Radical Islamic Militant Somali Pirates!

Well, the rain stopped, clouds blew away and now we have a bright sunny day with chrystalline, rain washed air. The bay looks beautiful.

Merry Christmas Setanta

0 Replies

Quote:

there were a lot of mishearings between the British and US units.

It was probably due more to incredulity that any language problem.

One might hear the words perfectly clearly and still say "I beg your pardon" or "Sorry" or "Yer what?"

1 Reply

@spendius,

After all, American bankers were probably educated in similar institutions as were naval officers.

2 Replies

Happy Solstice, O'George.

0 Replies

@spendius,

spendius wrote:

After all, American bankers were probably educated in similar institutions as were naval officers.

Well, both would steal your lunch if you weren't careful.

Merry Christmas Brits.

0 Replies

@spendius,

But only at sea you learn the lessons you need in every day's businesses.

0 Replies

I see that the Chinese navy (didja ever think youd see that as a concept?) has sent three GM cruisers to interdict the pirates. Sounds like were ramping up for some Action.

The insurance companies have issued a blanket statement against arming oil tankers.

0 Replies

In fact, at the beginning of the fifteenth century, when the Ming dynasty was still "young" and vigorous, a Chinese naval expedition explored the coasts of southeast Asia, the subcontinent, the Persian Gulf and the east coast of Africa--they even reached Mecca.

However, that was almost 600 years ago, and no, these days one does not automatically think "Chinese . . . naval superpower."

1 Reply

@Setanta,

Setanta wrote:

However, that was almost 600 years ago, and no, these days one does not automatically think "Chinese . . . naval superpower."

Quote:

Over the past decade, the Chinese Navy has embarked on a modernization program with the goal of being the preeminent regional power in East Asia. By acquiring some of the world’s most impressive naval technologies from abroad while simultaneously building advanced indigenous submarines, combatants, and naval aircraft, China is positioning itself to play a growing role in regional and trans-regional affairs. ... ....

China's Naval 2007 including a link to download the (really very good!) ebook by the Official of Naval Intelligence

List of Chinese warships at Global Security.org

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

Quote:

By acquiring some of the world’s most impressive naval technologies from abroad

Was it not an export drive from our end.

We once positioned ourselves to play a growing role in silk production by acquiring the most zealously guarded secret in history: the Bombyx moth's capacities on a diet of mulberry leaves.

What they would have done to the thief doesn't bear thinking about.

0 Replies

Five Somali pirates drowned when a wave washed off their getaway boat as they squabbled over over how to split their $3 million ransom.

The ransom had been paid to the pirates to end the world's biggest ship hijacking.

More at ABC

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

Pirate's body washes ashore with $153,000 in pocket

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/12/somali-pirate-drowned

0 Replies

Quote:

European Union warships may be circling off the coast of Somalia, but pirates continue to plunder. A day after the German tanker Longchamp was seized by bandits, the EU mission controlling the area's waters complained that the German vessel had ventured into the perilous zone without traveling in a convoy.

Full report: EU Mission Blames German Tanker after Pirate Raid

0 Replies

Quote:

Berlin - The German navy arrested nine people Tuesday following a dramatic action to head off a pirate attack on a German merchant vessel off the coast of Somalia. According to German Defence Ministry in Berlin, a vessel owned by a Hamburg-based shipping company, the MV Courier was attacked by pirates during early morning Tuesday.
The ministry said that the pirates were armed with anti-tank rocket launchers and firearms.
US Navy helicopters thwarted the attack with soldiers of the German frigate Rheinland-Pfalz a short time later seizing the pirate's boat and arresting nine people, the Defence Ministry said. Some of the pirates were from Sudan, the ministry said.

Source

MV Courier

Frigate Rheinland-Pfalz

0 Replies

Cool looking frigate . . . my brother was a fire control technician on a USN missile cruiser in the 1960s, and he was quite good with pen and ink drawings. One of the most dramatic drawings he ever did showed two German frigates riding the roller coaster of heavy seas in the North Sea in winter.

1 Reply

@Setanta,

Another photo

In 1969 I've been for a week on a larger ship, like this one

but A64, Tender 'Ruhr', the training ship of the Naval Academy.

It was such a bad weather that we (= me and a few others) had to replace the -seasick- regular navigational crew. [We tried to use sextants as well: my best "guess" was near Cologne - we were 30 miles south-west of Stavanger.]

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

Walter Hinteler wrote:

It was such a bad weather that we (= me and a few others) had to replace the -seasick- regular navigational crew. [We tried to use sextants as well: my best "guess" was near Cologne - we were 30 miles south-west of Stavanger.]

A bad place to be in a storm. It is the relatively shallow seas, such as the North Sea, the Sea of Japan, the South China sea, that are particularly dangerous in a storm. Not much wind energy is required to whip up enormous waves. I've got a 40 second clip of a film taken from the bridge of USS Kitty Hawk during a storm in the Sea of Japan - you can see green water breaking over the flight deck (72 feet above the water line). I'll try & figure out how to post it here.

1 Reply

@georgeob1,

Really enormous waves I've experienced when "turning around the corner" of Brittany: actually no more wind than about 4 bfts but waves up to 12 meters high (they came from the IRISH Sea).
Our minesweeper usually "rode" five to seven waves and then just went through them. The wood was cracking that some feared we would sink.

(Since that day I never tidied up neither my berth nor my lockers anymore.)

2 Replies

@Walter Hinteler,

Walter Hinteler wrote:

Our minesweeper ...

That was a MSC, modified Bluebird-class (they just cut of two decks from the bridge, I believe).

http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v2223/202/13/1530866807/n1530866807_30196282_7997.jpg

(The arrow points at seaman Walter Hinteler.)

0 Replies

@Walter Hinteler,

Walter Hinteler wrote:

Really enormous waves I've experienced when "turning around the corner" of Brittany: actually no more wind than about 4 bfts but waves up to 12 meters high (they came from the IRISH Sea).
Our minesweeper usually "rode" five to seven waves and then just went through them. The wood was cracking that some feared we would sink.

(Since that day I never tidied up neither my berth nor my lockers anymore.)

The IRISH sea is rough only for Englishmen (and evidently Germans too) !

It is the relationship between the length of the ship and the peak-to-peak length of the waves that determines just how rough is the ride. With short, high Atlantic waves the destroyers would have a very rough day while the carrier glided smoothly by. With long Pacific waves the carriers would dig in, the hulls would shudder and we all would have a bad day while the destroyers gently heaved up and down over the swells.

Turning was also a significant and potentially dangerous chore. With steady 50 Kt winds near the Aleutian islands a gentle turn into the wind to launch aircraft would yield a 25+ degree list with the wind on the beam . Add the Pacific swells (with their 4000 mile fetch) and one could easily see a 30+ degree list with the sea and wind on the beam (something we tried to avoid with icy decks and taxiing aircraft). Finally I figured out a better method: slow to less than 10 Kts ahead, then put the rudders over full (55 degrees), and order a flank bell (full power) -- this caused the ship to simply pivot, almost in place, without gaining speed, yielding a very high rate of turn and not much list.

1 Reply

Radical Islamic Militant Somali Pirates!

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know