Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.
ModelTroia
Senior editor Rui Matos brings us a photo report from this year’s ModelTroia Contest, held in Lisbon, Portugal.
Report
On Display - Kurohime Maru
Crewmate Jim Smith shares with us another beautiful work, this time the 1/700 Kurohime Maru.
On Display
Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum
Today’s website is Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum. Located on historic Charleston Harbor, Patriots Point is home to USS YORKTOWN (CV-10), the Fighting Lady. The first USS YORKTOWN (CV-5) sank at the battle of Midway on June 7, 1942. Moored next to her is USS LAFFEY (DD-724), a World War II destroyer. Also moored alongside are the United States Coast Guard cutter INGHAM (WHEC-35), which fought in the convoy battles of the North Atlantic and sank a German U-boat; and the diesel attack submarine USS CLAMAGORE (SS-343). Enjoy.
Website
This Day in U.S. Naval History
1815 - USS Hornet captures HMS Penguin in a battle lasting 22 minutes.
1882 - The Secretary of the Navy, William H. Hunt, issues General Order No. 292, creating the Office of Naval Intelligence.
1917 - USS New Mexico (BB 40) is launched as the first dreadnought with turboelectric drive.
1945 - Carriers begin pre-assault strikes on Okinawa; kamikaze attacks follow.
1958 - Simulated Polaris missile is launched from a submerged tactical launcher facility off California.
1965 - Lt. Cmdr. John W. Young, pilot of Gemini 3, completes three orbits in four hours, 53 minutes, at an altitude of 224 km. Recovery was by helicopters from USS Intrepid (CVS 11).
Kockums Prepares Anti-Piracy Vessels
Source: Kockums AB
The Swedish Government has given the Swedish Navy the green light to participate in the EU’s mission to eliminate piracy off the coast of Somalia. The Swedish mission will involve the Swedish Navy corvettes HMS Stockholm and HMS Malmö, accompanied by the support vessel HMS Trossö.
Kockums is currently engaged in preparing the vessels for this international operation. For Kockums, this also means organizing a rapid-response capability, in case of a serious breakdown, as well as support and maintenance services. We maintain several technical support flying squads.
Pirate attacks against shipping are a growing problem in many parts of the world. A total of about 230 attacks were reported last year, some 100 of which occurred in the waters off Somalia, where the Swedish Navy has now been tasked by the UN with protecting seaborne food relief en route to the country’s starving population. The Gulf of Aden is especially dangerous to enter or pass through.
The Swedish force totals 160 personnel. The Navy’s mission is to protect the food transports, not to track or pursue the pirates. Even so, the mission is highly dangerous, and if support vessels are attacked, the UN’s rules of engagement permit the use of armed force. This means that the vessels would be free to use their weapons.
Heavily armed pirates have transformed the Gulf of Aden into the most dangerous stretch of water in the world. When in African or other dangerous waters affected by piracy, many merchant crews electrify ships’ railings, prepare their water cannon for action and double-up their lookouts.
The pirates often use support vessels, which may take the form of a larger fishing vessel. These are used to launch smaller high-speed motorboats, with as many as ten pirates in each boat. They normally attack their targets while underway, from several directions at once, armed with automatic weapons and, quite often, with recoilless antitank weapons. They board the target vessel by shooting rope ladders onto the deck and fastening them to the railings, while providing covering fire.
In such situations, the crew of the target vessel often withdraws to the bridge and lock themselves in, in accordance with the owner’s standing orders. This makes it easy for the pirates to gain the upper hand and climb aboard. In some instances, the pirates have inside help from a member of the crew.
All At Sea
Source: Royal Navy
Thousands of Royal Navy sailors, Royal Marines and airmen are taking part in a major amphibious exercise in Cyprus, as part of one of the navy’s largest deployments of recent years. Exercise Cyprus Wader will put some of the Royal Navy’s biggest ships through their paces, rehearsing the projection of Land Forces and their equipment ashore using both surface and aviation assets.
Exercise Cyprus Wader is focusing on a series of amphibious beach ‘raids’, led by 40 Commando Royal Marines. The ships involved, including two of the Royal Navy’s largest ships, HMS Bulwark and HMS Ocean, have rehearsed their entry into this maritime ‘theatre’, and are now concentrating their efforts on inserting the Royal Marines onto land.
Royal Navy divers are also being exercised as they facilitate beach reconnaissance and clearance.
Exercise Cyprus Wader forms part of the six month multi-national deployment TAURUS 09 which sailed from the UK in February, bound for the Far East. Commanded by Royal Navy Commodore Peter Hudson CBE ADC, Commander UK Amphibious Task Group (COMATG) from his flagship HMS Bulwark, the deployment aims to maintain the Royal Navy’s fighting capability as well as develop the UK’s capacity to operate with key partners and allies from NATO countries and other nations, enhancing interoperability and demonstrating the UK’s commitment to the stability and security of the Mediterranean, Middle East and South East Asia.
In exercising its ability to deploy globally, the Task Group is conducting a wide range of activities, including maritime security operations and anti-submarine warfare, as well as rehearsing amphibious warfare procedures, such as with Exercise Cyprus Wader.
Speaking as the exercise got underway, Commodore Hudson said:
“Amphibious operations are extremely complex evolutions that require considerable planning and slick execution. The RN excels at this type of work because we seize every opportunity to keep skills and competencies fresh but it does require space, both afloat and ashore, to conduct that multi discipline, joint training. The facilities in Cyprus allow us to check all our processes before we embark on bigger exercises later this month. This is particularly important for 40Cdo who are re-invigorating their core skills afloat after a recent operational tour in Afghanistan.”
The Task Group comprises 12 ships, including support ships from the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, a US Navy destroyer and a French Navy frigate, a nuclear powered submarine, Royal Marines from 40 Commando Royal Marines, Royal Navy divers, Assault Squadron Royal Marines from Plymouth, elements of 820 and 857 Naval Air Squadrons (NAS) from RNAS Culdrose, 847 NAS and Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) Sea Kings based in Yeovil and Support Helicopter Force Chinooks from 18 Squadron, RAF Odiham. It will be joined by ships, troops and aircraft from other nations as it transits towards South East Asia.
On completion of Exercise Cyprus Wader, part of the Task Group will continue through the Suez Canal, culminating in a multi-national training package in the primary jungles of Brunei. Riverine training will also be conducted with the Bangladeshi Navy, the first such interaction in more than a decade.
At its height, 3,300 personnel will take part in the 20,400 mile round-trip deployment, interacting, training and building relations with 17 nations.
The Task Group is expected to return to the UK in August 2009.
Photo of the Day
The Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Hartford (SSN 768) arrives pier side at Mina Salman pier in Bahrain where U.S. Navy engineers and inspection teams will assess and evaluate damage that resulted from a collision with the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18) in the Strait of Hormuz March 20.
Gator
