SeaWaves Today in History March 24, 2009 1603 - Elizabeth I died aged 69, after nearly 45 years as Queen 1877 - The University Boat Race between Oxford and Cambridge ended in a dead heat. On the same date in 1951, the race was called off when the Oxford boat sank. It was re-run two days later, when Cambridge won by 12 lengths 1903 - George Dewey commissioned Admiral of the Navy with the date of rank, 2 March 1899. He was the only person to hold this rank 1909 - Muskeget, MA - The schooner Vigilant parted moorings, and stranded 1 mile S. of the station. The owner applied to the keeper at 10 - 30 PM for assistance. Surfmen proceeded to the scene, carried out an anchor and line, and hove the schooner into deep water. During the storm the owner was sheltered and supplied with meals at the station for 2 days. But for the security afforded by an additional anchor and cable loaned by the crew, Vigilant would have stranded a second time 1916 - Submarine HMS G12 launched 1916 - Submarine HMS E24 disappeared. On the morning of 21st March 1916 E24 sailed from Harwich for mine-laying operations at Helegoland Bight. The submarine failed to return from this operation and was believed to have struck a mine. In 1973 her hull was mistakenly salvaged, inspection of the hull indicated that the submarine had indeed hit a mine 1917 - Cruiser HMS Ceres launched 1917 - Destroyer HMS Valentine launched 1919 - Battleship USS Idaho commissioned 1920 - Destroyer USS Borie commissioned 1922 - Cruiser USS Milwaukee launched 1926 - Submarine HMS Oberon launched 1933 - Destroyer HMS Express laid down 1936 - Light cruiser HMS Achilles commissioned 1936 - Destroyer USS Maury laid down 1936 - Light cruiser FS Georges Leygues launched 1936 - Sloop HMS Fleetwood launched 1936 - Minesweeper HMS Salamander launched 1936 - Destroyer USS Balch launched 1937 - Light cruiser HMS Liverpool launched 1938 - Submarines HMS Triad & Truant laid down 1939 - Minelayer HMS Manxman laid down 1940 - An unknown British submarine sinks the German cargo ship Hugo Stinnes IV off the Danish Coast in the North Sea 1940 - HMS Trident torpedoes and sinks the German merchant Edmund Hugo Stinnes 4 off Jylland, Denmark 1940 - Destroyer FS La Railleuse destroyed by torpedo explosion at Casablanca 1941 - Destroyer USS Caldwell laid down 1941 - RAF Bomber Command - 2 Group - 82 Squadron sink a fishing boat while on patrol off Norway but also lose one Blenheim in the process 1941 - Churchill to Roosevelt - "...It seems highly probable that 3 or 4 U-boats are working against our African trade route. A number of ships have been sunk in recent convoys, and the battleship Malaya has been torpedoed while escorting the latest convoy. We would be much obliged if she could be repaired in the United States yard. She is now steaming thither at 14 knots" 1941 - On 30 Mar 1941, the Eastlea was reported missing in the North Atlantic. The master, 33 crewmembers and three gunners were lost. At 2258on 24 March, U-106 had observed one hit amidships on a steamer running north from a distance of 600 yards. The ship broke her back and sank within ten minutes about 130 miles WNW of San Antonia, Cape Verde Islands. For some time the vessel concerned was thought to have been the Brazilian Santa Clara (2512 tons); but this ship radioed an SOS message on 14 March from 30°48N/68°42W following an explosion. The ship actually hit and sunk was probably the Eastlea 1941 - At 1643, the Hørda, dispersed from Convoy OG-56, was torpedoed & sunk with all hands by U-97 1942 - Submarine HMS Upstart launched 1942 - 35 aircraft of RAF Bomber Command lay mines off Lorient; a Hampden and a Lancaster are lost. These were the first Bomber Command losses for 11 days and nights and the Lancaster lost, from 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron, was the first of its type to be lost on operations 1942 - On Guadalcanal, now menaced by the Japanese, Australian coastwatcher Don McFarland heads for the isolated west coast community of Lavor with Martin Clemens and Ken Hay to set up a new observation post 1942 - Corvette USS Surprise commissioned 1942 - Minesweeper HMS Algerine commissioned 1942 - Minesweeper HMAS Benalla laid down 1942 - Destroyer HMS Southwold mined & sunk off Malta 1942 - U-708 launched 1942 - At 0300, the unescorted Empire Steel was hit by two torpedoes from U-123, caught fire & exploded. The U-boat finally sunk the burning tanker with gunfire NE of Bermuda. 35 crewmembers and four gunners were lost. The master, six crewmembers and one gunner were picked up by the American tug Edmund J. Moran (towing the Robert E. Lee) and landed at Norfolk 1942 - U-655 sunk in the Barents Sea, in approximate position 73.00N, 21.00E, after being rammed by minesweeper HMS Sharpshooter. 45 dead (all hands lost) 1942 - U-585 was attacked by 3 enemy ships with depth charges, and was forced to return to base due to the resulting extensive damage 1943 - U-655 a type VIIC is sunk in the Barents Sea, approx. 73.0N 21.0E after being rammed by minesweeper HMS Sharpshooter. All 45 of the U-Boat crew are lost 1943 - Corvette HMCS Rimouski arrived Liverpool NS for refit 1943 - Minesweeper HMAS Fremantle commissioned 1943 - Light cruiser USS Mobile commissioned 1943 - Rescue tug HMS Antic launched 1943 - Sloop HMS Magpie launched 1943 - Destroyer HMS Tenacious launched 1943 - Submarine HMS Trenchant launched 1943 - Corvette HMS Willowherb launched 1943 - Destroyer escorts USS Leopold & Burrows laid down 1943 - HMCS Woodstock, a revised Flower-class corvette (1940-41 Program), returned to Halifax after supporting Operation TORCH, the landings in North Africa, as part of the escort for the 16-ship Liverpool to New York City convoy ON-172. ON-172 reached New York City safely on 27 Mar 43 1943 - On U-455 a crewmember was injured as the result of an accident with the AA gun 1943 - U-324 laid down 1943 - U-975 launched 1943 - U-541, U-801, U-843, U-969 commissioned 1943 - HMS Unseen fires four torpedoes against the Italian merchant Saluzzo about 30 nautical miles west-south-west of Isola Marettimo, Italy. All torpedoes missed 1944 - US Battleships under Willis A. Lee bombard Okinawa 1944 - Destroyer USS John R Pierce laid down 1944 - Submarines HMS Sea Scout & Upshot launched 1944 - Frigates USS Allentown & Carson City commissioned 1944 - Minesweeper USS Climax commissioned 1944 - Destroyer escort USS Durik commissioned 1944 - U-877 commissioned 1944 - During exercises in the Baltic, U-1102 had a diving accident, but was saved some hours later 1944 - HMS Satyr torpedoes and sinks the Norwegian merchant Nordnorge off Stadlandet, Norway 1944 - HMS Taku fires 5 torpedoes against the German merchant Moshill in a German convoy about 25 nautical miles west of Namsos, Norway, but missed 1944 - HMS Terrapin attacks a German convoy off Egersund, Norway and torpedoes and damages the German kataput ship Schwabenland and the German tanker Wörth 1945 - Frigate HMCS Carlplace returned Halifax from workups 1945 - Submarine HNLMS K XI commissioned 1945 - Destroyer escort USS Heyliger commissioned 1945 - U-249 shot down an RAF 235 Sqn Mosquito 1945 - U-2369 launched 1945 - Submarine HMS Sea Scout launched 1945 - HMS Stygian sinks a Japanese coaster with gunfire north of Bali, Netherlands East Indies 1948 - Minesweeper HMCS Portage recommissioned 1968 - USS Ranger port call Yokosuka 1970 - USS Ranger port call Sasebo 1972 - USS Constellation port call Subic Bay 1973 - USS America returns from Vietnam deployment 1970 - Ottawa bans commercial fishing on Lake St. Clair, sale of pickerel and perch from western Lake Erie; because of mercury contamination 1971 - Pakistani ship MV Swat carrying weapons for the Pakistani army was laid siege to in 1971. MV Swat was a Pakistani flag carrier of 470-feet in length weighing 9223-tonnages. The ship, loaded with 5630-tons of arms and ammunition, meant to be used to crackdown on the people of the then East Pakistan and now Bangladesh arrived at the outer anchorage of the Bay of Bengal from Karachi port at around 2 -30pm on February 28 in 1971. It moved towards Chittagong port at around 4.30pm on that day. The ship, whose draft was 21 feet, had berthed at jetty No. 17 sometime the same night. According to the berthing and fact sheet of the ship, a copy of which this correspondent has collected, the master of Swat was captain S Alam Chowdhury, whose nationality could not be known, and the pilot during berthing was Mokaddam, a non-Bengali. Soon after the ship had its unhindered berthing, the occupation forces stationed there started unloading its deadly cargo of arms and ammunition under the cover of darkness and stiff security. The Pakistani officials based in Chittagong probably had expected that the news of the arrival of Swat carrying huge quantity of sophisticated arms and its unloading would remain a secret. But some student and labor leaders and activists of the Chittagong port area came to know of this move and acted. They began to organize the local people, inform the matter to the local political leaders and ultimately decided to resist the unloading of arms from the ship. An Action Committee was formed immediately following receiving of guidelines from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. They took an oath to sacrifice their lives if need be to resist the unloading of arms from the ship. As per scheduled plan of action of the Resistance Committee, a public meeting was called on this issue at the New Mooring colony at 3.00pm on March 24, 1971. Cross section of people, responding to the call, armed with lathi, bamboo-sticks and iron rods started pouring into the meeting venue from early morning. The venue had turned into a human-sea by 4.00pm. Presided over by Awami League leader M A Hannan; the meeting began sometime past four in the afternoon. Local leaders including one Majid Meah addressed the meeting and at the end, a call was made from the dais to lay siege to MV Swat and resist at any cost the unloading of arms. Soon, a mammoth and militant procession started to move towards the Jetty No-17 where the anchored ship had started its journey. But the Pakistani force deployed near the meeting place obstructed the procession some few yards away without any provocation. They dispersed the procession firing indiscriminately for over half-an-hour. Many processionists were killed or injured. Although the actual figure of the dead has never been known, many believe that the number of martyrs on that day could be over two to three hundreds. Following this mass killing, the Pakistani forces stopped the unloading midway. Till then they had been able to unload 630-tonnages of arms and ammunition from the ship. At around 3.30pm on April 18 in 1971, the ship Swat left Chittagong port for Karachi with the remaining 5000-tonnages arms and ammunition. During the departure, one S. Bokhari, another non-Bengalee officer, was the port pilot. (Daily Star News) 1989 - The tanker Exxon Valdez grounded on a reef in Prince William Sound, AK, spilling 10.1 million gallons of crude oil. This was the worst oil spill in US history. Coast Guard units responded and prevented the entire cargo from spilling, cleaned up the oil which did spill, and conducted an investigation into the causes of the accident. The spill provides the impetus for the passage of the Oil Protection Act in 1990 1991 - Naval forces continue counter air-defensive, combat air patrols, minesweeping and maritime interceptions operations. USS Missouri, Sacramento and Ford depart for home 1991 - Atlantic Fleet Amphibious Task Force -- USS Nassau, Iwo Jima, Guam, Shreveport, Trenton, Raleigh, Saginaw, La Moure County, Manitowoc, Spartanburg, Portland, Pensacola and Gunston Hall -- transits the Suez Canal enroute CONUS. USS Comfort accompanies task force 1991 - LT Mark D. Jackson, NR MSCO Mideast 106 Norfolk, dies of injuries sustained in an automobile accident in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. First death of a Naval Reservist recalled to active duty in Operation Desert STORM 1991 - Elements of Reserve Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 23 return to CONUS. During a four-month deployment, battalion detachments were assigned to sites in Guam, Okinawa, Korea, Japan, Midway Island, and Adak, Alaska and continued and completed construction projects started by active duty Naval Mobile Construction Battalions 7 and 40, who had been redeployed to then Operation Desert SHIELD. The remainder of the battalion remains deployed in Guam and outlying areas to continue work on critical projects 1993 - Destroyer HMCS Nipigon arrived Halifax from NATO exercise Strong Reslove off Norway 1999 - Frigate HMCS Ville de Quebec returned Halifax from STANAVFORLANT 2003 - British Columbia Ferries three abortive fast ferries sold at auction by Ritchie Bros. in Vancouver. The three so-called Pacificats, built and launched in the 1990s under a cloud of controversy, were sold separately. The first two were purchased for $4.5 million US each and the third went for $4 million US. The selling price at the current exchange rate is equivalent to about $19.23 million Cdn. The vessels, officially named Pacificats, were originally projected to cost $210 million, but ended up costing about $450 million 2005 - Upon returning in November from a successful deployment as part of the John C. Stennis carrier strike group, the Blue Wolves of Sea Control Squadron 35 began preparing for their deactivation in March, completing 26 years of dedicated service. Prior to the official deactivation ceremony on March 24, 2005 VS-35 is planning a weeklong celebration of the squadron's successes and its contributions to naval aviation 2005 - Nature conservation and fisheries minister, Ben Bradshaw will open the Government's marine protected areas workshop in London on Thursday to evaluate and discuss the establishment of networks of marine protected areas (MPAs). The Workshop will be attended by scientists and experts, including representatives from environmental NGOs and the fishing industry, representing a wide range of expertise on these issues. Environment Minister Elliot Morley will also be attending 2005 - P&O Cruises' Arcadia, the largest vessel built specifically for the British market, has made its public debut at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard in Venice. With capacity for 3,400 passengers and crew, the 82,500 grt, 16-deck vessel, whose reference cost is $400m according to the consultant GP Wild, is 285.3 m long and 32 m wide and has a top speed of 24 knots. The Arcadia was ordered initially by Cunard as the Queen Victoria, before Carnival's tie-up with P&O Princess Cruises, and was transferred early last year when Cunard ordered an enhanced Queen Victoria, which is due to enter service late in 2007 2005 - Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver declare a National Historic Landmark 2005 - The Council of the Union of the Museums of Russia (UMR) held a visiting session in Perm on Thursday with the participation of the directors of Moscow-based and regional museums under the chairmanship of Mikhail Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage Museum. Representatives of the State History Museum, the A.S. Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, the Central Naval Museum and the museums of Russian regions are to discuss interaction between the authorities, the business community and society in the efforts to preserve the cultural heritage, and the problems of integration of Russian museums into the cultural space of Europe and the world 2005 - At 1645, Aberdeen Coastguard responded to a man calling on VHF Ch 16 to any vessel. The man was attempting to make contact with anyone, stating that his VHF radio battery was low and that he thought he was somewhere in the vicinity of Golspie. Aberdeen Coastguard called out Helmsdale, Dornoch, Portmahomack Coastguard rescue teams, Rescue helicopter 137 from Lossiemouth, and Dornoch inshore rescue boat to commence a search of the immediate area. The search was called off and considered a possible hoax 2005 - TOP Tankers Inc it took delivery of M/T Dauntless, a 46,168 DWT, double-hull Handymax tanker, built in 1999, by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. of the Republic of Korea. This delivery is the second of three Handymax sisterships TOP Tankers agreed to acquire for a total of $124.5 million, and will be financed by cash and long-term debt. The vessel will immediately enter into a five-year time charter with Glencore SA, one of the world's largest oil traders. Consistent with the Company's employment strategy of seeking to minimize its downside risk, secure significant cash-flows and benefit from participating in possibly higher spot rates, the new time charter will have an accretive base rate and a profit-sharing provision 2006 - India Steamship, a company of the KK Birla group managed out of Kolkata by C S Nopany, is planning for mega expansion, the Business Standard reported. The outfit, which is now a part of Chambal Fertilizers and Chemicals, would invest $206 million for doubling its fleet of tankers. Nopany said the company had already signed a MOU with a Greek company for acquiring a ship. India Steamship had three single hull tankers at present. Two tankers had a capacity of 96,000 ton each and the third had capacity of 60,000 ton. According to Nopany, majority of the proposed investment of over Rs 900 crore would be financed through borrowings. Nopany said that the company had signed a contract for delivery of two tankers with Ulsan-based Hyundai Heavy Industries of South Korea. These two ships would be delivered in the latter half of 2008. Each new tanker would have a capacity of 105,000 tons 2006 - Argonaut Computer announced the first marine laptop computer certified by the American Bureau of Shipping and compliant with International Marine Organization standards. The new Ranger model1500T/TXL is a rugged, sunlight readable, high performance Pentium laptop computer certified for use aboard naval and commercial vessels worldwide 2006 - Passenger Ro/Ro Empress of the North (5975 grt, built 2003), inbound for Portland (Ore), grounded in the Columbia River, in lat 45 34.3N, long 122 21.6W, at 1028 hrs, today. The vessel has 257 passengers on board. No injuries have been reported. Currently there is no pollution and the vessel does not appear to have been damaged. A Coast Guard team is due on scene in about 30 minutes. In about an hour and a half, a helicopter will fly over the scene, to establish whether there has been any leakage from the vessel. Reported tug Rory B. is proceeding 2007 - Strike Fighter Squadron VFA 201 decommissioned at NAS Fort Worth 2007 - Exxon Valdez plaintiffs will unveil a seven-foot tall wooden Exxon Ridicule Pole in Cordova, Alaska. The special totem pole is a native Alaskan tradition meant to force a person of high standing to pay a debt or obligation 2007 - Fresh talks over seized sailors A Foreign Office minister held fresh crisis talks with the Iranian ambassador in a bid to secure the release of 15 Royal Navy personnel. Lord Triesman spent more than an hour demanding the safe return of the sailors and Royal Marines 2007 - Thailand's Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Sathiraphan Keyanond ordered the stoppage of the use of all Bell 214 helicopters for mechanical inspection after one of them crashed in northeastern Thailand Friday, killing all the nine naval personnel onboard 2007 - The 40 ft yacht called Humber Coastguard at 0850 requesting assistance. It was 13 1/2 miles off Spurn Point. A rescue helicopter was requested by the Coastguard and a short time later, both men were airlifted from their vessel and taken to Hull Royal Infirmary where Hull Coastguard Rescue Team manned the landing site. Humber RNLI Lifeboat has placed two of their crew aboard the yacht which they now have in tow to Grimsby 2007 - At Fincantieri’s shipyard in Monfalcone, there was the presentation of the “Emerald Princess”, the passenger ship ordered by Carnival Group, the world’s leading cruise operator, for the brand Princess Cruises. Present at the ceremony were: the Vice Minister of Transport Rt. Hon. Cesare De Piccoli, the President of the Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Riccardo Illy, the Executive Vice President of Princess Cruises, Rai Calouri, and, for Fincantieri, the Chairman, Corrado Antonini and the Chief Executive Officer, Giuseppe Bono 2008 - Puget Sound Navy Museum became part of the Naval Historical Center system, joining Keyport’s Naval Undersea Museum. The Bremerton facility, which for decades has been funded by the city and run by volunteers, will now receive federal funding for professional staff and exhibits 2008 - Spanish Navy and Spanish National Police searched on the coastal patrol boat SPS P-114 which was berthed at the naval base of La Caracca in San Fernando, Cadiz. During the search of this Ceuta-based patrol vessel, 250 kilos of cannabis was found. Three crewmembers arrested 2008 - Morocco announced construction of a new Naval Base in Ksar Sghir in the Strait of Gibraltar situated between the Spanish enclave of Ceuta and the Moroccan port of Tangiers. This will represent Morocco's first naval port in the Med. The Armed Forces of Morocco stated that the King of Morocco, Mohamed VI was present yesterday at the start of works on the new base which will be ready in 3 years time and will cost 1.390 million dirams (127 million Euros). The ceremony which was attended by high ranking officers of the Moroccan Armed Forces and various government ministers ended with a navy review in the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar 2008 - Commanding officer of USCGC Midgett submitted his request for retirement following an administrative hearing before Commander, Coast Guard Pacific Area. Capt. Elmo Alexander was given nonjudicial punishment by Vice Adm. Charles Wurster in response to an incident aboard Midgett during a port call in Mexico where Alexander berated and struck a watchstander he thought was improperly standing the watch 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. Royal Navy photos are Courtesy of www.oldships.org.uk unless otherwise indicated. To contact us: 418-145 West Keith Rd North Vancouver BC V7M 1L3 Canada Phone: 778-968-7447