SeaWaves Today in History September 14, 2008 1535 - Jacques Cartier reaches the Iroquois village of Stadacona [Quebec] on his second voyage; meets Donnacona again; greeted with Iroquois word 'Kanata' or 'Cantha;' meaning 'settlement of huts'; first recorded use of name 1687 - The first naval encounter on Lake Ontario as a French barque is attacked by Iroquois warriors in canoes. Bringing the ship's swivel guns to bear, the French easily outgun the Iroquois, who return to shore with many dead and wounded 1716 - The Boston Lighthouse on Little Brewster Island in Boston Harbor, the first lighthouse established in America, was first exhibited 1814 - Francis Scott Key wrote "The Star Spangled Banner" after witnessing the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Maryland. Key was a graduate of St. John's College in Annapolis, a few miles down-Bay from Baltimore. His hobby was rewriting song lyrics to existing tunes. His now-famous anthem was written to the tune of "Anacreon in Heaven", a very popular English pub song at the time. Arguably, its original wide-ranging musical notation could only be appreciated late at night in such a place; its more extreme notes have been modified off and on by singers ever since 1829 - Treaty of Adrianopole is sealed between Turkey and Russia. As a result of the 1828-1829 Russian-Turkish War Russia acquires the mouth of the Danube with adjacent islands, the eastern coast of the Black Sea near the mouth of the Kuban up to the wharf of St. Nicolas. Turkey acknowledges the joining of Georgia, Imerti and Megrelia to Russia, the autonomy of Moldavia, Wallachia and Serbia. The Bosporus and the Dardanelles are declared open for the passage of foreign ships 1899 - Gunboat Concord and monitor Monterey capture two insurgent schooners at Aparri, Philippine Islands 1902 - Designer of helicopters Nikolay Ilyich Kamov born. (Died 24.11.1973) 1914 - HMAS AE1 struck an uncharted reef and sank 1918 - Destroyer USS Walker launched 1918 - Destroyer HMS Montrose commissioned 1920 - Destroyer USS Hendon commissioned 1923 - Submarine USS S-39 commissioned 1927 - Heavy cruiser HMS London launched 1928 - Sloop HMS Bridgewater launched 1931 - Submarine HMS Seahorse laid down 1932 - Submarine HMS Thames commissioned 1935 - Destroyers USS Conyngham & Case launched 1937 - U-57 laid down 1937 - Britain, France, Russia, and certain other countries agreed to suppress "piracy" in the Mediterranean 1937 - President Roosevelt forbade American Government owned ships to carry munitions to China and Japan 1938 - British ordered fleet on alert. Germany ordered troop concentration after quarrel between Hitler and army officers who opposed war 1938 - Submarine USS Sailfish launched 1939 - Aircraft carrier HMS Victorious launched 1939 - Destroyer HMS Kingston commissioned 1939 - U-30 shot down two FAA Blackburn Skua aircraft 1939 - U-39 was the first U-boat sunk in the war, after an unsuccessful attack against the British aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal (premature magnetic-pistol torpedo explosions) 1939 - U-28 sank SS Vancouver City 1939 - U-29 sank SS British Influence 1939 - U-30 sank SS Fanad Head 1939 - Atlantic Squadron Neutrality Patrol ships deploy 1939 - U-39, was sunk NW of Ireland, in position 58.32N, 11.49W, by depth charges from the British destroyers HMS Faulknor, Foxhound and Firedrake. 44 survivors (No casualties) 1939 - U-39 attacks the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal, but is sunk NW of Ireland, in position 58.32N, 11.49W, by depth charges dropped by screening destroyers HMS Faulkner, Firedrake & Foxhound; 44 crewmen are captured 1939 - US freighter SS City of Joliet is detained by the French for 3-weeks 1939 - The USN deploys the Atlantic Squadron Neutrality Patrol .The forces deployed include 4 heavy cruisers, 17 destroyers, 5 patrol squadrons and supporting vessels. These ships patrol from Argentia, Newfoundland in the north to the Lesser Antilles in the south. Held in reserve are an aircraft carrier and 3 battleships 1939 - VS-300 helicopter by Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky made its first flight in the United States. The designer, who was always the first to test his vehicles, steered it. Helicopters were Sikorsky’s first love. He started out designing two experimental samples in 1909-1910 in Russia, though they never flew 1940 - The work of the London docks is transferred to the Clyde in Scotland 1940 - US Congress passes the Selective Service Act authorizing the first peacetime draft (conscription) in US history 1940 - New United States naval policy called for a two-ocean navy 1940 - Corvettes HMCS Chilliwack & Matapedia launched in North Vancouver & Quebec City respectively 1940 - U-96 commissioned 1940 - Corvette HMS Honeysuckle commissioned 1940 - Destroyer USS Eberle launched 1940 - Destroyers HMS Matchless & Meteor laid down 1940 - U-109, U-551 & U-552 launched 1941 - After the Danish government in exile asked the U.S. to protect Greenland, USCGC Northland seized the Norwegian sealer Buskoe, with Nazi agents on board trying to establish radio and weather stations in Greenland, in MacKenzie Bay, Greenland. The capture of the Buskoe was the first U.S. naval capture of World War 1941 - As the USN's Task Force 15 (TF 15) proceeds toward Iceland, destroyer USS Truxtun reports a submarine emerging from the fog 300 yards away, but low visibility and uncertainty as to the position of USS MacLeish, also in the screen of TF 15, prevents USS Truxtun from opening fire. After the submarine submerges, USS Truxtun, USS MacLeish and Sampson make depth charge attacks with no verifiable result 1941 - British naval forces fail in their attempt to achieve a landing at Tobruk 1942 - HM MTB-308(PT-50 USN BPT-2) sunk off Tobruk by a German aircraft 1942 - HM MTB-310(PT-52 USN BPT-4) sunk off Tobruk by a German aircraft 1942 - HM MTB-312(PT-54 USN BPT-6) sunk off Tobruk by a German aircraft 1942 - HM MTB-314 (PT-56 USN BPT-8) heavily damaged off Tobruk-captured by the Germans 1942 - MFV HMCS Chamiss Bay acquired 1942 - HMCS Ottawa, A/LCdr. Clark Anderson "Larry" Rutherford, RCN, CO, was sunk by U-91, KptLt. Heinz Walkerling, CO, at 0005hrs, in the North Atlantic, in position 47-55N 043-27W. Ottawa sank with the loss of 119 crewmembers (five officers, 108 ratings, 6 RN), including the Commanding Officer, plus 22 Merchant sailors. Ottawa was a British C-class destroyer, originally built in 1932 for the RN as HMS Crusader, by Portsmouth Naval Dockyard. She was commissioned into the RCN on 15 Jun 38 and was based at Esquimalt when the war started. She was deployed to Halifax in Nov 39. Ottawa shared in the destruction of the Italian submarine FAA Di Bruno on 06 Nov 40. She saw service on both sides of the Atlantic and the Caribbean before being assigned to Newfoundland Command in Jun 41. Ottawa was escorting 34-ship convoy ON-127 from Liverpool to New York City when two torpedoes sank her. The convoy also lost six merchant ships and had another four damaged during this famous battle. U-91 was a medium-range Type VIIC submarine, built by Flender-Werke AG, at Lubeck-Siems. She was commissioned 28 Jan 41. U-91 conducted six patrols and compiled a record of five ships sunk for a total of 27,569 tons. On 04 Sep 42, U-91 was a member of Wolfpack group, "Vorwarts", which sank eight ships from Convoy ON-127, totaling 51,607 tons, and three ships from convoy RB-1. U-91, KptLt Heinz Hungershausen, was sunk on 25 Feb 44 in the North Atlantic, in position 48-12N, 040-56W by the British Captain-class frigates Affleck (K462), Gore (K481) and Gould (K476). Thirty-six men from U-91’s crew of 51 were lost. KptLt. Hungershausen was among the survivors. Heinz Walkerling was born in 1915, at Kiel. He joined the navy in 1935. When the war started, he was serving as a Watch Officer in the minelayer Hansestadt Danzig. In Mar 40 he was assigned as a Watch Officer in the 1934A-class destroyer Bruno Heinemann (Z-7). Walkerling transferred to the U-boat force in Oct 40. After conversion training, he served from Apr to Nov 41 as the First Watch Officer in the successful Type VIIC boat U-431, KptLt. Wilhelm Dommes, Knight's Cross, CO (13 ships sunk for 46,300 tons). OLtzS Walkerling was selected for command and underwent his U-boat Commander's Course in Oct-Dec 41. He was appointed to commission U-91 on 28 Jan 42, at the age of 26. Walkerling was promoted to KptLt. on 01 Jun 42 and completed his operational tour on 19 Apr 43. He was subsequently served on the staffs of the 9th, 24th and 19th U-Flotillas. In Sep 44 he became an instructor at the Torpedo School at Flensburg, where he remained until the war ended. There is no record of his having been detained after the capitulation. Heinz Walkerling sank six ships for 36,952 tons 1942 - Corvette HMCS Halifax arrived New York for duty under USN Commander Eastern Frontier, New York - Guantanamo convoys, Sep 42 - Mar 43 1942 - Frigate HMS Inver laid down 1942 - Destroyer HMS Wizard laid down 1942 - Submarines USS Capelin & Crevalle laid down 1942 - AA cruiser HMS Coventry sunk in the Eastern Mediterranean, NW of Alexandria, Egypt by German Ju-87 divebombers 1942 - Destroyer HMS Sikh scuttled after extensive damage from German shore batteries in North Africa. Survivors taken as POWs 1942 - Destroyer HMS Zulu sunk by enemy aircraft off North Africa 1942 - U-589 sunk in the Arctic Ocean SW of Spitzbergen, in position 75.40N, 20.32E, by depth charges from the British destroyer HMS Onslow, and depth charges from a Swordfish aircraft of the escort carrier HMS Avenger (Sqn 825). 44 dead (all hands lost) 1942 - U-429 laid down 1942 - U-408 sank SS Atheltemplar in Convoy PQ-18 1942 - U-457 damaged SS Atheltemplar in Convoy PQ-18 1942 - U-515 sank SS Harborough 1942 - US Army, Middle East Air Force B-24s attack shipping at Souda Bay, Crete, setting 1 vessel afire, while other B-24s hit Tobruk, Libya; P-40s fly a sweep with the RAF over the frontlines 1942 - At 0515, Admiral Turner sails from Espiritu Santo, with the 7th Marines bound for Guadalcanal. At 1445 I-19 fires 6 torpedoes at the USS Wasp, sailing between New Caledonia and Guadalcanal. 1 hits the Wasp, the others continue on. 1 hits the battleship North Carolina and another the destroyer O'Brien. The Wasp is scuttled at 2100 by 3 US torpedoes, the North Carolina will fight again. The O'Brien will sink on October 19, 2800 miles toward home and a major refit. IJA troops attempting to retake Henderson Field on Guadalcanal are driven back for the second day in a row. USAAF P-400 Airocobras attack the Japanese troops retreating south of the Lunga Perimeter. At about 1300 hours, 28 G4M "Betty" bombers escorted by an unknown number of A6M "Zekes" bomb Henderson Field; Marine F4F Wildcat pilots hoot down 2 G4Ms and 2 A6Ms 1942 - In the first combined heavy mission over Kiska Island in the Aleutian Islands, the US 11th Air Force dispatches 13 B-24 Liberators, 1 B-17 Flying Fortress, 14 P-38 Lightnings and 14 P-39 Airocobras to fly low-altitude and photo runs; the P-39s strafe and damage 2 submarines in the harbor; the other aircraft bomb and strafe many installations including AA guns and the submarine base; a single aircraft also strafes Segula Island; enemy losses are 5 float planes shot down and 1 flying boat destroyed on the water; an ammunition ship is sunk and another vessel slightly damaged; while a large cargo vessel and several small barges and vessels sustain hits; 2 P-38s are lost, colliding head-on while after a fighter 1942 - After four days of attack by a wolfpack of 13 U-boats, Convoy ON-127 has lost 12 freighters and one Canadian destroyer; one U-boat has been hit 1942 - The 18-minute color documentary "The Battle of Midway" is released. Directed, produced and filmed by John Ford, narration is provided by Donald Crisp, Henry Fonda and Jane Darwell with James Roosevelt, the President's son, appearing as an Army major. Ford was on Midway Island with a crew of Navy photographers during the epic battle in June 1942 1942 - German torpedo planes continue attacks upon Archangel-bound convoy PQ 18, sinking US freighter SS Mary Luckenbach about 600 miles west of North Cape, Norway; she is lost with all hands (41 merchant seamen and a 24-man Armed Guard). The violent explosion of SS Mary Luckenbach's ammunition cargo rains debris on nearby freighter SS Nathanael Greene injuring 11 men (five of whom are transferred to British destroyer HMS Onslaught for medical attention), but the merchantman makes port under her own power. Concussion from the explosion also disables US freighter SS Wacosta, which is later torpedoed and sunk about 400 miles NE of Jan Mayen Island; she suffers no casualties. British light cruiser HMS Scylla and minesweeper HMS Harrier rescue all hands - 38 merchant sailors and the 11-man Armed Guard survive SS Wacosta's loss 1943 - Minesweeper HMCS St Joseph launched Nanaimo BC 1943 - Corvette HMCS Peterborough laid down 1943 - Aircraft carrier USS Princeton laid down 1943 - Frigate USS Racine laid down 1943 - Submarine USS Burrfish commissioned 1943 - Submarine HMS Statesman launched 1943 - Frigates USS Groton & Albuquerque launched 1943 - Destroyer HMCS Sioux (ex-HMS Vixen) launched 1943 - Destroyer escort USS Willis launched 1943 - Frigate HMS Dominica launched 1943 - USS PT-219 damaged in storm and scrapped near Attu Aleutian Islands 1944 - USCGC Vineyard Sound Lightship sunk hurricane in Vineland Sound Massachusetts 1944 - Patrol Boat USCGC Bedloe foundered a hurricane off Cape Hatteras North Carolina 1944 - Patrol Boat USCGC Jackson foundered hurricane off Cape Hatteras North Carolina 1944 - Minesweeper HMS Serene commissioned 1944 - Frigate HMCS Waskesiu departed Londonderry with Convoy ONF-253 1944 - Frigate HMCS Stettler attacked by U-802 Kptlt Helmut Schmoeckel CO. U-802 was a type IXC/40, U-boat, built by Deutsche Schiff und Machinen Bau AG Seebeck Yard Bremen, commissioned 12 Jun 43, in service 23 months, with a record of sinking 1 ship on 14 Sep 44. Stettler together with other frigates were on a routine patrol of Gaspe Passage when they fell within torpedo range of U-802. Assuming a convoy following astern of the sweep, U-802 tried to slip through the screen. Asdic sounds surrounded it as the formation zigzagged around its base course in full view of Schmoeckel's periscope, "Suddenly a destroyer turns bows on at full speed, making black smoke". Incorrect though his assumption was, Schmoeckel could only conclude in that split second that HMCS Stettler had gained Asdic contact & was commencing her attack. Pressed by the apparently threatening frigate slicing through an "absolutely smooth, leaden sea (at approximately) 20 knots" Schmoeckel hastily fired a T-5 acoustic Gnat at a range of 500 m. An "explosion," in the words of the Canadian report, "believed to be a torpedo, occurred 40 yards astern of HMCS Stettler in the ship's wake." The crew of U-802 heard their torpedo explode, followed by "the sounds of sinking," & credited themselves with a kill. Lying under protective layers at a depth of 170 m eight minutes after their attack, they listened in safety to the counter-attacks as "destroyers" crossed overhead. U-802 rounded Cap de la Madeleine by late afternoon on 15 Sep, & let itself drift eastward with the prevailing set of the Gaspe stream 1944 - USCGC Bedloe (ex-Antietam) and Jackson foundered off Cape Hatteras during a hurricane. 26 crewmen are lost on former, 21 on the latter. 1944 - Lightship No. 73 on Vineyard Sound Station foundered during the same hurricane that sank the Bedloe and Jackson, all 12 of her crew perish 1944 - Destroyer HMS Barfleur commissioned 1944 - Minesweeper HMS Chameleon commissioned 1944 - U-2513 & U-3008 launched 1944 - U-2346 laid down 1944 - One of Britain's most successful secret weapons - a midget submarine able to penetrate the best defended waterways - has struck again. This time the target was a big floating dock, blown up in Bergen. Lt. H. P. Westmacott skippered the four-man craft, X24, as it slipped through 30 miles of islands offshore and a minefield and into a fjord to sail at periscope depth to the harbor. After diving to 35 feet to avoid collision with a merchant ship, Westmacott attached delayed-action charges to the target and escaped. It is the second such raid on Bergen by Westmacott in X24 1944 - Submarine USS Pargo lays mines near Natuna Island 1944 - USN Task Group 38.2 (Rear Admiral Gerald F. Bogan) attacks Japanese shipping and installations on and around Panay and Negros Islands, supported by TG 38.3 (Rear Admiral Frederick C. Sherman). TG 38.1 (Vice Admiral John S. McCain), en route to support the Morotai landings, carries out strikes on Japanese installations on Mindanao; during the course of these operations, SB2Cs Helldivers of Bombing Squadron Two (VB 2) sink a fast transport in Davao Gulf. Destroyers USS Farenholt, USS McCalla and USS Grayson detached from TG 38.1, bombard suspected Japanese radar installation on Cape San Augustin, at the mouth of Davao Gulf 1944 - 5,620 Dutch, English, Australian and American POWs and Javanese slave laborers are loaded aboard the Japanese cargo ship Junyo Maru at Batavia on Java. An RN submarine will sink the ship four days later 1944 - Patrol boats USCGC Bedloe (26 killed) & Jackson (21 killed) off Cape Hatteras along with lightship 73 (12 killed) at Vineyard Sound Station are all lost during what became known as the Great Hurricane of 1944 1945 - HMC ML 104 paid off 1953 - When the 6,000 ton ore carrier SS Maryland grounded off Marquette, Michigan, a Coast Guard helicopter, in the face of driving wind and rain that required the combined efforts of both pilots to hold the controls and stabilize the aircraft, removed 12 crew members safely 1962 - HMS Thule scrapped at Inverkeithing 1963 - Destroyer HMCS Qu'Appelle commissioned 1966 - U-2365 (raised in 1956) sank at 1854hrs in the North Sea, in position 55.15N, 04.22E, after taking in water. Raised on 19 Sept, 1966 from 47 meters depth and broken up 1971 - USS Enterprise port call Singapore 1989 - Sikorsky Aircraft unveils the replacement for the Sikorsky HH-3F Pelican helicopter - the HH-60J. The Coast Guard planned to purchase 33 of the new helicopters 1990 - USS John F Kennedy Carrier Battle Group transits Suez Canal into Red Sea. Hospital ship USNS Mercy arrives in the Gulf of Oman. Amphibious ships USS Nassau, Pensacola and Saginaw, with components of the 4th MEB embarked, arrive in the Gulf of Oman 1998 - Submarine HMCS Okanagan paid off Halifax NS 2003 - USN orders five Virginia-class submarines (SSN 778-783) 2004 - USNS Capable assigned to National Oceanographic & Atmospheric Agency 2005 - The Desert Hawks of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 26 took over the combat logistics mission in the US Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) area of responsibility from the Desert Ducks of Helicopter Support Squadron (HC) 2 in a change of detachment ceremony in Manama, Bahrain. After more than 30 years of forward-deployed service, the era of the Desert Ducks is coming to an end as the Navy plans to replace all remaining H-3 airframes with the H-60S airframe 2005 - Paul Steckle, Member of Parliament for the constituency of Huron-Bruce, announced today on behalf of Geoff Regan, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, the naming and dedication of the Canadian Coast Guard Search and Rescue vessel CCGC Cape Commodore. The vessel is currently assigned to the Coast Guard Station in Tobermory, Ontario, where it is tasked to operate in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay 2005 - Gates could not stop a speeding car from boarding New York's Cross Sound Ferry - the driver was travelling so fast that he shot through the 60-vehicle, 300-passenger ferry and into Long Island Sound where he drowned. The incident was the culmination of a high-speed chase in which police in cars and helicopters pursued the car for 120km across Long Island's heavily populated North Shore after the man attracted police attention by driving on the wrong side of the road and forcing other motorists off highways. Approaching Orient Point, the as-yet-unidentified suspect crashed into a police vehicle and then through the US-flagged ferry Susan Anne, which had just discharged its vehicles and passengers from Connecticut. Coast Guard units and county police recovered the man's body from the water and the ferry resumed its itinerary between Orient Point and New London, Connecticut. Police reported no other injuries in the incident and no damage to the vessel, which is owned and operated by Cross Sound Ferry Services 2005 - A vessel came ashore during heavy surf on September 14 in front of the NOAA Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary office in Kihei, Maui. The vessel, a 45-foot trimaran named Sugarae, apparently broke loose of its moorings during a large south swell that impacted areas throughout South Maui. Sanctuary staff reported that the vessel first came ashore on top of the submerged walls of a historic native Hawaiian fishpond, Ko‘ie‘ie Fishpond during hightide. A nonprofit group, ‘Ao‘ao O Na Loko I‘a O Maui, working to restore and revitalize the fishpond is planning a community celebration to officially kickoff restoration of the fishpond walls this Saturday. Ko‘ie‘ie Fishpond, located near Kalepolepo Park and the sanctuary office is a National Registered Historic site. According to Kimokeo Kapahulehua, president of the fishpond association, “The boat grounded itself on the wall and proceeded to move down along the wall, scraping the rocks and damaging the algae which is an important nutrient and food source for the fish and small organisms living in the fishpond. Fortunately, we are just beginning the rebuilding of the wall; otherwise this boat would have destroyed an intact wall of the fishpond.” The US Coast Guard is currently working to determine if materials on the vessel poses any threat of pollution. State officials are working to contact the vessel owner to have the vessel removed from the shoreline. In addition, sanctuary staff are working with NOAA Law Enforcement officials to investigate if any sanctuary regulations were violated. The Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary is administered by a partnership of NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary Program and the State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources 2006 - USCG Chief of Staff Vice Admiral Robert Papp will testify before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation on the USCG’s move to St. Elizabeths 2006 - Adm. John William Kime, 72, a former US Coast Guard commandant who was passionate about maritime safety and environmental protection issues, died in Baltimore following a valiant struggle with cancer. Kime served as commandant of the Coast Guard from 1990 to 1994, where he oversaw implementation of the landmark Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and established the position of drug interdiction coordinator 2006 - US Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Ralph Basham and Executive Director of the Maryland Port Administration Brooks Royster will celebrate the 300th anniversary of the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore by giving Marylanders their first look at the mobile Radiation Portal Monitors (RPM) that will be operating at the Port. The RPMs are designed to detect any radiological emissions coming from containers exiting the port. Also on display will be gamma ray and x-ray inspection technology, including the "Eagle" which is one of three deployed nationally by CBP 2006 - The jury in the court-martial of navy chaplain Lt. Gordon Klingenschmitt recommended today that he receive a reprimand and be fined $250 a month for a year. But jurors requested that the fine be suspended 2006 - US Navy announced that the "Sea Shadow" (IX-529), an experimental naval craft, and the Hughes Mining Barge (HMB-1), which was originally developed as part of the CIA's 1974 Project Jennifer to help raise a sunken Soviet submarine, are available for donation to a suitable museum or organization 2006 - Coast Guard personnel are responding to reports of a Bahamian-flagged cargo vessel that has possibly run aground just outside of Port Everglade this afternoon. The Coast Guard was tracking the Clipper Lasco on radar and noticed the vessel was in imminent danger of running aground. Coast Guard watchstanders directed the vessel to alter its course several times. It has been reported the vessel did not have a pilot on board as it transited to the port. Coast Guard investigators are enroute and a vessel from Station Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is on scene 2006 - Russia's coast guard detained a South Korean fishing trawler with 31 people aboard after firing warning shots 2006 - Salvage operations for Greek-flagged MV Toro, aground in the St. Lawrence River began this week. Toro was enroute from Ontario to Mexico when became grounded near Cornwall Island earlier this month. No pollution or injuries were reported. Officials said it should take 36 hours to unload more than 3,000 of the 17,000 tons of grain from the ship 2006 - The Suez Canal has reopened to very large vessels including supertankers after the authorities introduced special procedures in the deeper eastern channel, which is partially blocked by a sunken dredger 2006 - At 1440 Falmouth Coastguard received several 999 calls reporting three teenagers in trouble, with an adult entering the water to assist. Falmouth Coastguard immediately put a rescue into operation. Portreath Coastguard rescue team were called out and the Penwith district council lifeguards were alerted. The St Ives inshore lifeboat was requested to launch and the Royal Navy helicopter R193 was scrambled. The two boys and the adult were evacuated to Treliske hospital and the other boy was taken by land ambulance for medical assessment. The boys and the adult, father to one of the boys are believed to be from two families holidaying in the area from Banbury in Oxfordshire. All the teenagers are aged 11-13 and the man is 44 years of age 2006 - LPG carrier Kew Bridge (12240 grt, built 1983) experienced a grounding during her approach to Ratnagiri (India) at 1752 hrs 2007 - Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan met French Navy Chief of Staff Oudot de Dainville in Beijing 2007 - Nerpa Shipyard in Murmansk Oblast is about to complete the reconstruction of the historic K-19 submarine. The sub, which experienced several major crisis and accidents, will become museum outside Moscow 2007 - Commander, Naval Activities United Kingdom (CNAUK) disestablished in a ceremony held at RAF Base Daws Hill. For 55 years, CNAUK has been the only major US Navy command in the UK. Once home to Naval Forces Europe, CNAUK served as an administrative agent supporting Commanders Naval Forces Europe, Atlantic and units throughout Western Europe. The ceremony was attended by approximately 300 guests from various British local communities and British and American militaries. Guest speakers included Ambassador Robert Holmes Tuttle, US ambassador to the United Kingdom; Royal Air Force Air Commodore John Harrison; Rear Adm. Michael R. Groothousen, Commander, Navy Region Europe; and Capt. David Dittmer, commanding officer, Naval Activities United Kingdom 2007 - Navy Capt. Geoge E. Eichert, son of Theodora M. Eichert of Garden City, recently retired after 29 years of active-duty service in the Navy while serving as the chief of staff assigned to Navy Expeditionary Combat Command in Norfolk 2007 - Capt. Curt Goldacker, who has been in charge of the wing since July 2005 is retiring after a 26-year career with the US Navy. "It's an incredible accomplishment being here in Meridian. Training Air Wing 1, training the future of naval aviation," said Goldacker 2007 - Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Eleven is new to Gulfport, but it's no stranger to the Navy. The battalion has a rich history. As Commander of the First Naval Construction Division, Admiral Richard Cellon, explains, the unit has roots dating back to World War II 2007 - A floating dock packed with several nuclear reactor compartments and towed by eight tugboats made it from the Nerpa shipyard and construction plant in Murmansk Oblast to the Saida Bay storage site for reactor compartments Copyright 2008 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. To contact us: 418-145 West Keith Rd North Vancouver BC V7M 1L3 Canada Phone: 778-338-4073 Fax: 778-338-4074 Read our Maritime Mishap Blog Manage your subscription