SeaWaves Today in History February 23, 2008

 


 


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February 23
 
? Russia Navy Day. Visiting warships Dress Ship with Masthead Flags
 
? 1633 - Samuel Pepys was born. Although now best remembered as a diarist, his greatest achievements were as Clerk of the Acts to the Admiralty Board, where he did much to reform the administration of the Royal Navy under the Restoration, and laid the foundations for the development of the Service in the eighteenth century into the pre-eminent naval power
? 1795 - US Navy Office of Purveyor of Supplies is established. This is the Navy Supply Corps Birthday
? 1815 - Sir George Prevost, commanding British forces in Canada, submits a progress report to the British government on the Lachine Canal project. This project, drafted on the heels of the recent war with the United States, will be the first in a system of defensive canals meant to circumvent the St. Lawrence should it be captured by the Americans in a future war
? 1822 - Congress authorized cutters to prevent unauthorized live oak cutting on Florida public lands
? 1846 - Lieutenant Commander Richard Aschlund, 1st officer of the corvette Galathea on its expedition circumnavigating the world, is ordered to leave the ship, and is temporarily appointed Commander of the Danish colony on the Nicobar Islands, where Dannebrog is raised over the harbor of Pulo Penang on the island of Lille Nicobar February 15, 1846. (The Nicobar Islands were acquired in 1756)
? 1852 - The first non-Indian families arrive at the new settlement of Port Townsend
? 1907 - Submarine HMS C3 completed 
? 1910 - Submarine HMS D5 laid down 
? 1911 - Submarine HMS D8 launched 
? 1911 - Submarine HMS D6 launched 
? 1911 - Submarine HMS E2 launched 
? 1914 - Fraser River rockslide nearly wipes out the area's salmon fishing industry
? 1918 - Cruiser HMS Capetown laid down
? 1918 - Destroyer USS Elliot laid down
? 1919 - Launching of USS Osmond Ingram (DD-255), first Navy ship named for an enlisted man
? 1921 - Submarine USS S-46 laid down
? 1926 - Heavy cruiser HMS London laid down
? 1928 - Repair ship HMS Albatross launched
? 1928 - Heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland commissioned
? 1930 - Soviet submarine SC-304 laid down
? 1932 - Sloop HMS Bideford commissioned
? 1933 - Sloop HMS Weston commissioned
? 1933 - Heavy cruiser USS Portland commissioned
? 1934 - Light cruiser HMS Neptune commissioned
? 1937 - U-45 laid down
? 1939 - Minesweeper HMS Scott commissioned
? 1939 - Boom defense vessel HMS Plantaganet launched
? 1939 - Lord Halifax repeated British pledge of Feb 6. Because the Axis press cast doubts on its seriousness 
? 1939 - France and Britain began faint naval maneuvers in the Mediterranean
? 1940 - US freighter SS Lehigh is detained for several hours at Gibraltar by British authorities, but is allowed to proceed the same day
? 1940 - In a victory parade celebrating the destruction of the German pocket battleship Graf Spee in the battle of the River Plate, 700 officers and men of cruisers HMS Ajax & HMS Exeter march through cheering crowds to Guildhall in London
? 1940 - U-53 sunk in the North Sea in the mid Orkneys, in position 60.32N, 06.14W, by depth charges from destroyer HMS Gurkha. 42 dead (all hands lost)
? 1940 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Benvolio mined & sunk off Spurnhead UK
? 1940 - Bangor-class minesweepers HMCS Cowichan, Malpeque, Ungava, Mahone, Chignecto, Outarde, Wasaga, Minas, Quinte, Chedabucto, Miramichi, Bellechasse, Clayoquot, Quatsino ordered. The RCN originally intended to build Bramble-class sloops (990 tons, 250 feet), a dual-purpose design capable of both escort & minesweeping duties. However, sloops were regarded in Canada as being too large for minesweeping & were quite expensive at £175,000 each. With the advent of the cheaper Flower-class corvette (950 tons, 205 feet, £90,000 each), the RCN decided to split the functional requirement & go with two classes of ships to satisfy the need for anti-submarine escorts & minesweepers. The Bangor-class (650 tons, 180 feet) was chosen as the minesweeper. Many of the escort features of the sloops were deleted from the Bangor-class, such as Asdic & depth charges. However, in 1940 this was reconsidered & they were added back into the design, which resulted in significant delays in delivery. As the war in the Atlantic progressed, the most urgent requirement was for escort vessels & the Bangors were pressed into this role. Their plumb bows & shortness made them even worse seakeepers than the Flower-class corvettes. They also had significantly lower endurance (3,450 at 12 knots versus 2,950 at 11.5 knots). But, their minesweeping duties meant they had been fitted from the outset with a gyrocompass that gave them the most accurate Asdic set in early Canadian escorts. Eventually, it was realized that the Bangors were too small to function effectively as minesweepers, which was due mainly to the new requirements for influence sweeping equipment for use against magnetic mines. The Algerine-class minesweepers, which also spent most of their careers in escort work, were designed to meet the requirement for a larger minesweeper. At 990 tons & 225 feet in length they approached the size of the original Bramble-class sloops. However, with only 4,500 miles of endurance at 11.5 knots they could not match the 6,000 miles at 12 knots of the Brambles. Meanwhile, sloops emerged as the pre-eminent escort vessel design of the interwar period, even outperforming fleet destroyers in anti-submarine efficiency, endurance, & seakeeping. Eventually, the Flower-class corvette design was modified to make it a better ocean escort. The Castle-class ended up with dimensions almost identical to a sloop - 1,060 tons, 250 feet, 6,200 miles endurance at 15 knots
? 1941 - At 2242, HMS Manistee was hit by one torpedo from U-107 south of Iceland, while escorting Convoy OB-288. The damaged ship continued & sank in 58°55N/20°50W after the U-boat hit her with two further torpedoes at 0758on 24 Feb
? 1941 - SS Svein Jarl lost the Convoy OB-288 in very bad weather and went missing. 19 Norwegians, 1 Swede and 1 Briton perished with the ship. Sunk by U-69 at 59.30N, 21W 
? 1941 - At 2327, SS Anglo-Peruvian in Convoy OB-288 was torpedoed & sunk by U-96 SW of Iceland. The master, 26 crewmembers and two gunners were lost. 17 crewmembers were picked up by the British SS Arberton & landed at Halifax on 4 March
? 1942 - HM MTB-313(PT-55 USN BPT-7) Lend leased to RN 2/23/42
? 1942 - HM MTB-311(PT-53 USN BPT-5) Lend leased to RN 2/23.42
? 1942 - HM MTB-312(PT-54 USN BPT-6) Lend leased to RN 2/23/42
? 1942 - HM MTB-316 (PT-58 USN BPT-10) Lend Leased to RN 2/23/42
? 1942 - Japanese report that the conquest of Ambon Island is complete
? 1942 - On Java, Allied forces begin an evacuation of the island. Major General George H. Brett, deputy commander of the ABDA Command, flies from Java, which is in imminent danger, to Darwin
? 1942 - Submarine HMS Trident sights heavy cruiser KMS Prinz Eugen in the North Sea and fires three torpedoes; one of which hits aft, damaging Prinz Eugen's rudder and blowing away 30 feet of her stern. She is taken into Lo Fjord at Drontheim, and temporary repairs (including the fitting of two jury rudders) is completed by the beginning of May 
? 1942 - Winston Churchill informs Australian Prime Minister John Curtin that the convoy carrying the Australian 6th & 7th Divisions will proceed to Australia after refueling at Colombo
? 1942 - Submarine HIJMS I-17 fires 25 rounds of 5.5-inch shells from a range of 2,500 yards at the Bankline Oil Refinery at Ellwood, California, 12 miles west of Santa Barbara. One shell makes a direct hit of the rigging causing minor damage
? 1942 - USN's Bureau of Aeronautics outlines a comprehensive program which became the basis for the wartime expansion of pilot training. In place of the existing seven months course, the new program required 11 months for pilots of single or twin-engine aircraft and 12 months for four-engine pilots. It is divided into three months at Induction Centers, three months in Primary, three months in Intermediate and two or three months in Operational Training, depending on the type aircraft used
? 1942 - Mutual Aid Agreement signed between the Governments of the United States and Great Britain
? 1942 - The first shelling of the US mainland during World War II occurred as a Japanese submarine fired on an oil refinery in Ellwood, Calif
? 1942 - SS Lennox (1,904 GRT), Canada Steamships Line bulk canaller was sunk in position 09.15N, 058.30W, in the Caribbean off British Guyana by U-129. She was on route from Paramaribo, Dutch Guyana, to Trinidad with a load of bauxite for transshipment. Two men were lost from her crew of 20 men. The merchantman SS Athelril rescued the survivors
? 1942 - Destroyer USS Converse laid down
? 1942 - Minesweeper HMS Rattlesnake launched
? 1942 - U-955 laid down
? 1942 - U-410 commissioned
? 1942 - At 0643, the unescorted SS Lihue was torpedoed by U-161 about 275 miles west of Martinique. One torpedo struck on the port side forward of the #1 hold. About 15 minutes later, the U-boat surfaced and fired a few shots from its deck gun until the armed guards returned fire with her armament of one 3in, four .50cal and two .30cal guns, forcing the U-boat to submerge. The ship then evaded two torpedoes at 1839 & 1854; the U-boat ceased the attack, because U-161 thought that the Lihue was a U-boat trap. But after the unsuccessful attack in the evening, the crew of eight officers, 28 crewmen and nine armed guards abandoned ship in two lifeboats and three rafts. They were all picked up four hours later by the British steam tanker British Governor, after a US Navy aircraft had directed the ship to the lifeboats. A salvage party from AMC HMCS Prince Henry boarded Lihue in an attempt to save her, but the ship sank on 26 February while being towed to St Lucia by minesweeper USS Partridge
? 1942 - Steam tanker Sun torpedoed & sunk by U-502 
? 1942 - Motor tanker Thalia torpedoed & sunk by U-502 
? 1942 - Steam tanker WD Anderson torpedoed & sunk by U-504 at 27.09N, 79.56W. The sole survivor apparently spotted the torpedo coming for the ship, dove into the sea and swam away as the ship exploded behind him
? 1942 - Corvette HMS Godetia commissioned
? 1942 - Submarine HMS P-38 left Malta on 16 February 1942 to intercept a convoy off Tripoli. By the 23rd she was in position as the convoy hove into view. Amongst the convoy was the Italian torpedo boat Circe. At 0800 Circe reported a contact with a submarine and that she turned in to attack. A periscope was sighted but was quickly replaced by bubbles as the submarine dived realizing it had been spotted. At 1050 after a flurry of attacks P-38 rose stern first out of the water, her propellers turning wildly, before crashing back beneath the waves. A large patch of oil appeared on the surface as well as debris, clear evidence of the submarine’s destruction
? 1943 - Escort carrier HMS Thane laid down
? 1943 - Destroyer escorts USS Bunch, Canfield, Cloues, Deede, Elden laid down
? 1943 - Destroyer HMS Venus launched
? 1943 - The German Falke acoustic torpedo scores its first operational success when a U-boat sinks a tanker from convoy UC-1
? 1943 - The first USN Curtiss Wright C-46 transport is delivered to LaGuardia 
? Airport in New York City
? 1943 - Light cruiser USS Biloxi launched
? 1943 - Minesweepers USS Astute, Augury, Barrier, Bombard launched
? 1943 - U-298, U-1010 laid down
? 1943 - At 0735, U-186 fired a spread of three torpedoes at Convoy ON-166 about 310 miles south of Cape Race and observed one hit after 2 minutes 32 seconds on the ship in station #12, the Hastings, which was erroneously reported as Hassop. A second hit, after 2 minutes 35 seconds was possibly on the same ship, which sank within seven minutes. After 2 minutes 41 seconds a third hit was heard but not observed. At 0740 hours, U-186 fired a spread of two stern torpedoes and heard two detonations on different targets, but only the Eulima was hit, the second detonation being a depth charge from USCGC Spencer. At 1130 hours, the drifting wreck of the Eulima was sunk by a coup de grâce and gunfire from U-186. The master, 52 crewmembers and nine gunners from the Eulima were lost. The third officer J. Campkin was taken prisoner by U-186, landed at Lorient on 5 March and taken to the POW camp Milag Nord near Bremen. A lookout on the Hastings spotted a torpedo just before it struck the port side at #5 hold. The explosion flooded the engine room, sprung bulkheads between the #4 and #5 holds, destroyed the steering gear and cut the power of the ship. The ten officers, 31 crewmembers, 20 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, two .30cal and four 20mm guns) and one passenger on board began to abandon ship in three lifeboats and two rafts. The ship sank stern first after 7 minutes. One officer and eight crewmen were lost. The remaining survivors were picked up after 20 minutes by corvette HMCS Chilliwack & landed at St John's
? 1943 - At 2217, U-202 fired a spread of four torpedoes at Convoy UC-1. The first struck the Murena and the second the British Fortitude; both tankers were able to continue their voyage, though in a damaged condition. The third torpedo failed and the last hit the Empire Norseman, which had been already damaged by U-382 was later sunk by a coup de grâce from U-558. At 2221, U-202 fired the stern torpedo and sank Esso Baton Rouge. The torpedo struck Esso Baton Rouge in station #43 on the starboard side between the engine room and aft bunkers. The explosion carried away the bulkhead between the tanks and the engine room, filled the latter compartment with burning oil, killed one officer and one man on watch below and stopped the engines. Debris flew over 50 feet in the air and one armed guard was killed. As the ship started to settle by the stern, the eight officers, 35 men and 25 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, one 3in and eight 20mm guns) abandoned ship in three lifeboats, after three rafts were carried away, because the ship still had headway. Within 90 minutes all survivors were picked up by sloop HMS Totland. The tanker finally sank by the stern about 0400 the next morning. Two crewmembers and one armed guard, all seriously burned from flaming oil, were treated on the sloop and put ashore at Antigua on 4 March. The remaining survivors were transferred to the Dutch steam merchant Maaskerk and arrived in Trinidad on 6 March. At 2345, the drifting wreck of the Empire Norseman was sunk by a coup de grâce from U-558. The master, 41 crewmembers & eleven gunners from the Empire Norseman were picked up by HMS Totland, transferred to the Dutch merchantman Maaskerk & landed at Trinidad
? 1943 - At 0210 one of the four diesel engines broke down in rough weather and the Winkler in position 63 of the ON-166 reduced to 8 knots for repairs. She had become the last ship of the convoy and was damaged at 0714 by a FAT torpedo from U-628. The ship spent about 1 hour to rescue survivors from the Norwegian tanker Glittre (The tanker was damaged in the same attack from U 628 and was later sunk by U-603). At 0800 corvette HMS Dianthus arrived, ordered the Winkler back to the convoy, picked up the survivors and followed. At 0842 three torpedoes from U-223 struck the ship and sank her within 45 seconds, taking 14 crewmembers and 5 Armed Guards with her. HMS Dianthus got Asdic contact but was unable to drop depth charges, because U 223 dove under the survivors. So she picked up 32 survivors (19 crewmembers & 13 Armed Guards) and landed them at St John's three days later
? 1943 - At 0331, U-303 sank the drifting wreck of Expositor by a coup de grâce
? 1943 - At 1250, the unescorted SS Fintra was torpedoed & sunk by U-371 NE of Algiers. The master, 21 crewmembers & one passenger were saved. Seven crewmembers & five gunners were lost
? 1943 - At 1438, the unescorted & neutral SS Kyleclare was hit by two torpedoes from U-456 & disappeared in the explosions
? 1943 - At 0741, SS Athelprincess, a straggler from Convoy UC-1, was hit by two torpedoes from U-522 & sank west of Madeira. One crewmember was lost. The master, 42 crewmembers & seven gunners were picked up by sloop HMS Weston, transferred to destroyer USS Hilary P. Jones & landed at San Juan, Puerto Rico
? 1943 - At 0714, U-628 fired FAT torpedoes at Convoy ON-166 in grid BD 4564. One torpedo damaged Winkler, which was later sunk by U-223 & another struck Glittre on the port side in the engine room. Glittre became a straggler and was sunk by two torpedoes from U-603 at 0842 the same day. Two men died in the engine room and the cook was killed in his cabin. The survivors were picked up by HMS Dianthus
? 1943 - Convoy rescue ship SS Stockport torpedoed & sunk by U-604 at 45N, 44W
? 1943 - U-443 sunk in the Mediterranean near Algiers, in position 36.55N, 02.25E, by depth charges from the British escort destroyers HMS Bicester, Lamerton & Wheatland. 48 dead (all hands lost)
? 1943 - U-522 sunk in the mid-Atlantic SW of Madeira, Portugal in position 31.27N, 26.22W, by depth charges from sloop HMS Totland. 51 dead (all hands lost)
? 1943 - Patrol Vessel District YP-336 destroyed by grounding in the Delaware River 
1944 - USS PT-200 lost after collision 22 February 1944 off Newport Rhode Island and sank 
1944 - U-257 is sunk in the North Atlantic, in approximate position 47.19N, 
? 26.00W, by depth charges from frigates HMCS Waskesiu & HMS Nene. 30 dead & 19 survivors. According to a crewmember on the HMCS Waskesiu the HMS Nene only participated in picking up survivors while the Canadian frigate dropped the depth charges, after both frigates had picked up an ASDIC signal that the Canadians insisted was a U-boat, which sank the boat
? 1944 - US carrier groups under Spruance attack Saipan, Tinian and Rota in the Marianas
? 1944 - Norton-class tugs HMCS Riverton, Mawellton, Clifton ordered
? 1944 - Yard craft HMC HC 304, 305, 306, 307, 308, 309, 310, 311, 312, 313, 314, 315, 316 ordered
? 1944 - Boom defense vessels HMC HC 288, 289, 294, 295, 299 ordered
? 1944 - Destroyer escort USS Haas laid down
? 1944 - Destroyer USS Alfred A Cunningham laid down
? 1944 - Submarine USS Sea Poacher laid down
? 1944 - Frigate HMS Loch Shin launched
? 1944 - Aircraft carrier HMS Vengeance launched
? 1944 - Destroyer escort USS Creamer launched
? 1944 - Destroyer USS Samuel N Moore launched
? 1944 - Minesweeper USS Gladiator commissioned
? 1944 - Destroyer USS Richard P Leary commissioned
? 1944 - Destroyer escort USS Osmus commissioned
? 1944 - U-485 commissioned
? 1945 - District Auxiliary Miscellaneous YAG-17 lost 14 September 1944 stricken from Navy List 
? 1945 - Lighter Covered (Non Self-Propelled) YC-693 lost off Alaska February 1945 stricken Navy List 
? 1945 - Destroyer FS La Combattante (ex-HMS Haldon) mined & sunk in North Sea
? 1945 - SS Point Pleasant Park (7,136 GRT), Captain Owen Owen, Master, Canadian Park Steamship Co. freighter was sunk by a torpedo & gunfire from U-510, Kptlt Alfred Eick, Knight's Cross, CO, off Cape Town, South Africa, in position 29.42S, 009.58E. She had detached from a convoy a day earlier & was proceeding alone to a South African port. Nine of her crew of fifty-eight men was lost. The survivors were adrift for nine days before a fishing vessel & SAS Africana rescued them. U-510 was enroute to Germany with a load of tungsten from the Far East when she encountered Point Pleasant Park. U-510 was a long-range Type IXC U-boat built by Deutsche Werft AG, at Hamburg. Commissioned 25 Nov 41. U-510 conducted ten patrols & compiled a record of sinking 15 ships for a total of 95,687 tons & another eight ships damaged for a further 53,289 tons. U-510 survived the war & was taken out of service on 10 May 45, at St Nazaire, France. She was surrendered to France on 12 May 45. U-510 was renamed as the French submarine Bouan & was stricken on 01 May 59, renamed again as Q176. She was subsequently broken up for scrap. Alfred Eick was born in 1916, at Essen. He joined the navy in 1937. He first operational duty was in the destroyer Hermann Beitzen, where he served as the Second Gunnery Officer. Z-4 undertook 16 patrols in the first year of the war. In Nov 40 he transferred to the U-boat force & after conversion training, served in the 1st U-boat Training Division from Mar to Oct 41. After four months preparing to commission the boat, he was assigned as the First Watch Officer in the Type IXC boat U-176 (ten ships sunk), commanded by Kptlt Reiner Dierksen, & participated in her first two patrols. He was selected for command & underwent preparatory training between Mar and May 43. Meanwhile, U-176 was sunk on her next patrol, on 15 May 43; northeast of Havana by the Cuba patrol boat CS 13. He was assigned to command U-510 on 22 May 43, at the age of 27, & remained in that post until the capitulation. He was awarded the Knight's Cross on 31 Mar 44 (the 115th presented in the U-boat force) & was promoted to Kptlt. on 01 Apr 44. After a successful patrol in Brazilian waters, U-510 left Lorient on her second patrol assigned as one of the Monsun boats. Eick operated for a few months in the Indian Ocean before heading back in Jan 45 with a load of important goods (tin, quinine, etc.) on board. After being supplied with oil southeast of Madagascar by KKpt Oesten's U-861, who was short of fuel herself, U-510 ran out of fuel in the North Atlantic, but somehow managed to reach base at St. Nazaire. Alfred Eick was in French captivity from May 45 to 26 Jul 47. After his release, he studied business management at the University of Hamburg later worked as a tax adviser
? 1945 - Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima is captured. The flag raising atop Mt Suribachi is pictured around the world. US Secretary of the Navy Forrestal is quoted as saying - "This picture will assure the existence of the US Marine Corps for another five hundred years" 
? 1945 - Ju-88 bombers sink the SS Henry Bacon of convoy RA-64. This will be the last Allied merchant ship sunk by German aircraft
? 1945 - British Pacific Fleet, renamed Task Force 57, sails From the Caroline Islands for Okinawa
? 1945 - Off the coast of Indochina - USS Flounder and USS Hoe collide off the coast of Indochina. Both submarines will survive and become the only known instance in which two submarines collided while underwater during WW II
? 1945 - U-2367 launched
? 1945 - U-853 sailed from Stavanger on her final patrol
? 1946 - FAA 883 Sqn, equipped with Seafire XVs, disbanded at RNAS Machrihanish, UK due to critical early post-war shortage of maintenance personnel. It remained RCN on paper pending anticipated reactivation at a future date
? 1948 - Submarine HMS Artful completed 
? 1953 - Destroyer HMCS Cayuga recommissioned after ASW modernization
? 1958 - 1,000th landing aboard HMCS Bonaventure made by Banshee pilot Lt Barry Troy
? 1967 - USS Coral Sea completed Vietnam deployment
? 1968 - USS Kitty Hawk port call Subic Bay
? 1969 - Start of hovercraft service between Vancouver and Nanaimo; first scheduled hovercraft service in Canada
? 1974 - USS Midway port call Hong Kong
? 1991 - USS Missouri destroyed targets on Favlaka Island off the coast of Kuwait City. Ground forces continue to engage Iraqi forces with artillery, attack helos and tactical aircraft throughout the border area
? 2005 - Alberta Premier Ralph Klein made a short visit aboard Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship Calgary while in Hawaii. The ship’s commanding officer, Cdr Tom Tulloch, invited the Premier to visit the ship when it was determined that the City of Calgary’s namesake ship, would be in Pearl Harbor about the same time that the former Mayor of Calgary had a stopover in Hawaii while returning to Canada from New Zealand. As it turned out, Mr. Klein was able to be aboard the ship when it left Pearl Harbor to return to Esquimalt. While aboard, the Premier met many of the 200 members of the crew and witnessed some of the ship’s capabilities at sea before he was returned to shore by boat to continue his vacation. HMCS Calgary was deployed to the mid Pacific on a training exercise and assisting the United States Navy in its training program for submariners. Ever since the ship was commissioned on May 12, 1995 there has been a close relationship between the ship Calgary and the City of Calgary. Members of the ship’s crew have marched in the Calgary Stampede Parade, attended civic functions and met thousands of Albertans over the ten years. Likewise, hundreds of Albertan’s have visited the ship in Victoria. This was the first time that the Premier of Alberta had been aboard
? 2005 - The launch of an American XM-3 satellite by a Russian-Ukrainian rocket from a platform in the Pacific Ocean canceled for the fourth time 
? 2005 - TOP Tankers Inc announced today that it has entered into an agreement for the acquisition of M/T Mikom Accord, a 47,262 Dwt, double-hull Handymax tanker, built in 1998 by Onomichi Dockyard Co., Ltd., of Japan. The delivery of the vessel is expected to take place between April 11 and June 10, 2005
? 2005 - Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd, a shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of dry bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal and grains, announced that it has taken delivery of a Panamax bulk vessel, MV Isminaki. The Company also announced the simultaneous commencement of a two-year charter of the vessel to European Charterers at US $31,250.00 per day. The vessel is a Panamax bulk carrier of approximately 74,577 dwt, built in 1998 by Sasebo Heavy Industries Co. Ltd in Japan, and was purchased on January 12, 2004 for US $39.75 million. MV Isminaki is the third vessel that the Company has taken delivery of since Christopher Georgakis joined Excel Maritime as CEO in late October 2004, and the fourth to be deployed in the period charter markets
? 2005 - Private developers are carefully examining a proposal to operate a high-speed passenger ferry service on Lake Erie between Port Dover, Ontario, and Erie, Pennsylvania. Norfolk County, the local municipality responsible for the Port Dover area, and the Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority, have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a business plan for the ferry service
? 2005 - The Japanese envoy to South Korea claimed Wednesday that the South's easternmost islets of Dokdo fall under Japanese territory. "There exists a clear difference of views between South Korea and Japan over the issue of 'Takeshima.' It is historically and legally Japan's territory," Ambassador Toshiyuki Takano was quoted as saying during a meeting of foreign press reporters at the Korea Press Center in Seoul. "Takeshima" is the Japanese name for the islets. 
The envoy's remarks came after the South Korean Foreign Ministry expressed strong regret over a local Japanese government's move to submit legislation apparently aimed at laying claim to the islets earlier in the day
? 2005 - MSC Denisse (28,176 grt, built 1978) reported flooding in engine-room and pumps not operating in lat 11 13S, long 106 35E, at 2156, UTC, Feb 21. The vessel reports it is in no imminent danger and is awaiting a tug, which is due on scene later today. (Note -- MSC Denisse sailed Singapore Feb 19 for Fremantle.) The tug en route to assist c.c. MSC Denisse is still 24 hours away. The vessel's agent requested assistance from the Australian Navy to pump out water from the vessel and a navy vessel is proceeding from Christmas Island and should be on scene in approximately 30 minutes. On arrival it will attempt to patch MSC Denisse's leaking sea chest and pump out the water. The Royal Australian Navy Frigate, HMAS Arunta, is currently responding to an AUSSAR request for assistance to a container ship, MV MSC Denisse. MV MSC Denisse is drifting at sea, around 40 nautical miles south east of Christmas Island with a flooded engine room, without propulsion and only emergency power available. HMAS Arunta personnel are assisting the crew of MV MSC Denisse to pump water from flooded compartments in an effort to stabilize the container ship. Engineers are monitoring the ship's integrity and HMAS Arunta is ready to provide further assistance. HMAS Stuart is also operating off the coast of North Western Australia and is on her way to assist
? 2005 - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration today signed a long-term agreement with the Japan Meteorological Agency to guarantee continuous geostationary satellite coverage of the continental United States and the Western Pacific, in case either agency experiences a spacecraft failure. NOAA is an agency of the US Department of Commerce.
? Under this agreement signed in Tokyo, NOAA and JMA agree to provide short-term geostationary back-up coverage in an emergency, and monitor typhoons and other severe weather that threaten both nations. If either a NOAA or JMA geostationary spacecraft stops operating, and has no available back-up satellite of its own, then the partner agency would temporarily move one of its satellites toward the appropriate region and provide coverage for up to one year – at no cost, allowing the other agency time to recover from the failure and launch a replacement spacecraft
? 2005 - NOAA has selected historic Ford Island as its preferred site for a new regional center. The center will bring together NOAA offices and activities in Honolulu that are currently scattered from Hawaii Kai to Sand Island. The project is estimated to cost $240 million. NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is an agency of the US Department of Commerce. 
? Ford Island was selected because it allows for consolidation of NOAA programs and operations. Ford Island also enables NOAA to use existing federal land with roads, docks and utility infrastructure already in place. The location is secure, but allows for ready access by NOAA staff, guests, and visitors. This action will help preserve and restore historic World-War II-era buildings that will be adapted for NOAA use. The new NOAA facility will house approximately 500 employees at the time of its completion in early 2010
? 2005 - Secretary of State for Defense, Geoff Hoon, attended the turf-cutting ceremony which marked a milestone in the creation of a display of world importance at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford. The £12.5m project - under the theme Divided World: Connected World – will tell the story of the Cold War and will include contributions from other military Museums across the country. It will represent all three services and include political, cultural and social aspects of this most important period in modern history. The aim of the exhibition is to inform and educate present and future generations about the threat posed to world security by the split in ideologies between the Democratic countries and the Communist block
? 2006 - Aker Kvaerner has been awarded a contract by Chevron, with partner Kerr McGee, to deliver an advanced dynamic umbilical, including engineering and project management, for the Blind Faith deep water development in the Gulf of Mexico. This follows the earlier award of contracts to Aker Kvaerner for the supply of the semisubmersible hull and mooring system and activities related to transportation and installation of the Blind Faith platform. Aker Kvaerner Subsea will supply a 9500 meter dynamic steel tube umbilical, including all surface and subsea terminations to be installed in 2100 meters water depth
? 2006 - Teekay Shipping Corporation announced that it has been awarded long-term contracts to charter two Suezmax shuttle tankers and one Aframax shuttle tanker to Fronape International Company (FIC), a subsidiary of Petrobras Transporte S.A, the shipping arm of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras). The vessels will be chartered to FIC at fixed-rates for a period of 13 years, commencing at various dates during the second half of 2006 and the first quarter of 2007
? 2006 - Three Indian navy personnel were killed and 17 others injured, six of them seriously, in an explosion on a naval ship off the West Indian coastal town of Visakhapatnam, Indo-Asian News Service reported. According to a navy spokesperson, the blast occurred Wednesday evening when a fire broke out in the dry powder box on INS Magar. Coast guard and naval ships controlled the fire in about 2 hours. The ship was disposing of unused explosives off Vishakapatanam, the headquarters of Eastern Naval Command, 600 km east of New Delhi. Visakhapatnam police said they were informed and have sent a team along with navy officers to probe the incident. The dead have been identified as Ashok Kumar, Shibtin Das and Bishen Singh. All the injured have been admitted to the naval hospital INHS Kalyani. The condition of six of them is stated to be critical
? 2006 - Keppel Shipyard Limited entered an Alliance Service Agreement for the drydocking of a fleet of Moss Rosenburg (MOSS) type of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carriers chartered by Qatar Liquefied Gas Company Ltd (Qatargas)
? 2006 - The international board of Mercy Ships confirmed that two of the global charity’s veteran hospital ships will be retired mid-2006 as the newest Mercy Ship, the Africa Mercy, enters active service. Ships being retired are Anastasis and Caribbean Mercy
? 2007 - The Indonesian Navy will intensify security patrol in the waters bordering with Singapore to curb sand smuggling and to maintain the country’s territory
? 2007 - Minehunter JDS Kuroshima commissioned at Turumi
? 2007 - Smit Internationale NV agreed with Adsteam to acquire Adsteam’s port of Liverpool towage operations. This agreement is a result from the requirement of the English Competition Commission. This set out in its decision on the acquisition of Adsteam Marine Ltd by SvitzerWijsmuller. Consequently the agreement between SMIT and Adsteam is subject to approval of the Competition Commission and to the finalization of the acquisition of Adsteam by SvitzerWijsmuller. For SMIT this deal will mean its first step in the UK harbor towage market
? 2007 - Sri Lanka Navy has recovered a boat belonged to the Sea Tiger Wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (LTTE)
? 2007 - Aker Yards has sold a combi freighter to Briese Schiffahrts GmbH & Co, in Leer (Lower Saxony / Germany) to be delivered from Damen Shipyards Okean in the Ukraine, a joint venture between Aker Yards and Damen Shipyards Group. The value of the contract is approximately EUR 19 million. Delivery is scheduled in the fourth quarter of 2007
? 2007 - Australia announces naval helicopter training ship to be built in 2009
? 2007 - Urgent action to curb pollution from ships passing through the Strait of Gibraltar has been urged by environmentalists after a spate of "unusual" deaths of pilot whales
? 2007 - The Dominion Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Dominion will contribute $250,000 to Coastal Conservation Association Maryland (CCA Md). This will support construction of artificial reefs in the Maryland waters of the Chesapeake Bay and is challenging other conservation organizations to give generously to the project
? 2007 - Despite the concerns of environmentalists about a nearby wildlife refuge and resurgent red wolf population, the USN still prefers to build a new jet landing strip in eastern North Carolina
? 2007 - Author of the German war novel "Das Boot", Lothar-Guenther Buchheim, died aged 89 



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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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