Rush and the Republican Party will have figured out some way to blame Iran, China and Obama – not necessarily in that order.
#1 Why would anyone blame the CIC for the failings of the military? The news media NEVER did that during the Bush Admin…
ROFL
Obviously people who have never been to sea don’t understand how hazardous it is operating in the Straits of Hormuz. Relatively speaking it is small and is one of the highest sea traffic areas of the world.
I am more surprised it doesn’t happen a lot more often.
#2 – thanks for providing the oranges to go with the apples.
The Navy has said many times before, working in the Persian Gulf is like working in a crowded bathtub.
# 4 god said, “#2 – thanks for providing the oranges to go with the apples.”
Ah, a dyslexic I see.
Eideard is as insightful as always. There are hundreds of thousands of miles of paved roads in the U.S., you’d think that people would find a way to not run into each other.
# 2 Paddy-O said,
#1 Why would anyone blame the CIC for the failings of the military?
Because they’re Neocons?
Hint: Jimmy Carter
J/P=?
The submarine was submerged, so the surface sh probably never saw the submarine coming. Still, you have two captains looking for new work.
I can see this happening very easy. I kind of wonder if the water level wasn’t such that the submarine could have gone deeper and avoided hitting the surface ship. Would have to see the charts from that region of the Straits of Hormuz to tell.
Capt to XO: Hey let’s surprise Capt Forrest over there. Surface!
As an Ex-BubbleHead, I can attest that this happens about every year or so. You just don’t usually hear about it.
I can surmise what happened. The article says that they were headed into port when it happened. I would bet that the sub was surfacing for port entry. Surfacing is one of the most dangerous maneuvers for a sub. I could go into all the specifics, but just say that they are deaf and blind during it. Especially in the gulf, due to ship noise and and salinity.
Collisions and groundings are career killers. I’m sure there was confusion in maneuvering. You turn your vessel, expecting the other ship to turn in the opposite direction. A minute later it hasn’t happened and it’s too late. These aren’t row boats, and can’t turn on a dime. Even if it happened on another officers watch, it’s the Captains ship/boat.
Yep, that sub has a new CO and prolly NAV Officer.
The article said the sub was not surfacing. If they were surfacing, they would have to go to periscope depth, look around for anything big, and then surface.
On an emergency surface, they are deaf and blind. On a standard surface, they should be able to at least listen for the other ship before they surface.
I remember a US sub sinking a japanese fishing boat(?), when the sub did a emergency surface for some joy-riding member of the legislature…
Eideard,
You’d think with all the space on the planet you could find some place other than you ass to store your head.
The private luxury submarine that I am planning on buying when I either win the lottery or find a suck^h^h^h^h venture capitalist to finance my web startup has a sonar based visualization system for surfacing, does the navy lack this tech or something???
They have sonar, usually passive. The problem with sonar in places like the Persian gulf are (high)salinity and temperature gradients (thermoclines) making sonar less than useful (not to mention all the ‘background’ noise from shipping). As Benjamin said, they go to ‘periscope depth’ before actually breaking the surface. But most of these types of accidents are due to this. Going to periscope depth you are blind. And periscope depth is less than the keel depth of most large ships. Caviot: My experience was a few ‘cough,cough’ years ago in the cold war.
LMAO,
Ok, where was the traffic cop?
#18 Draft of the New Orleans was only 23 ft. Not a big draft for a ship. Doesn’t mean they didn’t whack the bottom of it with the periscope. That can happen.
Over all, I see two new openings for captains.
How come we even heard of this?
WTF business is it outside of the NAVY?
# 20 Benjamin said, “Over all, I see two new openings for captains.”
Why? The CO of the surface ship wouldn’t know where an attack sub was… Not his responsibility.
#22, As an ex-sailor, I agree with Ben. You bend your ship, you are sailing a desk — unless it got bent during battle.
The only thing that will save New Orleans is, ironically, the same thing that probably bent his ship in the FIRST place — gross incompetence on the part of Hartford.
More people have walked on the moon then those who have kept their commands after a collision at sea.
That being said, my ship got bent and the old man kept his job. We were tied up for repairs to another ship in the Med when a massive storm hit. We couldn’t get untied fast enough and they bounced into each other. Nothing major but the captain almost lost his command over a broken safety railing and lost raft. I think the “act of God” defense worked in his favor.
God dammit, you americans have so many ships they’re already bumping into each other!
The posts were insightful but I’d have thought that at least the surface ship could have detected a near surface sub but if there is enough background racket maybe not. The subs are made to run silent.
This is ridiculous. The Iranians should give up their territorial waters in the area for international shipping access. Or an allied coalition should force them to. Why should we put the lives of our sailors in danger for such silly bureaucratic borders…
#26–Santa==two ships run into each other in the middle of the ocean and you blame the ocean.
hah, hah. Good one.
This harkens back to the satellite collision. We are having a mini cold war with the Russians and they are f’ing with our satellite guidance systems. How else do you explain all the “collisions” we’ve had in the last few months.
#27, Bobbo
I am not blaming the ocean. I am blaming the government of Iran for failing to provide wide enough navigation channel due to their territorial rights – especially around Qesh island. The government of Iran should be forced to give up sea territorial claims there for our benefit..
We are the strongest military power ever on Earth – why should we follow Iranian rules to the detriment of our sailors’ life and health? We should do what’s in our best interest.
#29–Santa==you are going to argue the point?
You could learn for Paddy -O- Zero==its marginally better to tell people you are right and they can look it up on the interwebitudes.
Well, you are wrong practically, philosophically, historically and – – – and, are there any other ways?
No country should give up any rights to their territorial rights except as viewed as in their own best interests. By maintaining their terrorterial (yes) rights they upped the odds the US Navy would run into itself just like Congress over the bailout fiasco.
Should USA act unilaterally in violation of well established international law? That requires analysis. Who has more international waters that we would like and argue that everyone else should respect? Iran or USA?
Its hard to be a bully yet recognize the schoolyard of pencil necks can beat you if they get motivated to gang together, but thems the rules.