SeaWaves Today in History January 12, 2007 ********************************************************************* January 12 1759 - James Wolfe 1727-1759 appointed Major-General and Commander-in-Chief of land forces in expedition against Quebec 1813 - US Frigate Chesapeake captures British Volunteer 1848 - Attack on Sloop Lexington, San Blas, Mexico 1850 - The wreck of Ayrshire on Squan Beach NJ 201 of 202 persons on board were saved by the life car. First use of the life car in the US 1893 - Aircraft designer, co-creator of the MiG Mikhail Iosifovich Gurevich born 1915 - Royal Navy ships landed a battalion of the King's African Rifles to seize Mafia Island off German East Africa 1916 - Destroyer HMS Skate laid down 1918 - Destroyer USS Conner commissioned 1922 - HMS Victory was taken out of service afloat, entering Number 2 Dock in Portsmouth, the world's oldest drydock 1923 - Title "Commandant" authorized. He was to be selected from active list of line officers not below grade of commander 1935 - Submarine HMS Severn commissioned 1937 - Submarine HMS Trident laid down 1937 - Destroyer USS Henley launched 1940 - At 0650, SS Denmark was hit by one torpedo from U-23 when she was anchored in a Bay in the Shetlands. She exploded, broke in two and drifted ashore. On 21 January, the afterpart sank and the forepart was refloated, taken to Inverkeithing and used as storage hulk 1941 - RAF Hurricane fighters based on Malta attack Catania airfield on Sicily in an attempt to prevent German and Italian planes from attacking Malta while temporary repairs are carried out on the crippled aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious 1941 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Celia commissioned 1941 - SS Manhattan ran aground off Palm Beach FL 1942 - Destroyer HMS Venus laid down 1942 - Minesweeper USS Zeal laid down 1942 - During heavy weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-654 broke his arm 1942 - U-649 laid down 1942 - SS Yngaren sunk at 57N, 26W - Grid AL 1938 by U-43 1942 - At 0157, U-77 sighted two destroyers off Tobruk and fired at 0238 hours a spread of four torpedoes of which one hit the stern of HMS Kimberley. The explosion blew her stern off and immediately stopped the vessel, which was missed by a coup de grâce at 0245. HMS Heythrop towed the destroyer to Alexandria. After temporary repairs towed in February 1942 to Bombay, where she was repaired and returned to service in January 1944 1942 - Submarine HIJMS I-121 mines Clarence Strait, the body of water connecting Van Diemen Gulf and the Timor Sea, off Australia's Northern Territory, at the approaches to Darwin, the Asiatic Fleet's main logistics base 1942 - Hitler orders the battle cruisers Gneisenau & Scharnhorst to sail from Brest, France, to Norway 1942 - U-374 (Type VIIC) is sunk in the western Mediterranean east of Cape Spartivento, in position 37.50N, 16.00E, by torpedoes from the British submarine HMS Unbeaten. 43 dead, but 1 survivor taken into captivity 1942 - Amchitka Island is occupied by a small American force. The AMULET FORCE consisted of 2,000 men under command of Brigadier General Lloyd E. Jones. The invasion was covered by the USN's Task Group 8.6 (TG 8.6) consisting of the heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis, light cruisers USS Detroit & Raleigh with four destroyers, which patrolled off Amchitka & Kiska Islands. The transport group consisted of the transports USS Arthur Middleton, USAT Delarof, SS Lakona, cargo ship USS Vega escorted by destroyers USS Dewey, Gillespie, Kalk & Worden. There is no enemy opposition but a fierce storm hits and continues for two weeks. The transport USS Arthur Middleton, manned by a US Coast Guard crew, runs aground as it rescues 175 sailors from the destroyer USS Worden. USS Worden was guarding the transport USS Arthur Middleton as that transport put the preliminary Army security unit on the shores of Constantine Harbor Amchitka Island. The destroyer maneuvered into the rock-edged harbor and stayed there until the last men had landed and then turned to the ticklish business of clearing the harbor. A strong current, however, swept USS Worden onto a pinnacle that tore into her hull beneath her engine room and caused a complete loss of power. USS Dewey passed a towline to her stricken sister and attempted to tow her free, but the cable parted, and the heavy seas began moving USS Worden totally without power inexorably toward the rocky shore. The destroyer then broached and began breaking up in the surf; Commander William G. Pogue, the stricken destroyer's commanding officer, ordered abandon ship, and, as he was directing that effort, was swept overboard into the wintry seas by a heavy wave that broke over the ship. Commander Pogue was among the fortunate ones, however, because he was hauled, unconscious, out of the sea. Fourteen of his crew drowned. USS Worden, herself, was a total loss 1942 - HMCS Red Deer, a Bangor-class minesweeper, rescued survivors from the British merchant ship SS Cyclops, 125 miles south-east of Cape Sable. Cyclops was the first ship sunk in the German U-boat campaign against the East Coast of North America, known as Operation Paukenschlag (Drumbeat). She was sunk by U-123, Kptlt. Reinhard Hardegen, CO. The first group of five German submarines comprised U-66, U-109, U-123, U-125 and U-130. In total they sank 26 Allied ships U-123 was a long-range Type IXB submarine built by AG Weser, at Bremen. She was commissioned on 30 May 40. U-124 conducted 12 patrols and compiled a most impressive record of 45 ships sunk for a total of 227,174 tons and six ships damaged for a further 53,568tons. U-124 survived the war and was taken out of service at Lorient, France, on 17 Jun 1944. She was scuttled at Lorient on 19 Aug 1944. U-124 was salvaged by the French and entered service with the French navy as Blaison. She was subsequently renamed Q165, and was stricken on 18 Aug 59. Reinhard Hardegen was born in 1913, at Bremen. He joined the navy in 1933. When the war began, he was serving as the Signals Officer at the naval airfield at Kamp, in Pomerania. He joined the U-boat force in Nov 39 and completed his conversion training in Jun 40. He was selected immediately for command and completed his U-boat Commander's Course in Aug 40. Next, Hardegen served as the First Watch Officer, and simultaneously underwent U-Commander sea training, in U-123 Kptlt. Georg-Wilhelm Schulz, Knight's Cross, CO. On 11 Dec 40, he was appointed to command the Type IID training boat U-147. Next, Hardengen was appointed to command U-123 on 17 May 41, at the age of 27. He completed his tour of duty in U-123 after four very eventful patrols. His first patrol off West Africa resulted in five ships sunk for a total of 21,507 tons. On his next patrol he heavily damaged the armed merchant cruiser HMS Aurania (13,984 tons). He was awarded the Knights Cross 23 Jan 42, the 44th presented in the U-boat force. Due to injuries suffered during a plane crash in 1936, Hardegen was actually unfit for service in U-boats. He suffered from a shortened leg and chronic stomach bleeding. Hardegen's success on his first two patrols resulted in Admiral Dönitz granting him special permission to carry out two further patrols. These were also extremely successful and he was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 23 Apr 42, the 11th awarded in the U-boat force. Hardegens' health deteriorated further and he was posted ashore in Aug 42 as the Training Officer for the 27th U-Flotilla. In Mar 43, he was promoted to KKpt. and assigned to the Torpedo School at Mürwick. In Oct 44, he was transferred to the naval headquarters where he was an advisor to the Office of Torpedo Ordnance. At the end of the war he was assigned to command a battalion of naval infantry. KKpt. Hardegen was detained after the capitulation and was released on 9 Nov 46. After the war, Hardegen built a successful oil trading company and was also the Member of Parliament for Bremen for 32 years. He sank 23 ships for a total of 119,014 tons and damaged five ships damaged for a further 46,500 tons. Reinhard Hardegen was the 23rd highest-scoring U-boat 'ace' of the war 1942 - Barrage balloon cuts power to Seattle and causes air raid scare 1943 - Minesweeping trawler HMS Prophet commissioned 1943 - ASW trawler HMS Kingston Jacinth mined & sunk off Portsmouth 1943 - Destroyer escort USS Pope launched 1943 - Destroyer escorts USS Brackett, Donaldson, Mitchell & Reynolds laid down 1943 - Submarine USS Guardfish, patrolling the waters of the Bismarck Archipelago on her third patrol, fires three torpedoes during a night underwater radar attack. One torpedo finds the mark and destroys the ex-destroyer Shimakaze, now re-named patrol boat P 1. She sinks about 10 miles SW of the Tingwon Islands near New Hanover in position 02°51'S, 149°43'E 1943 - U-342 commissioned 1943 - During heavy weather in the North Atlantic a lookout on U-258 broke his arm 1944 - Leighton McCarthy presented his letters of credentials to President Roosevelt as the first Canadian Ambassador to the United States 1944 - Submarine USS Albacore, sailing through the waters between Truk and the Admiralty Islands on her eighth patrol, conducts a twilight periscope attack firing eight fish. The Japanese vessel Choko Maru #2 is rocked by four torpedoes about 350 miles SW of Truk in position 03°30'N, 147°27'E. Albacore's attack also apparently damages PGM Hayabusa-Tei #4. The motor gunboat had been under tow by Choko Maru #2 proceeding from Truk to Rabaul. Gunfire from a Japanese escort latter scuttles the gunboat in position 03°37'N, 147°27'E 1944 - Submarine USS Hake, on her third patrol cruising at night on the surface in the northern reaches of the Philippine Sea, fires four torpedoes at SS Nigitsu Maru. Two torpedoes hit and down goes the aircraft transport south of the Daito Islands in position 23°15'N, 132°49'E 1944 - U-323 launched 1944 - U-1271 commissioned 1944 - Frigate HMS Inglis commissioned 1944 - Minesweeper USS Devastator commissioned 1944 - Destroyer escorts USS Marsh & Price commissioned 1944 - Destroyer HMS Trafalgar launched 1944 - Escort carrier USS Rudyerd Bay launched 1944 - Destroyer escorts USS George A Johnson & Metivier launched 1944 - Submarine USS Lagarto laid down 1944 - Escort carrier USS Makin Island laid down 1944 - Destroyer escorts USS Tabberer & Robert F Keller laid down 1945 - Coast Guard-manned Army vessel FS-284 was commissioned at Wheeler Shipyard, Whitestone NY with LTJG Byron G. Crawford, USCGR, as commanding officer. She was assigned to and operated in the Southwest Pacific area during the war. She was decommissioned 22 August 1945 1945 - 3 Commando Brigade of the Royal Marines conducted an amphibious assault at Myebon in Burma, seizing the position from the Japanese and threatening their line of retreat 1945 - Minelayer Louhi hits a mine off Hanko and sinks with loss of 10 men 1945 - Aircraft from Task Force 38, under the command of Vice Admiral John S. McCain, hits Japanese shipping, airfields, and other shore installations in the South China Sea and in SE French Indochina. Among the sunken vessels is the Ch 43. This subchaser, with the help of Ch 15 and W18, sank the submarine USS Wahoo in La Perouse Strait on 11 Oct 43 1945 - U-2355, U-2356, U-3021, U-3520, U-4702 commissioned 1945 - U-427 attacked heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk off Egersund (Norway) with five torpedoes, but all missed 1945 - Submarine USS Swordfish reported missing, presumed lost. Believed sunk by Japanese ASW forces near Okinawa. No survivors 1945 - Minesweeper HMS Regulus (ex-HMCS Long Branch) is mined during clearance operations off Sista Island near Corfu and loses her propellers. She is taken in tow, but capsizes an hour later 1946 - Destroyer USS Wiltsie commissioned 1946 - Submarine HMS Auriga commissioned 1946 - Frigate HMAS Barwon commissioned 1953 - Landings tested on board USS Antietam, first angled deck carrier 1957 - HMCS Magnificent, Canada's only aircraft carrier, arrives in Egypt carrying 405 soldiers and tonnes of vehicles and supplies for the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) 1961 - Two Coast Guard craft from the Cape Disappointment Lifeboat Station [LBS], CG-40564 and CG-36454, answered a call for assistance from the 38-foot crab boat Mermaid, with two crew on board, which had lost its rudder near the breakers off Peacock Spit. CG-40564 located the Mermaid and took her in tow. Due to adverse sea conditions the crew of CG-40564 requested the assistance of CG-52301 Triumph, stationed at Point Adams LBS, which took up the tow upon her arrival on scene. Heavy breakers capsized CG-40564 and battered the CG-36454 but the 36-foot motor lifeboat [MLB] stayed afloat. The crew of 36454 then located and rescued the crew of the 40564 and then made for the Columbia River Lightship. The crew of the 36454 managed to deposit safely all on board the lightship before it too foundered. Soon thereafter a heavy breaker hit the Triumph which parted the towline, set the Mermaid adrift, and capsized the Triumph. The crew of the Mermaid then rescued one of the six crewmen on board Triumph. CG-36554 and CG-36535 also from the Point Adams OR LBS, then arrived on scene and 36535 took the Mermaid in tow. Another large breaker hit, snapping the 36535's towline and sinking the Mermaid. The cutter Yocona arrived on scene soon after CG aircraft UF 2G No. 1273 from Air Station Port Angeles and began searching for survivors. Other CG aircraft, including UF 2G 2131, UF 2G 1240 and HO 4S 1330, arrived and began dropping flares. Foot patrols from the lifeboat stations searched the beaches as well and recovered one Coast Guard survivor. Ultimately five Coast Guard crewman, all from MLB CG-52301 Triumph, drowned, as did both of the Mermaid's crew 1972 - USS Enterprise port call Subic Bay 1972 - USS Hancock port call Pearl Harbor 1991 - US Congress approves joint resolutions authorizing the use of force against Iraq 1991 - USS Ranger Carrier Battle Group arrives on station in the North Arabian Sea 1991 - Amphibious Group Three (with 5th MEB embarked) arrives on station in the Arabian Sea. The 18-ships, USS Okinawa, Tarawa, Tripoli, New Orleans, Ogden, Vancouver, Denver, Juneau, Fort McHenry, Germantown, Anchorage, Mount Vernon, Durham, Mobile, Cayuga, USS Barbour County, Peoria and Frederick will join amphibious group presently deployed creating the largest amphibious task force since the Korean War 1991 - USS Midway Carrier Battle Group reenters the Arabian Gulf 1991 - USS Missouri explosive ordnance disposal team retrieves/detonates another anti-ship contact mine in Arabian Gulf 1991 - USS Oldendorf and Trenton team boarded/inspected IBN Khaldoon, and after determining Iraqi-flagged cargo ship was no longer carrying prohibited cargo, vessel was cleared to proceed to stated destination Basrah, Iraq. No incidents 2004 - Destroyer USS Pinckney delivered by Northrop Grumman at Pascagoula MS 2004 - RRF ships MV Cape Decision & Cape Douglas activated at Charleston to support OIF 2004 - USNS Regulus activated 2005 - USNS Charlton drydocking at Boston 2005 - CCGC Frank M Weston for disposal by Crown Assets at Sydney NS 2005 - Stornoway Coastguard are assisting in the search for four people who are missing after two cars were washed into the sea at West Gernish 2005 - At 1530 Brixham Coastguard received a mayday distress call on VHF Ch 16 from a man aboard his motor boat called Reflections six miles west of Salcombe. The man called mayday reporting that his vessel was sinking and that he was taking to his liferaft. He took to the liferaft, taking with him his distress flare pack and EPIRB (emergency position indicating radio beacon) which he had activated. Hope Cove Coastguard, Salcombe Lifeboat and a rescue helicopter from the Royal Navy were sent to the position. A mayday relay broadcast on VFC DSC and VHF was made by Brixham Coastguard to any vessels in the immediate area. The man was winched from his liferaft by the rescue helicopter, which was subsequently recovered by Salcombe Lifeboat. Hope Cove Coastguard rescue team kept observation on the incident from the clifftop. He has now been evacuated to Derriford Hospital at Plymouth 2005 - The Coastguard Rescue Helicopter "Mike Uniform" from Stornoway went to the Spanish fishing vessel Cibeles 180 miles west of the Isle of Lewis to evacuate the nineteen crew. The tanker Aegean Spirit arrived at the position of the fishing vessel and provided a lee to the fishing vessel until the arrival of the helicopter. The weather abated slightly with westerly winds of near gale force 7 and rough seas 2006 - General cargo Star Herdla, which sustained a 20 meter hole on the starboard quarter, is under tow of tug Anglian Monarch, bound for Bolougne and is now one mile off Bologne. Chemical/oil carrier Cape Bradley has been ordered to Dunkirk for investigation by the French authorities. The vessel has a damaged bow and no anchors and will not be given permission to enter until French teams have completed an inspection. There were no reports of any injuries as a result of the collision to members of both crew and no reports of any pollution 2006 - Rotterdam based Fairmount Heavy Transport NV has been awarded the contract by Saibos Akogep SNC to transport and install the AMP2 Topside for Total. The scope of the work for Fairmount Heavy Transport includes the engineering of the transport and installation project, the load out of the AMP2 Topside (about 11,000 tons) on the barge Fairmount Fjell in the tidal port of Pasir Gudang, Malaysia 2006 - Egypt barred access to the Suez Canal to a French warship bound for an Indian scrapyard, demanding proof that the asbestos-insulated ship is not carrying dangerous waste. The head of Egypt’s environmental agency, Mohammed Sayyed Khalil, said Cairo wanted written proof that the decommissioned aircraft carrier was not carrying hazardous waste in violation of the Basel Convention banning such trade 2006 - HNLMS De Ruyter left Den Helder for six month tour with NATO SNMG-2 in the Mediterranean in support of Operation Active Endeavour 2006 - Coast Guard crews are en route this morning to a sinking catamaran sailboat with three crewmen onboard 120 miles south of the US/Mexico border and 170 miles east of land. The crew of the sailboat Bob used a satellite phone to call Coast Guard watchstanders in New Orleans to request assistance. The crew reported that Bob struck a submerged object punching a hole in the sailboats' hull. The ensuing flooding was more than the sailboat's pump could handle. The crew also set off their Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) which sends a satellite distress signal to search and rescue centers providing the sailboats position and other valuable information to help rescuers. The watchstanders launched an HU-25 Falcon jet crew from Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas, this morning. They located the sailboat and were able to check the crews' condition over the radio. USCGC Shamal, a 179-foot patrol boat, is en route from the Corpus Christi area to rescue the three men 2006 - USCG oversees cleanup operations and investigate the source of a fuel spill in the Chelsea River, Mystic River and Island End River. Coast Guard, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Clean Harbors Environmental Services, and local police and fire departments have worked together to collect more than 3,000 gallons of an undetermined fuel product, collect samples and investigate the source of the spill. The Coast Guard initially received several reports of a strong fuel odor and sheen near the Meridian Street Bridge. Coast Guard Sector Boston dispatched a pollution investigation team who arrived on scene to discover an aqua-green colored fuel product in the water near the Admiral's Hill Marina in Chelsea. The team collected samples from the spill and several possible sources and sent for laboratory comparative analysis. The Coast Guard and the DEP, pending the identification of a responsible party, determined that the spill was cleanable. Clean Harbors Environmental Services was contracted and immediately began to recover the product 2006 - A memorial service held at 0930 on the grounds of the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse for the 52-foot motor lifeboat crew of Triumph I who lost their lives at sea 45 years ago near Ilwaco, Wash. The five crewmembers were attempting to assist the distressed fishing vessel Mermaid. The Triumph I capsized after being struck by a large wave while towing the Mermaid. The 52-foot motor lifeboat Triumph II stationed at Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment, Wash., will lay a wreath where this tragedy occurred at the conclusion of the ceremony. Two 47-foot motor lifeboats from the National Motor Lifeboat School in Ilwaco will also be participating in the ceremony 2006 - The Dutch Navy was red-faced it was announced kilos of cocaine were found on one of its vessels late last year. The drugs were discovered on the multi-purpose frigate, Tjerk Hiddes, on 7 December when the ship was berthed in Curacao, the Military Police service (Marechaussee) said. The spokesperson would not say how big the haul was, or whether the find was made by chance. No arrests were made. The ship was in the Caribbean for four months as part of a task force to combat drug trafficking. Curacao is the last island of the Netherlands Antilles. Tjerk Hiddes returned to the naval port of Den Helder in the Netherlands on 19 December 2006 - Bermuda-based Ship Finance International Ltd. agreed to buy an oil rig for $185 million from Sweden-based Consafe Offshore AB and lease it back to the offshore oil and gas company for 30 years. Consafe has the right to purchase the rig back after 10 years, Ship Finance said. Ship Finance -- which owns most of the oil tankers operated by Bermuda-based tanker company Frontline Ltd 2006 - The Master of the Odyssey Explorer was requested, via ship-to-ship radio transmissions, to appear in Spain to make a statement, apparently relating to the operations of the Odyssey Explorer. However, according to Odyssey's legal counsel in Spain, neither the ship nor the Master of the vessel fall under the jurisdiction of the authorities that delivered the request. The Odyssey Explorer, Odyssey's 251' deep-ocean archaeological platform, continues to work on the site believed to be HMS Sussex pursuant to the project plan as presented to all appropriate government authorities in Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom. Odyssey maintains that all activities are being undertaken legally and pursuant to all relevant authorizations necessary for the continuation of these operations. The Company believes that interference with these lawful operations from any entity without jurisdiction would be illegal 2006 - US Navy names future DDG 106 USS Stockdale 2006 - The Coast Guard and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) worked together to terminate the voyage and seize the catch of a commercial fishing boat Thursday evening for violating federal law in the Gulf of Mexico. During a routine patrol, a law enforcement team from the Coast Guard Cutter Heron boarded the fishing boat Ike and Zack approximately 70 miles south of Galveston, Texas, in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). While checking for compliance with all federal and local regulations, it was discovered that the Ike and Zack was shrimp fishing with two of their four Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) and one Bycatch Reduction Device (BYRD) sewn shut. The Heron's crew discovered approximately 6,330 pounds of shrimp on board worth $17,126.20. The Ike and Zack was escorted back to Galveston. The shrimp was sold today at market value with the proceeds deposited into an escrow fund until the account is adjudicated. The Coast Guard and NOAA Fisheries Service, Office for Law Enforcement will be investigating the case. The Heron is an 87-foot Coastal Patrol Boat home ported in Sabine Pass, Texas 2006 - Australia and East Timor signed a Treaty on Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea in Sydney, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said. The treaty, signed by FM Downer and his East Timorese counterpart, Jose Ramos-Horta, establishes a framework for the exploitation of the Greater Sunrise gas and oil reservoir and calls for equal distribution of government revenues flowing from the project. According to the statement, once implemented, the Greater Sunrise project could result in transfers of additional revenues to East Timor of as much as 4 billion USD over the life of the project. This would increase East Timor's share of the resource to around $10 billion 2006 - Several Navy SEALs were presented combat awards by the Commander of US Special Operations Command during a ceremony at the Naval Special Warfare Command in Coronado. Gen. Bryan “Doug” Brown visited the command to award seven Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts to the SEALs for their combat actions toward the global war on terror. The initiatives of the SEALs were crucial in saving lives and bringing stability in Iraq. In one instance, a SEAL found and revived a six-year old girl who had been deprived of oxygen. Another SEAL who was awarded a Bronze Star returned to battle ten days after being wounded by enemy rocket fire ============================================================= Sources: Colton Shipping Report, NOAA, MARAD, Marine Digest, Leo Pettipas, Kommersant, Samuel Loring Morison, Frank Pierce Young, Navy Times, Naval Institute Proceedings, www.uboat.net, Andrew Etherington, John Nicholas, US Naval Historical Center, Ministry of Defense, US Coast Guard, Thomas N. Carlson, Jack Arrowsmith, Allan Snowie, Ken Hansen, Andy Barber, John Weiss, Jack McKillop, Bernard de Neumann, Sympatico Today in History, Washington History Link, Lloyds List, Fairplay, New York Times, I-Newswire and other news sources in the public domain. Additions, submissions and corrections are always welcomed. ============================================================= Today in History Archives at: http://www.seawaves.com/newsletters/today_in_history_archive.htm Copyright 2007 Seawaves Publishing Inc ISSN 1710-6966 Photos courtesy of US Naval Historical Center, US Coast Guard Historical Center, Wikipedia Encyclopedia or Naval Museum of Manitoba unless otherwise noted. Images may be subject to copyright. Ask before you right-click.