SeaWaves Today in History June 12, 2009 1611 - Hendrick Hudson starts return voyage from Hudson Bay, his ship Discovery is again locked in spring ice 1775 - First naval battle of Revolution-Unity (Am) captures Margaretta (Br) 1792 - George Vancouver discovers site of Vancouver BC 1882 - Admiral, member of State Council Grigory Ivanovich Butakov died. (Born Oct 9 1820 Riga) 1898 - During the Spanish-American War, Filipino rebels led by Emilio Aguinaldo proclaim the independence of the Philippines after 300 years of Spanish rule. By mid-August, Filipino rebels and US troops had ousted the Spanish, but Aguinaldo's hopes for independence were dashed when the United States formally annexed the Philippines as part of its peace treaty with Spain 1900 - German Navy Law calls for massive increase in sea power 1915 - Submarine HMS E20 launched 1916 - Battleship USS Pennsylvania commissioned 1917 - Destroyer HMS Winchester laid down 1918 - Minesweepers USS Pelican & Penguin launched 1918 - Minesweeper USS Lapwing commissioned 1918 - Submarine USS O-6 commissioned 1919 - Destroyer USS Whipple laid down 1919 - Destroyer USS Hale commissioned 1919 - Submarine USS R-7 commissioned 1919 - Mooring vessel HMS Moor launched 1919 - Minesweeper HMS Ross launched 1919 - Destroyer USS Fox launched 1920 - Destroyer USS Bainbridge launched 1926 - Destroyer FS Chacal commissioned 1927 - Yachtsman Timir Alexeevich Pinegin, Merited Master of Sports, first Olympic champion from USSR in sailing born 1931 - Destroyer HMS Diana & Duchess laid down 1933 - Submarine HMS Shark laid down 1934 - Destroyer USS Mahan laid down 1934 - Destroyer HMS Faulknor launched 1935 - Patrol vessels HMS Mallard & Puffin laid down 1937 - Destroyers USS Dunlap & Bagley commissioned 1937 - Submarine USS Pompano commissioned 1937 - Submarine USS Salmon launched 1940 - Britain ordered complete blockade of Italy 1940 - Light cruiser HMS Calypso sunk in the Eastern Mediterranean south of Crete by a torpedo from Italian submarine Bagnolini 1940 - At 1208, the unescorted Earlspark was torpedoed and sunk by U-101 NW of Cape Finisterre. The master and six crewmembers were lost. 31 crewmembers were picked up by sloop HMS Enchantress 1940 - At 1938, the Barbara Marie in Convoy SL-34 was torpedoed and sunk by U-46 about 220 miles WNW of Cape Finisterre. At 1946, the U-boat attacked the convoy again and sank the Willowbank. The master and 31 crewmembers from the Barbara Marie were lost. The British merchantman Swedru picked up five crewmembers 1940 - U-505 laid down 1940 - U-94 launched 1940 - U-38 landed two agents in Ireland 1940 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Sisapon mined and sunk off Harwich 1940 - Tug HMS Twente lost due to unknown reasons 1940 - The Italian fortress at Tobruk is shelled by British naval units 1940 - Cruiser HMS Calypso is torpedoed by Italian submarine Bagnolini. The British initially believed that the loss was due to a mine, but it was in fact the first British loss caused by Italian naval forces 1940 - The Mediterranean Fleet (RN) with HMS Warspite, Malaya and Eagle, cruisers and destroyers sails from Alexandria for a sweep against Italian shipping in the Eastern basin. South of Crete, light cruiser HMS Calypso is torpedoed and sunk by Italian submarine Bagnolini 1940 - Destroyer HMS Calpe laid down 1940 - HMS Narwhal lays minefield FD 19 (50 mines) off Haugesund, Norway 1941 - The pocket battleship Lutzow is severely damaged by RAF Beaufort torpedo bombers 1941 - At 0326, U-371 hit a vessel of the Kent or Tongario type with two torpedoes and observed it sinking after 38 minutes. This must have been the Silverpalm, which was reported missing in the North Atlantic after being seen the last time on 1 June. On 15 July, a lifeboat with eight bodies was sighted by the British trawler Cave in grid AE 8569. The master, 53 crewmembers, eleven gunners and three passengers were lost 1941 - At 0251, the unescorted Empire Dew was torpedoed and sunk by U-48 north of the Azores. 23 crewmembers were lost. The master, 16 crewmembers and two gunners were picked up by destroyer KNM St Albans and landed at Liverpool 1941 - At 0414, the unescorted Chinese Prince was torpedoed and sunk by U-552 south of Rockall. 45 crewmembers were lost. The master, 15 crewmembers and three gunners were picked up by corvettes HMS Arbutus & Pimpernel and landed at Londonderry 1941 - At 1505, the Ranella, dispersed from Convoy OG-64, was hit on the port side in the tank #4 by one torpedo from U-553. After the crew abandoned ship in two lifeboats, the tanker was hit by a coup de grâce at 1635 behind the mast and broke in two but remained afloat. The U-boat surfaced and after 1706 fired 100 rounds from her deck gun until she sank. The boats were separated the next day in bad weather, but both sailed about 300 miles in twelve days and reached Figueira da Foz, Azores Islands 1941 - SS Susan Maersk sunk by U-553 1941 - U-518 laid down 1941 - U-574 commissioned 1941 - U-135, U-581, U-582 launched 1941 - HMCS Eyebright departed Iceland to join Convoy OB 332 bound for Halifax 1941 - Corvettes HMCS Buctouche & Sherbrooke arrived Halifax from builders in Quebec City & Sorel respectively 1941 - Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Yugoslavia, and Free France resolved to fight until victory 1941 - Submarine HMS Unshaken laid down 1941 - HMS Taku torpedoes and sinks the Italian merchant Silvio Scaroniin the Gulf of Syrte 70 nautical miles off Benghazi, Libya 1941 - HMS Torbay sinks the Italian sailing vessel Gesu E Maria with gunfire off Skyros, Greece. 1941 - Destroyers USS David W Taylor & Capps laid down 1942 - Canada and Russia signed agreement in London to resume diplomatic relations. (There had been no diplomatic relations between Canada and Russia for 6 years) 1942 - Japanese forces occupied the islands of Attu and Kiska in the extreme tip of the Aleutians 1942 - HMCS Ville de Quebec arrived Halifax from builder in Quebec City 1942 - Canada and Russia signed agreement in London to resume diplomatic relations. (There had been no diplomatic relations between Canada and Russia for 6 years) 1942 - German submarine U-701 mines the waters off Cape Henry, Virginia 1942 - German submarines sink two more armed US merchant vessels. A tanker bound for Portland, Maine, is sunk by U-158 in the Gulf of Mexico 20 miles east of Trinity Shoals Gas Buoy while a steamship is sunk by U-159 in the Caribbean off the coast of Panama 1942 - After escorting convoy AT.49 to Tobruk destroyer HMS Grove with only one screw operating runs aground near Raz Azzaz. Despite being refloated she is reduced to 8 knots and is torpedoed and sunk by U-77. There are 110 casualties and 80 survivors 1942 - Destroyer HMS Swift laid down 1942 - Submarine USS Shad commissioned 1942 - AA cruiser HMS Scylla commissioned 1942 - Minesweeper USS Pursuit launched 1942 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Sir Argavaine commissioned 1942 - Destroyers HMS Catterick & Glaisdale commissioned 1942 - Destroyer HMS Grove sunk by U-77 north of Sollum 1942 - At 0612, the Dartford in Convoy ONS-100 was torpedoed and sunk by U-124 south of Cape Race. The master, 25 crewmembers and four gunners were lost. 14 crewmembers and three gunners were picked up by the British rescue ship Gothland & landed at Halifax on 17 June 1942 - At 0854, the unescorted Hardwicke Grange was torpedoed twice by U-129 north of Puerto Rico near the Tropic of Cancer. The U-boat surfaced approximately one mile away two points of port bow and fired 26 high explosive rounds from the 105-mm deck gun. First, the navigating bridge was shelled, causing fires amidships. Then the fire was concentrated on the hull about the port bow until the vessel sank. Three crewmembers, the third engineer and two greasers, were lost on watch below. The master and 19 survivors landed at Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic after 13 days in a lifeboat. 23 survivors were picked up by the Athelprince and landed at Nuevitas, Cuba. 16 survivors landed at Môle St Nicolas, Republic of Haiti. The first officer, second engineer and 14 crewmembers were rescued by an unknown ship and landed at Jamaica. The master, Timothy McNamara, was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for bravery at sea 1942 - At 0750, the unescorted Cities Service Toledo was torpedoed by U-158 20 miles east of the Trinity Shoal Light Buoy in the Gulf of Mexico, while she proceeded on a nonevasive course. Two torpedoes struck two seconds apart on the starboard side amidships in the #6 and #7 tanks. The tanker rapidly took a starboard list. Five minutes later two more torpedoes struck the starboard side about amidships at the #4 and #5 tanks, causing the tanker to burst into flames. The armed guards (the ship was armed with one 5in, two .50cal and two .30cal guns) stayed with the ship as long as possible and fired three rounds at a light thought to be the U-boat. The most of the eight officers, 28 crewmen and nine armed guards abandoned ship in two lifeboats, because all rafts and the two other lifeboats were destroyed. One of these lifeboats could not get clear the flames and the men had to jump in the water. The Cities Service Toledo sank about two hours after the second attack. The Norwegian motor tanker Belinda picked up the 17 men in the remaining lifeboat several hours later. Eight hours after the attack, the surviving 13 men in the water were picked up by the American steam tanker Gulfking and the Panamanian steam merchant San Antonio. All survivors landed at Burwood, Louisiana and were then sent to New Orleans, where four men were hospitalized. One officer, ten crewmen and four armed guards died 1942 - While crossing the Bay of Biscay, U-105 was attacked by an RAAF 10 Sqn Sunderland. The boat sought shelter in El Ferrol, Spain the same day and stayed there for 16 days before leaving for her French base at Lorient where she was repaired. She sailed for the next time in late November. After crossing the Atlantic (submerged at day, surfaced at night) 1942 - U-202 landed a saboteur team of 4 men on Long Island, USA. This was one of two such teams that landed within a week of each other on the US East Coast, the other team came aboard U-584 1942 - U-542 laid down 1943 - Submarine USS R-12 foundered during exercises off Key West Florida 1943 - About 0330, the unescorted Palima was hit by one torpedo from U-97 and sank rapidly. 24 crewmembers and two British gunners were lost. 37 crewmembers and two British gunners rescued themselves on a few rafts that had floated free. During the day they were spotted by an aircraft, picked up by a large whaleboat and a Greek destroyer and landed at Beirut the same day 1943 - U-118 was sunk in the mid-Atlantic west of the Canary Islands, in position 30.49N, 33.49W by depth charges from eight Avenger aircraft off escort carrier USS Bogue 1943 - Submarine USS R-12 sank during torpedo trials off Key West. 42 men died, including Brazilian observers. No survivors (one report lists three survivors) 1943 - U-1163 launched 1943 - U-802 commissioned 1943 - U-1205, U-1206 laid down 1943 - U-333 shot down an RAF Sunderland & was damaged in the action 1943 - Frigate HMCS Montreal launched Montreal PQ 1943 - Corvette HMS Alnwick Castle laid down 1943 - Destroyer escort USS Leopold launched 1943 - Minesweepers USS Notable & Nucleus launched 1943 - Destroyers USS Cotten & Porterfield launched 1943 - Submarine HNLMS Tijgerhaai (ex-HMS Tarn) laid down 1943 - Destroyer USS Bradford commissioned 1943 - Destroyer escort USS Osterhaus commissioned 1944 - U-490 sunk NW of the Azores in position 42.47N, 40.08W by depth charges from escort carrier USS Croatan, and depth charges from destroyer escorts USS Frost, Huse and Inch 1944 - U-2330, U-3006 laid down 1944 - U-2321 commissioned 1944 - U-1191 reported missing in English Channel. No survivors 1944 - Frigate HMCS Cheboque arrived Yarmouth NS 1944 - In the Mariana Islands, eight IJN Mitsubishi G4M Navy Type 1 Attack Bombers, Allied Code Name "Betty," based on Truk Atoll, attack the USN's Task Force 58 between 0315 & 0415 but cause no damage. Beginning at dawn, carrier aircraft attack Japanese installations on Saipan, Tinian, Guam, Rota and Pagan Islands. Aircraft of Task Group 58.1 tasked with attacking Guam shoot down 22 Japanese aircraft over Guam and Rota beginning at 0620 while aircraft of Task Group 58.4 attack a Japanese convoy NW of Saipan sinking thirteen ships and damaging seven others 1944 - Only six days after the first troops came ashore in Normandy, the Mulberry harbors at Arromanches and St Laurent were declared operational. The Dieppe Raid in 1942 had shown the difficulty of seizing a port in a direct amphibious assault, and the Germans had been confident that the Allies would be unable to receive adequate supplies across the beaches they had taken on D-Day. However, numerous huge concrete caissons had been constructed in British dockyards to be towed across the Channel and sunk as prefabricated harbors. Floating trackways were installed, capable of allowing fully loaded trucks to be driven straight off transport ships to the shore 1944 - U-490 sunk NW of the Azores in position 42.47N, 40.08W by depth charges from escort carrier USS Croatan, and depth charges from destroyer escorts USS Frost, Huse and Inch 1944 - U-2330, U-3006 laid down 1944 - U-2321 commissioned 1944 - U-1191 reported missing in English Channel. No survivors 1944 - Frigate HMS Halsted is torpedoed by the units of 9th Schnellboot geschwader in the English Channel at Seine Bay and has her bows blown off, but is able to make port at Portsmouth astern under her own power. She is not repaired 1944 - S-class submarine HMS Sickle is lost in the Mediterranean / Aegean Sea cause unknown. Last heard from on this date when they reported sighting a convoy in the Steno Channel. Sickle is the last British submarine to be lost in the Mediterranean during WW2. There is one survivor from Sickle - Able Seaman Richard Blake, a member of the submarine's 3-inch gun crew who was blown over board on 4 June when Sickle had engaged in gunfire with German patrol vessels GA76 and GA91. The submarine had to make an urgent dive to avoid further hits, and Blake was left in the water and picked up by the Germans to become a POW 1944 - HMS Stoic torpedoes and sinks the Japanese transport ship Kainan Maru off Phuket, Siam 1944 - Destroyer USS Chevalier laid down 1944 - Submarine HMS Tiptoe commissioned 1944 - Light cruiser USS Vicksburg commissioned 1944 - Destroyer escort USS Oswald commissioned 1944 - Submarine USS Bergall commissioned 1945 - Auxiliary HMCS Laymore commissioned 1945 - Lt John Rawson Kenneth Stewart RCNVR Awarded Mention in Dispatches 1945 - Minesweeper HMCS Transcona paid off & became RCMP ship French at Sydney NS 1945 - Corvette HMCS Fennel paid off & returned to RN at Londonderry 1945 - Destroyer HMCS Columbia paid off 1945 - Mines previously laid by USAAF B-29 Superfortresses sink a Japanese army cargo ship, two freighters and a liaison ship off Japan 1945 - USN's Task Force 38 retires from the Okinawa area 1945 - Aircraft carrier USS Tarawa launched 1945 - Submarine USS Pomodon launched 1945 - Destroyer USS Turner commissioned 1948 - The Women's Armed Forces Integration Act provides for enlistment and appointment of women in the Naval Reserve 1951 - RCN VF 870 Sea Fury a/c #TG120 from HMCS Magnificent ditched at sea 1952 - Destroyer HMCS Iroquois arrived Korean theater by way of Panama Canal 1953 - Destroyer HMCS Haida departed Korean waters 1953 - HMCS Crusader relieved of her duties by HMC Ships Iroquois and Huron and set sails for home from Korean waters 1959 - Submarine HMS Dreadnought laid down 1966 - USS Constellation port call Subic Bay 1970 - USS Shangri-La port call Cubi Point 1970 - After earthquake in Peru, USS Guam begins 11 days of relief flights to transport medical teams and supplies, as well as rescue victims 1973 - USS Enterprise completed Vietnam deployment 1974 - USS Kitty Hawk port call Subic Bay 1982 - HMS Glamorgan was hit by a land launched Exocet missile which destroyed the ship's Wessex HAS.3 helicopter and hangar. Fires broke out but were brought under control, and she was back in service 36 hours later with a loss of 13 of the ship's company 1991 - Citizens of Leningrad vote for returning its historic name, St. Petersburg, to their city 2003 - Hospital ship USNS Comfort placed in reduced operating status Baltimore MD 2004 - The Umm Qasr Naval Base in Iraq officially commissioned and its facilities transferred to the Iraqi Coastal Defense Force, Defense Minister Robert Hill announced. Senator Hill said the transfer was another step towards re-establishing sovereignty for the people of Iraq. The ceremony also marked the culmination of many months of work by the international coalition to re-equip the Iraqi Coastal Defense Force with five patrol boats and refurbish its naval facilities 2005 - Coast Guard Station Jones Beach received multiple hoax distress calls from two minors on a VHF-FM radio. The juveniles falsely reported a bomb threat and person in the water to the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard was able to home in on the location of the juveniles using direction finding equipment and end the distress calls 2005 - USCGC Flying Fish, while on patrol, discovered two people in the water clinging onto the side of their overturned 12-foot Hobie Cat in Buzzard's Bay, Mass., Sunday. Luanne Pierson, 48, from and Charlie Pierson, 52, from Orange, Mass., were taken aboard and transported to an awaiting EMS near Cleveland Ledge. The male was treated for shock symptoms and the female was treated for hypothermia 2005 - Coast Guard Cutter MORAY terminated the voyages of the fishing vessels Oh Baby and Caitlin Marie, which were fishing in state waters. Oh Baby, a 34-foot fishing vessel homeported in Plymouth, Mass., vessel was cited for operating with inadequate firefighting capabilities, expired distress signal and expired batteries in the personal marker light on personal flotation devices. Caitlin Marie, a 38-foot, fishing vessel homeported in Brantrock, Mass., was cited for operating without a survival craft, expired EPIRB and no sound producing device 2006 - In a tribute fitting for a national war hero, full military honors will be paid to Rear-Admiral Robert Walter Timbrell in a 1400 memorial service at the Faith Center, CFB Halifax 2006 - Sea Containers Ltd. and AS Tallink Grupp jointly announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement whereby Sea Containers will sell its Baltic ferry subsidiary Silja Oy Ab to Tallink for a consideration of approximately $594 million in cash and shares 2006 - NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, will travel to Skopje 2006 - Carnival Corporation & plc announced that it has ordered two cruise ships for its European brands with an option for a third. Included in today's order are a 92,700-ton vessel for Genoa, Italy-based Costa Crociere, as well as an option for a sister ship, both to be built by Italy's Fincantieri shipyard, and a 68,500-ton ship for its Rostock, Germany-based AIDA Cruises to be built by Germany's Meyer Werft yard. The new vessels will add more than 6,500 total lower berths to Carnival Corporation & plc's fleet and build upon its leadership position within the rapidly expanding European cruise market, with six million passengers expected to set sail by 2015 2006 - Chief Petty Officer John Ryan, of Western Australia, awarded a Medal in the military division of the Order of Australia for meritorious service to the navy. As chief engineer on HMAS Dechaineux, Chief Petty Officer Ryan ran to check the flooded motor room to give his captain a report. His colleagues were moved by his courage, giving him the nickname "Johnny Crazy". His citation recognizes his "exceptional professional competence and remarkable leadership" 2006 - Lionel "Buster" Crabb vanished while spying on Soviet warships visiting the city at the height of the Cold War. The frogman's fate has remained one of the country's most closely-guarded secrets, but the BBC has obtained the report into his final mission 19 April 1956. The secret document was the subject of a Freedom of Information application by BBC Radio Solent 2006 - Martin Hagbyhn, the current president of Kockums, has been appointed the new CEO of Läckeby Water Group 2006 - At a formal ceremony held in Karlskrona, Kockums handed over HMS Visby & Härnösand to the client FMV, the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration. Three ships in the Visby Class are now delivered. The fourth vessel of the series is scheduled for handover to FMV end of August this year. Then there also will be a launching ceremony of the fifth ship, HMS Karlstad 2006 - In a contract signed with Boeing Satellite Systems International (BSSI), a Sea Launch Zenit-3SL vehicle will lift the 5250 kg (11,578 lb) Thuraya-3 satellite to geosynchronous transfer orbit from Sea Launch's equatorial launch site in the Pacific Ocean in January 2007 2006 - Northrop Grumman Corporation awarded type approval from Registro Italiano Navale (RINA) for its Sperry Marine VoyageMaster II Simplified Voyage Data Recorder (S-VDR) 2006 - Coast Guard Sector Boston coordinated the rescue of 65 passengers and five crewmembers from a ferry boat that had an engine room fire today at 1630 in Quincy Bay. The ferryboat Massachusetts departed Rowes Wharf in Boston Harbor at 1600 and was south of Long Island Bridge on the way to Hingham Harbor when a fire broke out in the vessel's engine room . The ferryboat Laura was in the area and came to the aid of Massachusetts after its crew noticed smoke billowing out from the 100-foot commuter boat. The Massachusetts anchored in 21-to-26 feet of water while the Laura pulled alongside and evacuated all passengers and crew. There are no reports of any injuries. Coast Guard CDR Thomas Miller, who works at Sector Boston, happened to be commuting home on the ferry and called the Sector Boston Operations Center to report the incident. Coast Guard Station Point Allerton launched a 41-foot utility boat which arrived at 1650 to establish a safety zone around the stricken ferry. Boston Fire Dept launched the vessel Firefighter, which arrived on scene at 1734 and extinguished the fire 2006 - Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. to build the country's second Aegis-equipped destroyer, officials at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said. They said the DAPA will sign an official contract with Daewoo next month. Daewoo is expected to deliver the destroyer to the Navy by the end of 2010 2006 - HNLMS Pelikaan commissioned at Gorinchem 2006 - A failure in the hydraulic system forced a Canadian Sea King to make an emergency landing north of Victoria 2006 - Friends and loved ones said aloha to USS Buffalo as the Pearl Harbor-based nuclear-powered attack submarine departed for the Western Pacific 2006 - USCGC Escanaba memorialized the 63rd anniversary of her namesake’s sinking through a brief ceremony conducted on-board the ship. On June 13, 1943, while operating in the North Atlantic on convoy duty, USCGC Escanaba (WPG-77) was struck by a torpedo from a German submarine that sunk her instantly. Of her crew of over 100, there were only two survivors 2006 - Thailand's King and Queen received world royalty from 25 countries and accompanied them to watch the royal barge procession; the highlight of the ceremonies marking King Bhumibol 60th anniversary of accession to the throne 2006 - Amphibious assault ship HMS Bulwark received a call for help from the Maltese registered MV Ocean D which reported a fire in the engine room off Somalia. Boat groups of Royal Marines were sent to help and, although the merchant crew managed to extinguish the fire, the ship was left drifting and helpless in potentially dangerous waters. Bulwark stayed close by her all night, keeping other ships away from the unlit and drifting vessel and providing re-assurance to the crew that they would be safe from any pirate attacks or collision. At first light the next day while awaiting the arrival of a salvage tug from Aden, Royal Navy experts visited the ship to assess its safety and to offer food and water. Medical first aid was also administered to one of the crewmembers who had suffered superficial burns and other minor injuries 2006 - Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division Executive Director Scott O’Neil was honored with a US Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Award 2006 - Modules of two new Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) departed New Zealand on their way to Australia. The hangar, funnel and bridge modules were barged from their construction site in Whangarei to Williamstown, Australia where they will be joined to the other modules to complete the construction. The two new vessels, to be named Wellington and Otago, will be delivered into Navy service during 2007 2006 - Ex-HMS Onyx arrives at Barrow where she will eventually become the main attraction at a new Submarine Heritage Centre 2007 - Mrs Elizabeth Bjerregaard, accompanied by her husband Peter Bjerregaard, Executive Vice President of the Danish Shipowners’ Association, delighted A.P. Moller - Maersk and the shipyard by naming the vessel Nordby Mærsk. The vessel is the third in a series of six vessels that the Chinese shipyard has delivered to A.P. Moller - Maersk 2007 - Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert M. Gates announced June 11 that the President has made the following nomination: Navy Rear Adm. (lower half) Christine M. Bruzek-Kohler has been nominated for appointment to the grade of rear admiral. Bruzek-Kohler is currently serving as chief of staff, program executive officer, N-09, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED) and director of the Nurse Corps, Washington, D.C 2007 - Cdr Hugh FitzPatrick appointed Commanding Officer HMCS Algonquin. Cdr Casper Donovan appointed Commanding Officer HMCS Vancouver. Cdr Craig Baines appointed Commanding Officer HMCS Winnipeg. Cdr. Martin Teft is appointed Commanding Officer HMCS Ottawa. Cdr Michael Knippel will command Sea Training Pacific. Capt.(N) Peter Avis assumes command of Maritime Operations Group Four. Lt-Cdr Donald Henderson appointed Commanding Officer HMCS Whitehorse. Lt-Cdr Robert Watt will command Fleet Diving Unit Pacific 2007 - USCG rescued seven people after they became stranded aboard a disabled charter boat in threatening seas off Cape Cod 2007 - Coast Guard Sector Northern New England received a mayday call about 2115 from the Gloucester-based Virginia Surf that they were taking on water. The sector lost communications with the Virginia Surf, and another vessel, the Lily Jean, told the Coast Guard they were heading in the direction of the sinking boat. A Falcon jet from Air Station Cape Cod launched and the Coast Guard Cutter Campbell, a 210-foot cutter from Kittery, Maine, was diverted to the scene. All four people aboard the Virginia Surf were transferred to the Lily Jean and upon determining their safety, the Coast Guard Falcon jet and the Cutter Campbell stood down 2008 - North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the level of defense ministers meet at NATO Headquarters on Thursday 12 and Friday 13 June 2008. The Nuclear Planning Group (NPG), the Defense Planning Committee (DPC), the NAC with non-NATO KFOR contributors, the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) and the NATO-Ukraine Commission (NUC) will meet at the level of defense ministers on the same days 2008 - Ward Boston, a former Navy attorney who helped investigate the 1967 Israeli attack on the USS Liberty that killed 34 crewmen and years later said President Lyndon Johnson ordered that the assault be ruled an accident, died. He was 84 Copyright 2009 Shirlaw News Group ISSN 1710-6966 Today in History Archives This information is licensed to the recipient only. Images may be subject to copyright. Ask before you right-click. 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