SeaWaves Today in History March 10, 2009

 


1496 - Christopher Columbus concluded his second visit to the Western Hemisphere as he left Hispaniola for Spain
1783 - USS Alliance (CAPT John Barry) defeats HMS Sybil in final naval action of Revolution in West Indies waters
1876 - Alexander Graham Bell made the first telephone call in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Over a wire to his assistant in the next room, Bell said, "Mister Watson, come here; I want you." Only when Bell improved his invention to carry a voice for several miles did the public create a need for them
1909 - Submarine HMS C25 launched
1909 - Fishers Island N.Y. The British barquentine Ladysmith, during a thick fog, stranded 3 miles WSW of the station. The keeper was notified by telephone and the lifesavers, in a surfboat, proceeded to the scene. They landed the master, his wife, and 9 seamen
1917 - Destroyer HMS Warwick laid down
1917 - HMS G13 torpedoed and sank UC-43 off Muckle Flugga Lighthouse, Shetland Islands
1919 - Destroyer USS Maddox commissioned
1933 - Soviet submarine SC-203 laid down
1933 - US Pacific Fleet provides assistance after earthquake at Long Beach CA
1935 - Destroyer FS La Fantasque commissioned
1936 - Light cruiser HMS Southampton launched
1936 - Destroyer HMS Impulsive laid down
1936 - Destroyers HMS Hero & Hereward launched
1937 - U-48 laid down
1937 - Submarine HMS Grampus commissioned
1939 - Destroyer HMS Tartar commissioned
1940 - US freighters SS Explorer, Exchester & West Cohas detained at Gibraltar by British authorities. All are released after several hours
1940 - Darlan ratifies Murphy-Weygand agreement for provisioning of Vichy French North Africa. Darlan again threatens to use the French navy to protect convoy foodships bound for France if the Royal Navy continues to seize them. Darlan was speaking in the presence of Marshal Petain to a press conference for American journalists. "I am responsible for feeding 40 million people, plus millions more in Africa. I will feed them even if I have to use force" 
1940 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Elm commissioned
1941 - At 2052, U-552 hit steam trawler Reykjaborg with a dud & then fired at her between 2314 & 2347 with 103 rounds from the deck gun and 592 rounds from the 2cm AA gun. The trawler sank about 459 miles SE of Iceland. She was probably the largest Icelandic-owned trawler at the time
1941 - Destroyer HMS Chiddingfold launched
1941 - Submarine HMS Thunderbolt departed Halifax escort for Convoy SC-25
1941 - HMS Unique torpedoes & sinks Italian passenger/cargo ship Fenicia 95miles northwest of Tripoli
1942 - At 0449, U-161 fired two torpedoes into Port Castries, St Lucia. The first torpedo hit SS Lady Nelson, which caught fire & sank by the stern in shallow waters. The second torpedo struck Umtata, which exploded & also sank. However, both vessels were later salvaged & repaired
1942 - At 0632, the unescorted & unarmed steam tanker Gulftrade was torpedoed by U-588 three miles off Barnegat Light. The U-boat spotted the tanker, because the running lights and the masthead light had been turned on to avoid collision with several colliers in the vicinity. A torpedo struck the starboard side just forward of the mainmast and just aft of the bridgehouse. The explosion broke the ship in two, ripped up the decks and completely opened tanks #5, #6 and #7. Oil & debris was sprayed over the vessel from stem to stern and the ship caught fire immediately. Within one minute, the high seas washed over the tanker & extinguished the flames. The engines were stopped and the crew of eight officers and 26 crewmen abandoned the ship. The high seas and the fact that oil lay several inches deep all about the deck & had filled the boats complicated the abandonment. Seven survivors stayed on the stern and nine abandoned ship in a lifeboat. Two other boats with 18 men swamped, drowning the officer & 17 crewmen in them. USCGC Antietam arrived & picked up the men in the lifeboat. While maneuvering to remove the men on the stern, her port propeller got fouled with a mooring line. Net tender USS Larch then rescued the men. The survivors reported that the U-boat surfaced 5 minutes after the attack, circled the stern & departed 45 minutes later on a southerly course. The master, Torger Olsen, died on 21 Oct, 1943, when his next ship the Gulfland collided with the Gulfbelle
1942 - Corvette USS Impulse commissioned
1942 - U-958 laid down
1942 - U-262 launched
1942 - When U-155 headed back from the US-East coast it lost I WO Oberleutnant zur See Gert Rentrop overboard
1942 - Corvette HMCS Dunvegan arrived Londonderry
1942 - A Kawanishi H6K4, Navy Type 97 Flying Boat (later assigned the Allied Code Name "Mavis", is shot down southwest of Midway by a Marine Fighting Squadron Two Hundred Twenty One (VMF-221) F2A Buffalo fighter pilot. The flying boat, based at Wotje Atoll in the Marshall Islands, had been refueled at sea by a Japanese submarine
1942 - One RAF Bomber Command aircraft bombs the Rotterdam port area during the night
1942 - The Japanese make a landing at Finschhafen on the Huon Peninsula. Japanese Navy aircraft based at Rabaul, New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago, attack targets around Huon Gulf and in the Port Moresby area
1942 - Rear Admiral Francis W. Rockwell, Commandant Sixteenth Naval District, gives Lieutenant John Bulkeley, Commander of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three (MTBRon 3) based on Bataan, his orders regarding the evacuation of General MacArthur and his party from Corregidor Island to Mindanao Island. Bulkeley, with PT-41, is to pick up his passengers, including General and Mrs. MacArthur and their son, and Major General Richard K. Sutherland, MacArthur’s Chief of Staff, at North Dock at Corregidor at 1930 hours tomorrow. PT-34 and PT-35 are to remain at their base on Bataan so that the Japanese do not observe any unusual activity; these two boats will transport Admiral Rockwell and his Chief of Staff, Captain Ray, USN, who will be transported from Corregidor to Bataan by launch. The fourth PT boat, PT-32 will pick up passengers at Quarantine Dock at Mariveles at 1915. The plan is for the four boats to rendezvous at the entrance to Manila Bay at 2000 hours tomorrow night
1942 - Japanese troops land on Buka Island, the 190 square mile island just north of Bougainville Island. Buka Passage separates the two islands
1942 - Churchill bluntly warns that if the USN can't stop German U-boat depredations in the Caribbean, he'll order British tankers to remain in port
1942 - Aircraft from the US carriers, Lexington and Yorktown attack Japanese naval units near Lae, New Guinea. The Lexington and Yorktown were part of Task Force Eleven (TF 11). The carriers were sailing south of New Guinea in the Gulf of Papua and the targets were located along the north coast of the island requiring the aircraft to fly over the Owen Stanley Mountains. The raid consisted of 61 Douglas SBD Dauntless divebombers and 25 Douglas TBD Devastator torpedo bombers escorted by 18 Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters. The American aircraft hit the airfields at Lae and Salamaua and Japanese shipping and port facilities. Two Japanese transports were sunk with the loss of 346 Japanese sailors and soldiers. Also hit and damaged were a cruiser, a transport, a seaplane tender, a destroyer and an auxiliary minesweeper. One Nakajima E8N2 Navy Type 95 Reconnaissance Seaplane (Allied Code Name "Dave") is shot down by a Fighting Squadron Three (VF-3) Wildcat. American losses are one SBD. Shortly after the carrier attack, eight Boeing B-17E Flying Fortresses of the 19th Bombardment Group (Heavy) operating from Townsville, Queensland, Australia, attack naval targets and damage a transport. In a message to Churchill, Roosevelt hails the raid as "the best day's work we've had." The success of the US carrier strike (the first time in which two carrier air groups attack a common objective) convinces Japanese war planners that continued operations in the New Guinea area will require carrier support, thus setting the stage for confrontation in the Coral Sea
1943 - Man was lost overboard from U-634 [Bootsmaat Ernst Adam]
1943 - Submarine USS Apogon launched
1943 - Submarine USS Tilefish laid down
1943 - Destroyer USS Stoddard laid down
1943 - At 1720, the unescorted SS Richard D. Spaight was hit on the starboard side by two torpedoes from U-182 about 350 miles NE of Durban in the Mozambique Channel. The first torpedo struck at the #1 hold & the second between holds #2 & #3. The explosions extensively damaged the ship & showered the deck with debris. One man sitting on #1 hatch was blown overboard & drowned, while another lying on a mattress on the same hatch survived. He was blew higher than the mast, but stayed on the mattress & landed right side up to be rescued. The bow immediately submerged & the stern lifted the turning propeller & rudder out of the water. The surviving eight officers, 34 crewmen & 24 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 5in, one 3in & eight 20mm guns) abandoned ship in four lifeboats. The men in one of the boats had to jump overboard because it drifted towards the propeller & was swamped. The U-boat surfaced about 2000 yards away & fired about 35 rounds from the deck gun, hitting 25 times & causing the ship to sink after two hours. The Germans questioned the survivors offered medical supplies, food & water & then left the area. Two boats made landfall after three days in Richards Bay, South Africa. Another boat reached Cape St. Lucia, while the fourth landed five days after the attack at Cuanalonbi Beach, South Africa
1943 - At 0909, U-185 attacked Convoy KG-123 for a second time SE of Guantanamo Bay & torpedoed the James Sprunt on her maiden voyage in station #42. The ship had shifted out of position between the third & fourth columns. One torpedo struck the vessel & caused her cargo to explode, the ship completely disappeared in 30 seconds. The blast went straight up & sent debris over the entire convoy & was so large that a ship 40 miles away witnessed it. None of the eight officers, 36 crewmen & 25 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 5in & nine 20mm guns) survived. Previously U-185 had sunk steam tanker Virginia Sinclair, which suffered 7 deaths
1943 - At 2126, the lead ship of the Andrea F. Luckenbach's column in the HX-228, the Tucurinca was torpedoed & sunk by U-221. Five minutes later, immediately after lookouts spotted the periscope two FAT torpedoes from the same U-boat hit the ship. The first struck on the port side about 90 feet forward of the stern post & caused the after magazine to explode. The after end of the ship was blown off, destroying the after gun platform & killing the ten armed guards on station. The second torpedo hit just forward of the first & the majority of the nine officers, 46 men, 28 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, one 3in & eight 20mm guns) & one passenger (US Army officer) immediately abandoned ship in two lifeboats. Others jumped overboard & swam to the boats, the rafts & wreckage. The Armed guard officer gave his life jacket to a seaman who did not have one, but the officer could not swim & was unable to reach a lifeboat after he jumped overboard & drowned. The Andrea F. Luckenbach sank within seven minutes. In just over an hour RFA Orangeleaf rescued 17 armed guards, nine officers, 37 men & the passenger & landed them at Clyde, Scotland 
1943 - At 2131, SS Lawton B. Evans in Convoy HX-228 was probably slightly damaged by dud torpedo from U-221 & reached the Clyde safely
1943 - SS Tucurinca sunk by U-221 in Convoy HX-228 at 51.00N, 30.10W 
1943 - At 0104, U-229 fired a torpedo at Convoy SC-121 south of Reykjavik, followed by a spread of two torpedoes at 0105 & reported two ships sunk & another damaged. In fact, the Nailsea Court was sunk & Coulmore, which was damaged & managed to reach port safely. At 1115 the same day, the U-boat attacked the convoy a second time in grid AL 2622, heard detonations after 2 minutes 45 seconds & 4 minutes 15 seconds & reported one ship damaged & another probably damaged. No ship was hit at this time, but the British steam merchant Scorton in station #52 saw one torpedo that missed. The master, 33 crewmembers, nine gunners & two passengers from the Nailsea Court were lost. One crewmember was picked up by the British rescue ship Melrose Abbey & landed at Gourock on 13 March. Three crewmembers were rescued by HMCS Dauphin & landed at Londonderry on 13 March
1943 - At 0926, U-255 fired a spread of three torpedoes at Convoy RA-53 in grid AB 5939 (72°44N/11°27E) & heard two detonations. The Executive was sunk & Richard Bland was damaged, but five days later finished off by the same U-boat. The Richard Bland was struck on the starboard side by the third torpedo at the #1 hold. The torpedo did not explode, passed through the ship & went out the port side, creating holes of eight foot on either side. It cracked the deck & ruptured the collision bulkhead & flooded the forepeak tank, causing a starboard list. The ship remained with the convoy with only a slightly reduced speed but on the night of 6 March straggled from the convoy due gale force winds & rough seas & proceeded towards Iceland. At 1636, U-255 found the Richard Bland about 35 miles off Langanes, Iceland & fired a spread of three torpedoes, but only one torpedo struck on the port side at the #4 hatch. At 1647, a second torpedo hit on the port side at the fireroom, bending the propeller shaft, flooding the #4 & #5 holds. Soon after the torpedo hit, the ship broke in two just forward of the bridge. A coup de grâce at 16.56 hours missed, but another at 2107 apparently hit the stern section, which sank at 2203. The forward section was towed to Akureyri, Iceland where the ship was declared a total loss. After the first hit, the master ordered two weather boats launched, each carrying four men, & they rode at their painters until time to abandon ship. In attempting to pass these boats around the ship, the painters were lost & the boats drifted astern. The remaining men of the nine officers, 32 crewmen & 26 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, one 12lb, eight 20mm, two .50cal & two .30cal guns) had to abandon ship in two lifeboats after the second hit in rough seas. One overcrowded boat got away with only inches of freeboard, many clung to the side until they lost strength & drowned. The boat of the master is thought to have swamped & was never seen again. 27 survivors in the overcrowded boat were picked up after 13 hours by HMS Impulsive & landed at Seydisfjord, Iceland on 13 March. The two boats launched with four men in each were picked up the same morning; four of them landed at Reykjavik on 16 March & the others were taken to Scapa Flow. The master, five officers, 13 crewmen and 17 armed guards were lost
1943 - U-973 launched
1943 - U-540 commissioned
1943 - Frigate USS Tacoma laid down
1943 - Destroyer escorts USS Dionne & Cabana launched
1943 - Destroyer USS Daly commissioned
1943 - HMC ML 072 & 081 damaged when ammunition ship SS James Sprunt blew up when torpedoed by U-185 off Cape Maysi, Cuba, The explosion was approximately twice the magnitude of the 6 Dec 1917 at Halifax
1943 - U-633 (Type VIIC) Left Kiel, Germany on 20 Feb 1943. Last radio message received on 3 March 1943. Sunk 10 March 1943 in the North Atlantic, position 58.51N, 19.55W, by ramming from the British SS Scorton. 43 dead (all hands lost)
1943 - Lighter Covered (Non Self-Propelled) YC-1278 lost off the Atlantic coast 
1943 - HMS Trooper torpedoes and sinks the Italian tanker Rosario 4 nautical miles off Punta Milazzo
1943 - HMS Taurus torpedoes and sinks the Italian merchant Derna off Sete, southern France
1943 - HMS Una torpedoes and damages the Italian merchant Cosala 7 nautical miles off Punta Stilo, Italy
1944 - USS SC-700 sunk by accidental fire off Vella Lavella Solomon Islands 
1944 - Destroyer Escort USS Leopold sunk after being torpedoed by German submarine U-255 south of Iceland 
1944 - U-343 sunk in the Mediterranean south of Sardinia, in position 38.07N, 09.41E, by depth charges from ASW trawler HMS Mull. 51 dead (all hands lost)
1944 - U-450 sunk in the western Mediterranean south of Ostia, in position 41.11N, 12.27E, by depth charges from escort destroyers HMS Blankney, Blencathra, Brecon & Exmoor & destroyer USS Madison. 42 survivors (No casualties)
1944 - U-625 sunk west of Ireland, in position 52.35N, 20.19W, by depth charges from am RCAF 422 Sqn Sunderland. 53 dead (all hands lost). U-625 was engaged in operations against the 30-ship Halifax to Liverpool convoy SC-154 when she was attacked on the surface in the late afternoon. The submarine dove as she was attacked but resurfaced three minutes later and the crew abandoned the boat. A signal was sent by lamp to the aircraft from the survivors in their life raft that read “Nice bombing.” SC-154 arrived in Liverpool on 15 Mar 44 with all of its ships intact. 
U-625 was a medium-range Type VIIC submarine built by Blohm and Voss, at Hamburg. She was commissioned on 04 Jun 42, OLtzS Hans Benker, CO. U-625 conducted 11 patrols and compiled a record of five ships sunk for a total of 19,690 tons, all while under the command of Kptlt Hans Benker. On 02 Jan 44, during an attack by two RAF 'Liberator' patrol planes from 224 Squadron, Kptlt. Benker and one other man were lost overboard. OLtzS Kurt Sureth assumed command and, despite the damaged state of the boat, was able to return U-625 to base on 06 Jan. U-625 was on her first patrol under the command of OLtzS. Straub when she was lost. Siegfried Straub was born in 1918, at Braunsberg. He joined the navy in 1939. His first service was as a liaison officer with the Luftwaffe from Dec 40 to Apr 41. He transferred to the U-boat force and completed his introductory training by Sep 41. He was assigned as a Watch Officer in the U-boat depot ship VEGA and in Jun 42 was assigned as the First Weapons Officer in U-625, commanded by Kptlt. Hans Benker. He was selected for command and underwent his U-boat commander’s course from Aug to Oct 43. He spent three months instructing torpedo attack tactics at the naval school in Mürwick and on 26 Jan 44 was appointed to command his former boat U-625, at the age of 25. Siegfried Straub was lost when U-625 was sunk in the North Atlantic. He did not sink or damage any ships
1944 - Escort carrier USS Takanis Bay launched
1944 - Escort carrier USS Matankikau laid down
1944 - Minesweeper USS Magnet commissioned
1944 - U-2321 laid down
1944 - Destroyer USS Ingraham commissioned
1944 - US Liberty Ship William B Woods sunk by U-952 at 38.36N, 13.45E
1944 - Corvette HMS Asphodel sunk by U-575
1944 - U-845 sunk in the North Atlantic, in position 48.20N, 20.33W, by depth charges from the British destroyer HMS Forester, the Canadian destroyer HMCS St Laurent, the corvette HMCS Owen Sound and the frigate HMCS Swansea. There were 46 survivors from U-845’s crew of 56 men. KKpt Weber was among those lost in the action.  The attacking ships were part of Escort Groups C-1 and EG-9, which had been sent to support Convoy SC-154. U-845, who had conducted one unsuccessful attack, surfaced astern of the convoy to recharge batteries and to reposition for further attacks. St Laurent sighted her at 1647, who closed at high speed and forced the U-boat to submerge. U-845’s batteries had been depleted to 60-percent, which placed her at a major disadvantage. A prolonged series of attacks lasted until 22 -34 when the submarine re-surfaced and attempted to disengage. Weber made many innovative attempts to evade but was thwarted by ideal acoustic conditions and bright moonlight. A running gun battle ensued that resulted in the sinking of the submarine at 23 -38. St Laurent expended 119 rounds of 4.7-inch and 1,440 rounds of 20-mm ammunition. KKpt Weber was killed by gunfire.  U-845 was a long-range Type IXC submarine built by Deutsche Schiffund Machinenbau AG, at Bremen. She was commissioned on 01 May 43, Kptlt Udo Behrens, CO. U-845 conducted only one patrol and compiled a record of damaging one ship of 7,039 tons. U-845 was attacked on 14 Feb 44 by a Liberator patrol aircraft from RAF 10 Squadron that resulted in the death of one man and another being wounded. U-845 evaded after the aerial attack and continued her patrol until 10 Mar 44, when she was sunk. Werner Weber was born in 1907, in Berlin. He joined the navy in 1925. His first wartime service was from Jun 39 to Apr 40 as the First Watch Officer in the U-boat depot ship SAAR. He was selected for command and appointed to the U-boat depot ship Donau in May 40. In Dec 40 he was assigned to the staff of the U-boat Force Commander and remained there until Feb 43. Weber transferred to operations in Mar 43 and, after introductory training, was assigned to the staff of the 27th Flotilla in Aug 43. He was selected for command and underwent his U-boat commander’s course and was appointed to the command of U-845 on 8 Oct 43, at the age of 35. He was promoted to KKpt on 01 Mar 44. Werner Weber was lost in action when U-845 was sunk in the North Atlantic. He did not sink or damage any ships
1944 - U-275 sunk in the English Channel south of Newhaven, in position 50.36N, 00.04E, by a mine. 48 dead (all hands lost)
1944 - U-681 sunk at 0930hrs in the English Channel west of Isles of Scilly, in position 49.52.433N, 06.38.633W, by depth charges from a US Liberator aircraft (VPB-103). There were 11 dead and 38 survivors. The boat struck a rock while submerged near the Bishop Rock and was forced to surface and was then attacked by the Liberator aircraft. It sank roughly 4 miles to the NE of the Isles of Scilly
1944 - Tug HMCS Streetsville assigned to Shelburne NS
1944 - Corvette HMCS Leaside (ex-HMS Walmer Castle) commissioned South Bank-on-Tees
1944 - The motion picture "The Fighting Seabees" is released in the US The war drama, supposedly about the US Navy's Construction Battalions (Seabees), is directed by Edward Ludwig and stars John Wayne, Susan Hayward, Dennis O'Keefe and William Frawley. The film was nominated for one Academy Award
1945 - HM MTB-307 (PT-49 USN BPT-1) Returned to US Navy at Palermo (there 1/21/47)
1945 - Coast Guard-manned Army vessel FS-288 was commissioned at Wheeler Shipyard, Whitestone NY with LTJG Paul A. Berg, USCG, as commanding officer. She was assigned to and operated in the Pacific Ocean area at Saipan, Guam, etc., during the war
1945 - Navy & civilian nurses interned at Los Banos, Philippines flown back to US. Navy nurses awarded Bronze Star
1945 - Minesweeper USS Waxwing launched
1945 - Minesweeping trawler KNM Nordhav II torpedoed & sunk by U-714 off Dundee, Scotland. 6 of the crew went down with the ship with 17 survivors
1945 - U-275 sunk in the English Channel south of Newhaven, in position 50.36N, 00.04E, by a mine. 48 dead (all hands lost)
1945 - U-681 sunk in the English Channel west of Isles of Scilly, in position 49.52.433N, 06.38.633W, by depth charges from a USN VPB-103 Privateer. 11 dead and 38 survivors
1945 - U-2366, U-2544, U-3041, U-3527 commissioned
1945 - The unescorted SS Baron Jedburgh was torpedoed & sunk by U-532 NE of Bahia. One gunner was lost. The master, 52 crewmembers and five gunners were rescued - On 22 March, the master and 32 survivors landed at Cabedello, Brazil. The remaining 25 survivors were picked up on 16 March by the British SS Sandown Castle & landed at Montevideo ten days later
1945 - HMC MTB 485 & 491 paid off
1945 - HMS Supreme sinks a Japanese coaster with gunfire of the east coast of Sumatra
1948 - First use of jets assigned to operational squadron (VF-5A) on board a carrier (Boxer)
1956 - Frigate HMCS Penetang loaned to Norway & became KNM Draug
1959 - Destroyer HMCS Micmac recommissioned
1959 - Frigate HMCS Lanark recommissioned
1970 - USS Coral Sea port call Subic Bay
1983 - The Coast Guard retires the last operational HU-16E Albatross, ending the era of seaplanes for the service
1991 - COMUSNAVCENT declares it-Day, the initial surge force reduction of naval forces commencing in accordance with the CINCCENT redeployment plan. Naval forces continue defensive counter-air, surface surveillance, maritime interceptions and minesweeping operations
1993 - Destroyer HMCS Nipigon departed NATO exercise Strong Resolve off Norway
1994 - Destroyer HMCS Annapolis departed Esquimalt for Haiti blockade duties
2000 - Training ship HMCS Moresby paid off
2003 - HRH Prince Charles participates in handover ceremony for former HMS Bronington to the Warship Preservation Trust in Birkenhead, UK. Charles commanded the ship in 1976
2004 - Lloyd’s Register becomes the first classification society to sign a new agreement with the Hellenic Republic covering delegation of statutory services to a recognized organization (RO). The new agreement provides a significantly higher degree of delegation and includes certification for passenger ships, the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code and ships engaged exclusively on domestic voyages
2005 - France launched the Forbin, its first of the Horizon class of air defense frigates being built in cooperation with Italy, from DCN’s shipyard in Lorient 
2005 - Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd announced that it agreed in late February 2005 to acquire a Handymax bulk carrier, MV Fiona Bulker, for a purchase price of $25.6 million. MV Fiona Bulker (to be renamed "MV Princess I") is a Handymax bulk carrier of approximately 38,800 dwt, built in 1994 by Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries. The vessel is expected to be delivered by late May 2005. MV Fiona Bulker is the ninth vessel that the Company has agreed to acquire since Christopher Georgakis joined Excel Maritime as CEO in late October 2004
2005 - Six people were killed and around 100 injured when a massive fire broke out aboard an oil tanker belonging to the Pakistani Navy in the southern port city of Karachi. The fire on the oil tanker Moawin (ex-HNLMS Poolster) left six people dead and around hundred injured
2005 - Privately owned Norwegian shipowner Leif Hoegh has consigned its 35-year-old car carrier brand HUAL to history in a corporate overhaul that merges its Ro-Ro shipping activities under one Hoegh Autoliners banner. The Bermuda-registered group yesterday said the shake-up was the final phase of its realignment around its car carrier and liquefied natural gas shipping activities. Management three years ago decided to restructure business around the core specialties now reorganized under Hoegh Autoliners and Hoegh LNG. Leif Hoegh also confirmed the sale of its last two large bulk carriers, the 211,201 dwt SG Prosperity and SG Enterprise, with market sources reporting that the Bahamian-flagged and 1997-built pair had been sold to SMT in Cyprus for $100m. The Norwegian company at the end of last year also sold to Saga Forest 
Shipping its remaining seven open hatch vessels with a four-year charter back to fulfill contracts. The shake-up transforms Leif Hoegh & Co into a holding company without any commercial operations and with president Thor Jorgen Guttormsen as its sole employee. Hoegh Fleet Services will provide ship management for both companies. Mr Guttormsen will also take over as chief executive of Hoegh Autoliners, with HUAL president Karl Terjesen moving to the role of commercial executive president. Niels Ronald Bugge has been appointed executive vice-president of shipowning and fleet capacity, with Yngvil Asheim responsible for ship management and Roar Flom chief finance officer. Hoegh detailed its corporate overhaul alongside a new total $1.5bn fleet investment figure for 2004-08 which includes four unannounced car carrier newbuilds alongside 18 previous contracts including two LNG carriers
2005 - A Maersk boxship was forced to offload a container at Algeciras after formaldehyde solution starting leaking from one or more drums inside the box. The chemical is categorized as group eight corrosive substance under the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code. The master of Claes Maersk reportedly discovered the substance on the deck of the ship several days before the scheduled call, and informed the authorities at the Spanish port in advance. As a result, the vessel was met on arrival by personnel from the port, local Maersk employees, Spain's Guardia Civil and over 100 firefighters. The box in which the leak was detected was taken off the ship and moved to a special area where dangerous goods are handled. Some 30 liters of the chemical are thought to be inside the container, which remains under observation, according to Manolo Moreno, the port's head of security and the environment
2005 - USS Essex crewmembers launched an unusual rescue operation to save three giant sea turtles that were caught in a fisherman's net. The sea creatures were spotted by the officer of the deck while the ship transited the Persian Gulf. Essex Commanding Officer Capt. Martin J. Keaney took immediate action to help the turtles
2006 - Coast Guard Commandant, Adm. Thomas H. Collins, will preside over an awards ceremony at 1000 at the Port of New Orleans Headquarters where more than a dozen local Coast Guardsmen will receive heroism medals and awards for their hurricane response efforts. Immediately following the hurricane awards, the 2005 Eighth Coast Guard District Enlisted and Reserve Enlisted Person of the Year (EPOY) awardees will be recognized. The 2005 reserve EPOY is Petty Officer 1st Class Cynthia D. Golembiewski, of Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Port Arthur, Texas. The 2005 active-duty EPOY is Petty Officer 2nd Class Rodney L. Gordon, of Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans. The 12th annual New Orleans Coast Guard Foundation Dinner Friday evening will recognize local Coast Guard responders as their 2005 "Guardian of the Heartland" award recipients. Each year, the Coast Guard Foundation recognizes a Coast Guard individual or group who has performed an heroically during the year
2006 - Odense Steel Shipyard announces that Managing Director Torben Anker Sørensen has resigned, and that Mr Torben Anker Sørensen will withdraw from his position by mid-April 2006. At the same time Mr Finn Buus Nielsen will take over the position as Managing Director for the Yard. Mr Finn Buus Nielsen is currently Managing Director for Mærsk Container Industri A/S
2006 - Concordia Maritime took delivery of the second P-MAX tanker, Stena Provence, from the Brodosplit shipyard in Croatia. Like her sister ship delivered earlier, the Stena Provence has been time-chartered to the French oil company TOTAL for five years
2006 - Royal Navy’s ice patrol ship HMS Endurance drydocked at Puerto Belgrano, Argentina
2006 - A killer whale was killed after alliding with an idling tug near Gold River BC
2006 - Aker Yards and the Finnish Navy have signed a contract for modernizing two mine layers. The order worth EUR 27.9 million means 200 man years of work for Aker Yards, Rauma where the conversions take place for deliveries in January and August 2007.  The vessels called "Hameenmaa" and "Uusimaa" were originally delivered from Rauma in 1992. Now they will be modernized in order to conform with the new performance requirements, and a general overhaul of the ship systems will take place. The combat systems will be modernized as well
2006 - A new state-of-the-art client training center located within Lloyd’s Register EMEA’s Piraeus Office has been opened in Piraeus, demonstrating a high level of commitment to the local clients. 
The new center was opened by Lloyd’s Register EMEA’s Director, David Rule and Apostolos Poulovassilis Lloyd’s Register EMEA Area Manager for East Mediterranean and Black Sea. The training center has a capacity for up to 30 delegates with dedicated break-out areas. The center can be extended to a capacity of up to 60 people in a theatre style layout. The center was christened with the prestigious client course ‘Leading the Fleet’ which started after the official opening. Twelve delegates attended the course including several major clients Chandris, OSG and Teo Shipping
2006 - Secretary General of NATO, Mr. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, will travel to Naples on Friday, 10 March 2006. He will visit there the Allied Joint Forces Command (JFC) Headquarters, meeting the commander of the JFC, Admiral Harry G. Ulrich III as well as military and civilian staff
2006 - The Coast Guard and Good Samaritans are searching for a fishing vessel that issued a mayday call in Southeast Alaska. At 0645 personnel at the Coast Guard Rescue Coordination Center in Juneau heard a mayday call on channel 16 stating "Going down, two hands on board Point Gardner." Point Gardner is at the southern tip of Admiralty Island. The Coast Guard cutter Anacapa, based out of Petersburg, and an HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Sitka are searching the Chatham Strait and Frederick Sound area. The fishing vessel Aleutian Dream recovered a life ring, deflated life raft and empty survival suit near the mouth of Frederick Sound about five miles south of Point Gardner. The Aleutian Dream, a 58-foot fishing vessel from Juneau, is assisting Coast Guard rescuers with the search
2006 - Jiang Ning Guan of the Cosco Guangzhou China Company became stranded on its way of entering Hai Phong Port’s Bach Dang wharf due to foggy weather. The 5,594 tonne ship was carrying 5,300 tonnes of potassium when it ran aground. Rescuers reached the ship and transported its cargo ashore by barge. The ship is supposed to reach the Bach Dang wharf at midnight
2006 - Stolt Offshore S.A. announced that it had been awarded a contract valued at approximately $125 million for a deepwater SURF installation project offshore Angola. The installation work will be carried out by the Polar Queen and is scheduled to take place during the second half of 2007
2006 - Solent Coastguard are currently assisting other Agencies after the Red Funnel ferry Red Falcon suffered a collision with the link span at Southampton's Town Quay earlier this afternoon. Coastguards have been dispatched to the scene and both passenger and crew injuries have been reported. Two Surveyors from the Agency's Southampton Marine Office have also been sent to the scene after it was reported that the vessel's bow doors have been significantly damaged. The top deck has been cleared and passengers are being disembarked. No water has been taken in. Investigations are on going to determine if there are any vehicles on board which may be leaking petrol or chemicals into the water column, and the MCA are coordinating their activities with company personnel. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch has been informed
2006 - Shipping Minister Stephen Ladyman announced that light dues paid by merchant ships for aids to navigation in UK waters will be reduced from 39p to 35p per tonne in 20065/07. The tonnage cap will remain the same at 35,000 tonnes making the maximum charge for light dues £12,250 per voyage. The need to record the departure dates of vessels for collection purposes will be removed and so will the exemption from payment of light dues for vessels calling at a port in ballast. This will simplify the collection process. Light dues are a system of charges levied on commercial shipping calling at all UK and Republic of Ireland Ports. In the UK, the provision and maintenance of aids to navigation - such as lighthouses, buoys and beacons - falls to the three General Lighthouse Authorities (Trinity House Lighthouse Service, the Northern Lighthouse Board and the Commissioners of Irish Lights). Their costs are funded from the collection of these charges
2006 - The owners and master of a Dutch beam trawler, Joris Senior (ARM 18), fined over £7k and ordered to forfeit fishing gear valued at around £14K at Dover Magistrates Court for using illegal fishing gear in UK waters. This successful prosecution was a result of joint co operation and enforcement by both the Royal Navy and Dutch Enforcement Authorities. The Dutch trawler was boarded on Wednesday morning after a joint surveillance operation by HMS Mersey and a Dutch fisheries protection vessel, Barend Biesheuvel. Charges were brought after the fishing nets were hauled and found to contained 'blinders' (illegal smaller meshed nets attached inside the legal net) which trap undersized fish. The vessel was detained in Dover and further investigations revealed a large quantity of undersized fish and more illegal netting
2006 - At just after 0600 Clyde Coastguard received an emergency call from the Agent of an Oban vessel reporting that their fishing vessel Our Heritage FR 237 was in difficulty at Calf Island in the Sound of Mull and that the three men on board were getting into a liferaft. The vessel was on passage from Oban to fishing grounds off Coll at the time and had departed from Oban at just after 0300. The Coastguard Rescue Team from Tobermory as well as the local lifeboat were both asked to attend as the initial report suggested the vessel was sinking close in to the shore. A Mayday signal was rebroadcast from Clyde Coastguard requesting assistance from any other vessel who may be in the vicinity. Shortly after it was discovered that all three men had made it ashore but were at the top end of the Island and needed picking up from this location. There were no reports of injuries. Ronja Skye, Tobermory's RNLI lifeboat has now picked them up and is proceeding back to the boat shed. There are about 6000 liters of light fuel on board the vessel and the concern is now that with local fish farms in the area the semi submerged vessel is salvaged with minimal loss of fuel. There is no reported pollution 
2006 - Matson Navigation Company, Inc. (Matson) announced today that it will raise its fuel surcharge in its Hawaii and Guam/Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) services from 15 to 18.5 percent, effective April 2, 2006. Matson evaluates fuel costs on a quarterly basis, with the fuel surcharge adjusted accordingly, up or down. The review process involves analysis of actual quarterly bunker fuel prices, as well as market projections for the coming quarter
2006 - APL Panama floated free, 76 days after being stranded atop a sandy mess off Ensenada
2006 - The owners of passenger Ro/Ro Superferry 12 have filed charges of "destructive arson" against as 58-year old male passenger for allegedly causing the fire which struck the vessel on Mar 9. Aboitiz Transport System, Inc. against Meynardo Dagno of Cagayan de Oro City at the Cebu Regional Trial Court filed the charges 
2007 - USS New Orleans commissioned at New Orleans
2008 - USS John S McCain saved 11 South Korean fishermen who were forced to abandon their ship as it caught fire south of Jeju Island 
2008 - NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Berlin to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel, Minister of Defense Franz Josef Jung and members of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committees of the Bundestag
2008 - King Juan Carlos at Navantia Ferrol Shipyard for the launching of the LHD named after him, “Juan Carlos I”, whose godmother was Queen Sofia. Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia were also at the ceremony among political and military authorities and Navantia´s Chairman




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