SeaWaves Today in History February 11, 2008

 


 


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February 11

? 1659 - Danish defenders repelled a full-scale, frontal assault by Swedish forces against Copenhagen. Instrumental in the defense was the heroic actions of The Boatswain Companies, commanded by the Norwegian Admiral Niels Juel (b1629, d1697), defending the Peuchlers and Qvitzows bastions at Østervold, and the main citadel of Copenhagen. Known as the Second Danish War of King Karl X Gustav of Sweden (1658 - 1660), the war was a continuation of the First Danish War of King Karl X Gustav (1657 - 1658). The first war began with the Danish re-conquest the provinces of Jämtland and Härjedalen, lost in an earlier conflict, and ended during the harsh winter of 1658. While the Danish fleet lay frozen in its ports, the daring Swedish king was able to march his army across the frozen straits known as the Great Belt and the Little Belt. A Swedish force of 7,000 men reached Zealand before Danish forces could react; forcing the Danes to accepted the punitive treaty The Peace of Roskilde. Denmark lost Scania, Halland and Blekinge, the three Danish provinces east of the Sound, as well as the island of Bornholm. Norway, a Danish protectorate, was forced to cede the provinces of Bohus and Trondheim. Denmark’s control over both sides of the strait between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea was broken, causing a major loss in economic and military power. The peace treaty did not stop Swedish aggression and hostilities were recommenced the next year. The Swedish army withdrew from Zealand after the peace treaty was negotiated, but not from Jutland or the island of Funen, effectively reducing the Danish king’s control to the main island. The Swedish fleet controlled the Baltic, while the Danish fleet became ineffective due to a crippling lack of funds. During the summer, Karl Gustav gathered a new army in Kiel, claiming he was preparing for an impending war with Prussia. This was a ruse and, on 08 Aug, the Swedish fleet landed an invasion force of 10,000 men at Korsør, on Zealand. Meanwhile, a force of 12 Swedish warships blockaded Copenhagen. The capital was under siege in only two days. The Danish fortress at Kronborg also came under siege and surrendered soon afterwards. The Danish monarch, Fredrik III, and his government were trapped in the capital city. It has been suggested that Gustav’s political goal was the total conquest of the Kingdom of Denmark and Norway, including the eradication of the Danish royal line. The successful defense of Copenhagen proved to be a culminating point for Karl X Gustav’s campaign in Denmark. The Danish defensive victory bought time for diplomatic action to take effect. The Netherlands and England could not tolerate Swedish control of both sides of the Baltic, since they valued the lucrative trade from the region. Though the country was still occupied by the Swedes, peace negotiations were begun, under heavy pressure from Britain, France and Holland. Meanwhile, a Dutch fleet commanded by Admiral Michael Adrian de Ruyter, comprised of 38 warships and six merchant ships carrying troops, provisions and ammunition, was dispatched to Denmark. The Dutch fleet arrived at the Great Belt on 01 Jun and was followed later by an English fleet. The presence of the Dutch and English fleets forced the Swedish fleet to withdraw, cutting off Swedish troops on Zealand and the islands of Lolland and Falster from their main forces on Funen and Jutland. In November, Danish and Allied troops were landed on Funen to defeat the occupying Swedes. On 12 Feb 1660, King Karl X Gustav died suddenly. This facilitated peace negotiations and, on 29 May 1660, the previous peace treaty was ratified with some revisions: the island of Bornholm and province of Trondheim were regained
? 1744 - Admiral Thomas Mathews, who combined the roles of British naval commander in the Mediterranean and plenipotentiary representative at the court of the King of Sardinia, had forced a Spanish squadron of twelve ships of the line to seek refuge in Toulon. France had not as yet officially joined the war on the Spanish side, but Louis XV ordered his fleet of sixteen ships in Toulon to help escort the Spanish ships to their intended destination in Italy. The combined fleet was spotted at first light by the British fleet, which numbered some thirty ships. By early afternoon, battle had been joined. But Mathews failed to communicate his intentions properly, and furthermore was on extremely bad terms with his second-in-command, Vice Admiral Lestock. Whatever the reason, Lestock's division failed to engage, and only one Spanish ship was sunk. The result was so disappointing to the British public, who by now expected the Royal Navy to triumph on every occasion, that twenty officers were subsequently tried by courts martial, including Lestock and Mathews. Lestock was acquitted, but Mathews was disgraced
? 1847 - Inventor Thomas Alva Edison was born in Milan, Ohio
? 1862 - SecNav directs formation of organization to evaluate new inventions and technical development which eventually led to National Academy of Science
? 1918 - Destroyer HMS Versatile commissioned
? 1919 - Submarine HMS H-31 commissioned
? 1921 - Submarine USS S-14 commissioned
? 1923 - Submarine USS S-11 commissioned
? 1930 - Destroyer HMS Acasta commissioned
? 1935 - U-1, U-2, U-3, U-4, U-5, U-6 laid down
? 1937 - Destroyer HMS Ivanhoe launched
? 1939 - U-40 commissioned
? 1940 - The Governor-General of Canada, Sir John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir of Elsfield, (well-known as the author John Buchan) dies in Montreal, Quebec, after surgery for head injuries suffered during a stroke five days ago. He was 64. His suspense novel “Thirty-Nine Steps” later became famous when Alfred Hitchcock made it into a movie released in 1935. New versions of the film were made in 1959 and 1978.
? 1940 - Steam trawler Togimo sunk by U-37 at 50.40N, 11.02W
? 1940 - At 2354, the Orania was hit by one torpedo from U-50 and sank within three minutes 65 miles NNE of Flugga lightvessel, Shetlands. The U-boat had spotted the vessel at 2240, but was not able to identify her as neutral. The wife of the master was also aboard
? 1940 - The unescorted Imperial Transport was torpedoed and damaged by U-53 (Grosse) in 59°N/12°W (grid AM 1490). Two crewmembers were lost
? 1940 - At 1100, the neutral Snestad was torpedoed & sunk by U-53 about 100 miles west of the Hebrides. The survivors were picked up after 22 hours by Albert L. Ellsworth and landed at Bergen
? 1940 - At 1820, the Linda was hit by one torpedo from U-9 and broke in two. The forepart sank immediately and the stern followed four minutes later
? 1940 - Flt-Lt John Noel Dowland (1914-42) and Leonard Henry Harrison (1906-89) defused a bomb aboard the grain ship SS Kildare in Immingham, Lincolnshire. For that they will both receive the George Cross but not until 1941
? 1941 - U-80 launched
? 1941 - U-68 commissioned
? 1941 - Destroyers USS Aaron Ward & Buchanan laid down
? 1941 - Submarine HMS Ultimatum launched
? 1941 - Light cruiser Jacob Van Heemskerck commissioned
? 1941 - Between 0133 & 0135, U-136 fired four torpedoes at Convoy SC-67 south of Iceland and reported hits on two steamers and on a corvette and later sighted debris and two lifeboats. In fact, the Heina and HMCS Spikenard were sunk. Heina in station #72 was hit below the #2 hatch, developed a heavy list and sank vertically three hours later. All men were picked up by HMCS Dauphin and landed at Londonderry, where the injured master was taken to a hospital. The remaining survivors left for Glasgow on 14 February
? 1941 - Destroyer ORP Blyskawica escorted a convoy to Iceland. But on the 14th she was again damaged in a storm & returned to Greenock
? 1941 - Prime Minister to Minister of Shipping: Is it true that the steamship 'New Toronto', which arrived at Liverpool, was ordered to proceed north-about to London, and is it true that this order was only cancelled as a result of the protest of the captain, who pointed out the enormous value of his cargo, which contained, inter alia, 19,677 sub-machine guns and 2,456,000 cartridges? The arrival of these ships with large consignments of invaluable munitions ought to receive your personal attention in every case
? 1941 - Admiral Darlan becomes Marshall Petain's successor and Deputy in the Vichy government. Darlan is also named Foreign Minister, Minister of the Interior, Minister of Information, and Commander in Chief of the French Navy
? 1942 - HM MTB-309(PT-51 USN BPT-3) Lend leased to RN 2/11/42
? 1942 - HM MTB-310(PT-52 USN BPT-4) Lend leased to RN 2/11/42
? 1942 - Submarine USS Shark probably sunk by Japanese destroyer Yamakaze east of Menado Celebes
? 1942 - Vice Admiral C. E. L. Helfrich of the Netherlands Navy succeeded Admiral Hart as Commander of United Nations naval forces in the SW Pacific  
? 1942 - Corvette HMCS Spikenard sunk by U-136. U-136 was a VIIC type U-boat, built by Werft, Vegesack, launched 5 Jul 41, commissioned 30 Aug 41, in service 11 months, with a record of sinking 6 ships a total of 21,446 tons. On 5 Feb 42, U-136 sank HMS Arbutus at 2135, S. of Iceland, 55-05N 19-43W. U-136 was a member of Wolf pack group "Hai" 6-22 Jun 42. U-136 was sunk 11 Jul 42 in Atlantic west of Madeira, position 33-30N, 22-52W by FS Leopard, HMS Spey & Pelican. There were no survivors of the 45 crew. Heinrich Zimmerman was born in 1907, in Duisburg. He joined the navy in 1933. At the war's outbreak, he was employed in minesweeping duties & commanded the 7th & then the 3rd Minesweeper Flotillas. He transferred to the U-boat force in Mar 41 & by Sep 41 had completed both his introductory training & U-boat commander's course. He was appointed to the command of U-136 on 30 Sep 41, at the age of 34. Kptlt Zimmerman was lost along with his entire crew when U-136 was sunk west of Madeira. A little known fact is that prior to 7 Dec 41 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, USN had been "unofficially" escorting convoys along the Eastern Seaboard of the US to ensure the safety of "Neutral" American merchant vessels. US efforts went a long way in assisting the RN & RCN with
convoy duties freeing up many ships for convoy escort across the Atlantic. However, most don't realize that the Japanese attack with the official US entry into the war brought an immediate decrease in USN support in the Atlantic as the US diverted ships to the Pacific. As indicated in the official history of the Canadian Navy in WW.II - "The Far Distant Ships", - "...the blow which fell on Dec 7 was of such stunning magnitude that for the moment all plans relating to the western war had to be altered to stem a tide of absolute disaster. Before US strength had ever reached the size envisaged in the plan for the Atlantic, it had to be diverted to the Pacific. US ships had to be withdrawn from the western Atlantic in such numbers that by Feb 42 only 2 USCG cutters remained on escort duty." This US withdrawal from the Atlantic, coupled with the RN ships now needed in the Pacific & for Russian support on the Murmansk run, left Atlantic convoys stripped of escorts. Early in 1942 (a "happy time" for the German U-boats), the real backbone of the Atlantic convoys were the tiny, short-ranged & under-armed Canadian corvettes. Into the winter storms, Convoy SC.67 sailed early in Feb 42 from Newfoundland - bound for Londonderry. The Canadian corvette HMCS Spikenard was the senior ship of the escort for SC.67. Other escorts included HMCS Chilliwack, Shediac, Louisburg, Lethbridge & Dauphin. All went well until just before 2300, on 10 Feb. The convoy was due south of Iceland, when Chilliwack attacked a submerged contact on the port bow of the formation. Almost immediately thereafter, Louisburg at the rear of the convoy spotted the wake of a torpedo running down her port side. Spikenard had been zigzagging on the starboard wing of the convoy when another torpedo struck the nearby tanker, Heina. A few seconds later, Spikenard was struck by a torpedo that ripped out her forepeak and destroyed the bridge and radio. Spikenard may have become aware of U-136 in the few minutes before - as action stations had been sounded & the speed increased just before she was hit. We'll never know, because not a man on Spikenard's bridge survived that night. In a few minutes, Spikenard sunk by the fore and headed for the bottom. Only eight men survived - to be found by a westbound British ship the next day. Spikenard had been torpedoed at about the same time as the tanker, & sank so quickly, that the other escorts didn't realize she was gone until morning
? 1942 - U-422 laid down
? 1942 - U-518 launched
? 1942 - The Soviet Black Sea Fleet and Azov Flotilla: Shipping loss: ML "Doob" - mined in Kazachiya Bay in Sebastopol 
? 1942 - Admiral William D. Leahy, USN (Retired), US Ambassador to Vichy France, receives instructions from President Franklin D Roosevelt that the US government has learned that French ships are to be used to transport war materiel between France and Tunisia, and that unless the French government gives assurances that no military aid would go forward to any Axis power, and that French ships would not be used in the furtherance of Axis acts of aggression in any theater of war, the ambassador would be recalled to the United States "for consultation in a determination of American future policy with regard to the government of Vichy" 
? 1942 - US Army troops arrive at Curacao and Aruba to assume occupation duty (with the cooperation of the British and Dutch governments) at this naval operating base whose primary mission will be port security, convoy routing, and protection of tankers transporting oil to US ports
? 1942 - Submarine USS Tradewind laid down
? 1942 - USS Shark believed sunk by destroyer Yamakaze 120 miles east of Menado, Celebes in position 01.45N, 127.15E. The destroyer spotted a surfaced submarine and opened fire with its 5" guns noting the sub soon started to sink. Voices were heard in the water but no attempt was made to rescue survivors
? 1942 - Submarine USS Seal leaves Surabaya for Tjilatjap
? 1942 - Destroyer HMS Ledbury commissioned
? 1942 - ASW trawler HMS Duncton commissioned
? 1942 - USS PC-474 commissioned
? 1942 - Minesweeper USS Radiant commissioned
? 1942 - HMCS Standard Coaster commissioned for coil skid towing duties
? 1942 - American supply officers struggle to find charter boats and pilots who can sail supplies through the Japanese blockade to Bataan. They have no luck
? 1942 - Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, and Prinz Eugen begin their "Channel Dash" in Operation Cerberus. They will leave Atlantic port of Brest move through the English Channel in daylight to naval bases in Germany
? 1943 - At 0652, the unescorted Helmspey was torpedoed by U-516 and sunk at 0712 by coup de grâce 11 miles south of Cape St Francis, Cape Colony. Three crewmembers and one gunner were lost. The master, 32 crewmembers, seven gunners and two passengers (naval ratings) were picked up by the SAAF crash launch R-4 and landed at Port Elizabeth
? 1943 - Between 1125 & 1145, U-81 shelled and sank three sailing vessels in a convoy, the Husni, Dolphin and Al Kasbanah, 40 miles west of Tripoli. At 1505 the same day, the U-boat sank the Sabah el Kheir with gunfire off Jaffa
? 1943 - USS PC-607 launched
? 1943 - USS SC-1325 launched
? 1943 - Submarine USS Grampus departs Brisbane for her 6th war patrol
? 1943 - Destroyer escort USS Bangust laid down
? 1943 - U-969, U-970 launched
? 1943 - U-962 commissioned
? 1943 - RAF bombers start on a campaign of heavy night raids on the Wilhelmshaven naval base 
? 1943 - USS SC-1296 laid down
? 1943 - Corvette HMS Rosebay (ex-USS Splendor) launched Kingston ON
? 1943 - Escort carrier USS White Plains laid down
? 1943 - Boom defense vessel HMS Barberry launched
? 1943 - Corvette HMCS Hepatica arrived New York for refit
? 1943 - Prime Minister Churchill announced in Commons that when the British, Eighth Army passed into the American sphere it would be subject to General Eisenhower, that General Alexander would be Deputy Commander in Chief. Air Chief Marshall Tedder was to command Mediterranean air operations as well as the air forces in the Middle East, responsible to General Eisenhower. Admiral Cunningham's command was extended to comprise all cognate operations in the Mediterranean and the Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean would become Commander in Chief of the Levant and the Red Sea. Gen. Sir Henry Maitland Wilson would succeed General Alexander in the Middle East 
? 1944 - Destroyer escort FS Tunesian (ex-USS Crosley) commissioned
? 1944 - Minesweeper HMS Rifleman commissioned
? 1944 - USS PC-814 laid down
? 1944 - Rescue tug HMS Envoy launched
? 1944 - Escort carrier USS Ommaney Bay commissioned
? 1944 - Destroyer USS Stockham commissioned
? 1944 - Destroyer escort USS Lloyd commissioned
? 1944 - Submarine USS Gudgeon torpedoes and sinks Satsuma Maru (3091 BRT) off Wenchow, China, in position 27.38N, 121.15E
? 1944 - Submarine USS Finback ends her 7th war patrol at Pearl Harbor
? 1944 - U-424 was sunk in the North Atlantic SW of Ireland, in position 50.00N, 18.14W, by depth charges from sloops HMS Wild Goose & Woodpecker
? 1944 - U-1301 commissioned
? 1944 - U-775 launched 
? 1944 - Destroyer HMCS Huron arrived Loch Ewe with convoy RA.56
? 1944 - Wellington from RCAF 407 Sqn attacked & sank U-283, ObLtzS Günther Ney, CO, southwest of the Faeroes, in position 60.45N, 012.50W. There were no survivors from her crew of 49 men. U-283 was a medium-range Type VIIC U-boat built by Bremer Vulkan at Bremen-Vegesack. Commissioned 31 Mar 43. U-283 was outbound for her first operational patrol at the time of her loss & had not sunk or damaged any ships. On 10 Feb 44, U-283 shot down a Wellington a/c from RAF 612 Sqn. Günther Ney was born in 1922, at Berlin-Schöneberg. He joined the navy in 1939 & transferred to the U-boat force in Nov 41. His first tour of duty was from Jan to Jul 43 as the first weapons officer in the very successful U-431, commanded by ObLtzS Dietrich Schöneboom, Knight's Cross. He was selected for command & completed his U-boat commander's course between Jul & Aug 43. He was appointed to the command of U-283 on 16 Aug 43 & was her only CO. The use of converted 'Wellington' twin-engine heavy bombers on offensive anti-submarine operations had, as this example shows, mixed results. The transit for German U-boats to their operating areas was made substantially slower & more difficult by the harassment of nearly continuous air patrols. It became necessary to transit the North & Norwegian Seas submerged & using the 'Schnorkel' as, by this point, most allied patrol a/c had effective radar & the 'Leigh' light, which made surfaced transits in all but the most adverse weather extremely hazardous. This offensive air plan required enormous effort, however, & the value of the results, when compared to that effort, has been challenged by operations analysts for its low cost-effectiveness
? 1944 - USS PT-279 lost in collision off Bougainville Solomon Islands 
? 1945 - USS LST-577 sunk Japanese submarine RO-50 east of Mindanao Philippines 
? 1945 - President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin signed the Yalta Agreement during World War II. The Yalta Conference is concludes
? 1945 - Corvette HMCS Long Branch arrived Halifax for refit
? 1945 - Frigate USS Forsyth commissioned
? 1945 - Seaplane tender USS Gardiners Bay commissioned
? 1945 - Submarine USS Drum departs Guam for her 13th war patrol. She was ordered to perform lifeguard duties off the Nansei Shoto
? 1945 - Submarine USS Pogy ends her 8th war patrol at Midway
? 1945 - Submarine USS Pompon ends her 7th war patrol at Midway
? 1945 - Submarine USS Puffer departs Guam for her 7th war patrol. She is ordered to patrol in the South China Sea
? 1945 - SS Persier, the ship of the convoy commodore in BTC-65, was torpedoed by U-1018 four miles 340° from the Eddystone Lighthouse. The ship was taken in tow, but sank during the night in the Bigbury Bay in position 50°17N/03°58W. 20 men were lost and eleven wounded from the complement of 59 Belgian crewmembers, four naval staff members, four gunners and four stowaways
? 1946 - Frigate HMCS Matane paid off at Esquimalt
? 1971 - US & USSR sign treaty prohibiting the deployment of nuclear weapons on the ocean floor
? 1973 - Due to "Vietnamization" the post of Senior Coast Guard Officer, Vietnam was discontinued
? 1977 - The largest known lobster, 3' 6" long and 44 lbs. 6 oz. is caught off Nova Scotia and is placed on display at a Bayville, N.Y., restaurant
? 1991 - Naval operations, including maritime intercept operations, and mine countermeasures continue. One mine is located and destroyed
? 2004 - Cruiser ex-USS William H Standley reacquired by USN from MARAD for use as a target
? 2004 - RRF SS Cape Inscription activated
? 2005 - TENIX Defense Pty Ltd has been selected as the preferred tender to upgrade and refit the recently acquired commercial tanker which will replace the Royal Australian Navy's aging auxiliary oiler, HMAS Westralia, Defense Minister Robert Hill announced today. The purpose of the conversion will be to modify the vessel so that it has the latest technology and equipment capable of refueling Navy vessels, including the ANZAC and Guided Missile frigates and the new Air Warfare Destroyers that will enter into service from 2013. The contract, valued at around $60 million, is for the design, initial logistic support and modification of the merchant tanker Delos, with the modified ship to enter service in June 2006. Senator Hill said the modifications to the ship will be carried out at the Common User Facility at Henderson, south of Fremantle, in Western Australia. The project will create new jobs and further consolidate the specialized skills needed in Australia's naval shipbuilding and repair sector. It will have an Australian Industry Involvement component of 95 percent. Some of the specific modifications will include the installation of a replenishment at sea rig, various accommodation modifications for RAN personnel including heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, freshwater and sewerage. A number of other additions include a helicopter landing pad, Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boats and a related crane, and Navy life saving and damage control works.  Delos is currently chartered to Teekay Shipping Singapore under a commercial arrangement. Following contract negotiations it will be delivered to Western Australia. Once complete, the crew of the ship will be transferred from HMAS Westralia, ensuring a seamless transfer of operational capability to the Navy. The Delos will be commissioned as HMAS Sirius on completion of the project
? 2005 - Halifax Port Authority was informed by Maersk Canada President, David Cardin, that in consolidating Mediterranean services, two ports-of-call will be eliminated from their North American East Coast Services - Halifax and Miami. This change will take effect in May 2005. Maersk Sealand began calling the Port of Halifax in 1988
? 2005 - A dry cargo ship flying the Cambodian flag with a crew of 28 Russians ran aground near the Japanese Aomori prefecture in the north of Honshu Island. The local headquarters of the sea safety department told Itar-Tass the vessel Helena-2 with a displacement of nearly 3,000 tonnes was caught in a storm and stranded in shallow waters 50 meters northwest of Cape Kodomari. The ship loaded with a cargo of timber was bound from the Russian port of Nakhodka for the Onahama port located on the other side of Honshu in the Fukushima prefecture northeast of Tokyo. The Helena-2 ship transmitted a SOS signal at about 0600 local time (midnight, Moscow time). Japanese coast guards dispatched a helicopter to the distress area to evacuate the crew. All the sailors have been rescued. There have been no casualties. The dry cargo ship has been damaged. According to a spokesman for the Japanese Coast Guard, measures were being taken to prevent spilling of fuel oil from the vessel. There is also the danger of the ship’s load of lumber getting into the sea
? 2005 - In an historic victory for protecting our oceans, and the largest such action taken anywhere in the world, US authorities have closed off to destructive commercial fishing nearly one million square kilometers of north Pacific Ocean surrounding the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, an area equal to Texas and California combined. The protected area includes exquisite deep-sea coral and sponge gardens off the Aleutians, a site that scientists call unique on Earth. In doing so, authorities adopted Oceana's approach to ocean management, a move that the international ocean conservation group called a signal moment for the oceans. It was also the first time in our nation's history that such a large-scale fishing-gear ban has been adopted to protect seafloor habitat, instead of due to crashing or declining fish stocks
? 2005 - More than 50 people were killed and several hundreds were missing after heavy rains caused a dam to burst in Pakistan's southwest Baluchistan province, inundating several villages and affecting thousands of people. Fiftyone persons were killed while 1450 marooned people were rescued by Army, Navy and Coastguard personnel
? 2005 - MV Cape Flattery was successfully re-floated off a reef about 400-yards off the entrance to Barber's Point Harbor at 0222 with the assistance of three tugs. The vessel was towed by tugs to safe anchorage about one mile offshore. Assessments of the internal spaces on the vessel and the hull will be conducted prior to the ship being allowed to enter port. Efforts to refloat the vessel required the removal of all but enough fuel oil to operate the vessel's engines and the removal of about 9,000 metric tons of the granular cement cargo. The Motor Vessel Hawaii Responder, an oil spill response vessel operated by the Marine Spill Response Corp remains on scene, standing by to respond to any reported pollution in the water. A helicopter overflight of the area will be conducted to verify that there is no oil in the water. Throughout the operation, a Unified Command comprised of federal, state, and the vessel owners and their representatives monitored the cargo offload and the refloating efforts
? 2005 - Todd Shipyards Corporation announced that its wholly owned subsidiary Todd Pacific Shipyards Corporation is uniquely suited to be the provider of choice to construct four new ferries for the Washington State Ferry System. Washington State Department of Transportation announced that Todd Pacific is the only shipyard found to be qualified for the design and construction of the new ferries. Washington State Ferries is asking the Legislature to allow for a contract award based on a negotiated contract with price incentives
? 2005 - It was reported to Solent Coastguard by vessels offshore that they had spotted two silver containers in the water of 20 foot in length and semi submerged in the sea. These containers were first spotted 7 nautical miles off the Needles Lighthouse on the Isle of Wight. The UK Hydrographic Office was informed and warnings were issued to other sea going traffic. Later in the evening it transpired that the containers had been lost from the vessel `Isis' who reported she had two lost the 2 x 20 foot containers whilst on passage. These containers contained empty gas cylinders. Eight such gas cylinders were then seen five nautical miles southwest of St Catherine's lighthouse
? 2005 - Boeing on Friday delivered the eighth C-40A Clipper – a modified 737-700 "combi" airplane – to the US Naval Reserve
? 2006 - Royal New Zealand Navy's new Multi Role Vessel (MRV) launched at Merwede Shipyard 
? in Rotterdam
? 2006 - HMA Ships Wollongong and Bunbury decommissioned at Darwin
? 2006 - The newest Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyer, Gridley, christened during an 1100 EST ceremony at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine
? 2006 - Coast Guard Sector New Orleans was notified at about 0550 that the cruise ship Ecstasy, of Carnival Cruise Lines, was drifting into the river from its berth at the Poland Street Wharf. New Orleans Coast Guard units immediately began broadcasting notices to mariners recommending they stay clear of the ship, as well as coordinating the use of civilian tugboats to regain control of the ship and return it to its berth. The ship traveled less than a mile down river before the captain and crew, with the assistance of a river pilot who went aboard, were able to drop the ship's anchor and secure its position, about 300 feet from the Mississippi River's West Bank near Algiers, La. The ship came to rest outside of the river's navigational channel and does not appear to have made contact with any other vessels. There are no reported injuries in association with the incident and the Mississippi River remains open. Tugs have since returned the ship to its berth at the Poland Street Wharf. The ship is currently being used to house New Orleans Police Department officers
? 2006 - A suspected Tamil Tiger boat was blown off in an explosion in the sea off Sri Lanka's northern coast
? 2006 - A Coast Guard HH-65B Dolphin helicopter from Coast Guard Sector Humboldt Bay suffered a mishap and crashed in the surf near Samoa Beach, due west of Eureka, Calif., at about 1336. The helicopter was engaged in a search and rescue mission concerning four people reported to be in the water near the entrance of Humboldt Bay
? 2006 - "Jaws" author, Peter Benchley, died from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), according to the AP. Very few Americans have heard of IPF, but the deadly lung disease characterized by progressive and massive scarring in the lungs affects 83,000 Americans and there are no FDA treatments and no cure
? 2007 - HMNZS Resolution rushed to the aid of a stricken boat off the Mahia Peninsula on the North Island's east coast. The fishing boat was sinking after machinery sprang a leak, filling the engine room with water. A salvage team went on board to pump out the flooded engine room, and Resolution then escorted the stricken boat into Napier


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Sources: Colton Shipping Report, NOAA, MARAD, Marine Digest, Leo Pettipas, Kommersant, Samuel Loring Morison, Frank Pierce Young, Navy Times, Naval Institute Proceedings, www.uboat.net, Andrew Etherington, John Nicholas, US Naval Historical Center, Ministry of Defense, US Coast Guard, Thomas N. Carlson, Jack Arrowsmith, Allan Snowie, Ken Hansen, Andy Barber, John Weiss, Jack McKillop, Bernard de Neumann, Sympatico Today in History, Washington History Link, Lloyds List, Fairplay, New York Times, I-Newswire and other news sources in the public domain. Additions, submissions and corrections are always welcomed.
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