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https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/21/world/asia/navy-ship-mccain-search-sailors.html
Search teams scrambled Monday to determine the fate of 10 missing Navy sailors after a United States destroyer collided with an oil tanker off the coast of Singapore, the second accident involving a Navy ship and a cargo vessel in recent months.
The guided-missile destroyer, the John S. McCain, was passing east of the Strait of Malacca on its way to a port visit in Singapore at 5:24 a.m. local time, before dawn broke, when it collided with the Alnic MC, a 600-foot vessel that transports oil and chemicals, the Navy said. The destroyer was damaged near the rear on its port, or left-hand, side.
Half a day after the crash, 10 sailors on the ship remained unaccounted for. Five others were injured, none with life-threatening conditions, a Navy official said. Ships with the Singapore Navy and helicopters from the assault ship America were rushing to search for survivors.
Also at Reuters.
Previously: U.S. Navy Destroyer Collides With Container Vessel
(Score: 2) by captain normal on Monday August 21 2017, @07:53PM (4 children)
All ships are also required to carry transponders and receivers linked to Automatic Identification System (AIS).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_identification_system [wikipedia.org]
You can actually see this online and can monitor ship traffic anywhere in the world: https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-12.0/centery:25.0/zoom:4 [marinetraffic.com]
It seems as if the McCain made a course change to port not long before the collision. I wonder if it was a preset navigation change trusted to the auto-pilot and just as in the case of the Fitzgerald, the crew failed to maintain a proper watch. Even if the McCain had their AIS transponder turned off (as the NYTimes article indicates) they should still have an active receiver turned on not to mention the very best radar system for tracking nearby ships, especially as they were entering Strait of Malacca which is the busiest lane of shipping traffic on the planet.
It may be possible that there is some kind of systemic mechanical or electrical failure on this class of destroyer, but one would think it would have turned up in the Fitzgerald investigation if there was. My thinking is that it is more likely a systemic failure of training and staffing protocols at the fleet levels. More than just the officers of the two destroyers may well see their naval careers sunk.
When life isn't going right, go left.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Grishnakh on Monday August 21 2017, @08:25PM (3 children)
All ships are also required to carry transponders and receivers linked to Automatic Identification System (AIS).
Not true. US Navy ships routinely keep these off so people can't track them so easily.
See here:
http://heavyliftnews.com/news/the-uss-fitzgerald-is-at-fault--this-is-why- [heavyliftnews.com]
You can actually see this online and can monitor ship traffic anywhere in the world
Yeah, this is why the Navy keeps their off most of the time.
My thinking is that it is more likely a systemic failure of training and staffing protocols at the fleet levels.
According to the article I linked above, it's likely a systemic failure of the way the US Navy operates. It intentionally hides by not using AIS, it uses conventions and jargon completely different from the rest of the planet (e.g., distances in yards instead of meters, relative bearing instead of absolute bearing, "left" and "right" instead of port and starboard, etc.), and it has a ridiculous communications chain between the captain and those actually steering the ship, and foreign captains can't just call up the captain and talk about their intentions like they can with other merchant captains.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 21 2017, @08:55PM (2 children)
You obviously have no direct experience with bridge procedures on naval ships, and just spout bullshit.
The conning officer (the "Conn") gives direct verbal orders to the helmsman doing the steering. No one but the Conn has authority to do that, there is no ridiculous chain as you so ignorantly put it. Even the Captain, should he wish to conn the ship personally, first assumes the the conn with the verbal announcement to all bridge personnel "This is the Captain, I have the Conn."
Bridge-to-bridge comms between merchies and naval ships is easy and common. It's the undermanned merchies who don't have "their ears on".
You are a phony, and your "news article" is bullshit.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 21 2017, @11:51PM (1 child)
Looks like the Navy doesn't have to follow COLREGs:
http://navcen.uscg.gov/pdf/navRules/navrules.pdf [uscg.gov]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 21 2017, @11:55PM
*COLREGS