Non-Typical Solutions Report post Posted August 23, 2017 How do two highly sophisticated naval vessels collide??? Fitzgerald and now USS McCain???? Anybody out there with experience that can explain how that happens in this day and age? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tac Report post Posted August 23, 2017 Maybe the mccain had a brain tumor? Just kidding. Plain and simply they are not paying attention. must be texting and driving. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AzDiamondHeat Report post Posted August 23, 2017 I don't know...Obama's Navy looks pretty adept and fierce to me........ 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest oneshot Report post Posted August 23, 2017 In restricted waterways, US Navy ships set a 'special sea-and anchor detail", basicly humans with binos and comms to the bridge, standing fore'aft etc, reporting all ships seen, to help with very busy radar screens. Human error, relying on radar to see trouble cause it's electronic and must be better right??? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elkaholic Report post Posted August 23, 2017 easiest explanation available 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snapshot Report post Posted August 23, 2017 There is a conspiracy theory out there that the ships systems were hacked while on auto pilot, and the ship lost steering control for a short time? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brademan76 Report post Posted August 23, 2017 There is a conspiracy theory out there that the ships systems were hacked while on auto pilot, and the ship lost steering control for a short time? Yep, blame the russians in 3... 2... http://www.csoonline.com/article/3218724/security/navy-considering-possibility-of-cyberattack-after-another-ship-collision.html 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest oneshot Report post Posted August 24, 2017 There is a conspiracy theory out there that the ships systems were hacked while on auto pilot, and the ship lost steering control for a short time? "auto-pilot" or not, the wheel is ALWAYS manned, and the wheel on the bridge(drive-by-wire) can be disconnected/over-ridden to another wheel that is a direct-drive type of machinery, a hack-attack/damage to the bridge would disable for less then a minute... That sea-lane is like an LA freeway at rush hour, human error is the most likely cause... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AzDiamondHeat Report post Posted August 24, 2017 Navy has "said" it was not hacked. They are adamant it was incompetence... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
300RUM Report post Posted August 24, 2017 I don't see it so much as a navigational problem. I'm sure they knew where they were and where they were going. To me it seems like there was a major situational awareness problem. They had no clue what was going on around them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tac Report post Posted August 24, 2017 Maybe terrorist attack? Weaken our already weak navy? I hope not. When my dad was in they had 900 ships and only one accident that he remembers 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snapshot Report post Posted August 25, 2017 Modern airplanes have collision avoidance systems. Dont know if these ships have that technology? Somebody screwed up regardless. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PRDATR Report post Posted August 25, 2017 Modern airplanes have collision avoidance systems. Dont know if these ships have that technology? Somebody screwed up regardless. Not really much different than having a depth finder, just above the water or combining any of the vast amount of technologies out there but systems fail. If you can think a senario someone can adapt the technology that is out there and write the code. The only limit is technology. I heard it was at 5:30 in the morning and it was dark. Don't really know any other details, were they headed toward each other, and if so at what speed? Probably all classified. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
arizonian Report post Posted August 25, 2017 Not a sailor but,... Heads will roll. The captain of the USS Fitzgerald has had his butt handed back to him, along with a few others. We can thank NoBamma for gutting the Navy and making it a PC place to work rather than earning your position by showing you have what it takes, and if you don't have what it takes, you don't get promoted. That said, the problem is systemic. The older hands have retired, and nobody is training the new hands. The older hands retired because of politics within the navy, and decided to get out while they were still alive. The USS McCain is an Arleigh-Burke class destroyer, but it handles almost like a corvette (the type of ship, not car). There is no excuse for this to happen. From another forum, this is what is said about the new Navy, ................................................................................................. In the Navy I served in, you had to matriculate to command. A very demanding qualification process. Demonstrate control and ability, spend many hours under instruction, with supervision, literally thousands of hours on lesser watch stations, without a screw up, just to be allowed to screen for a command billet. You really didn't know your job until you had taught a subordinate to do it well.People who qualified for a command were well versed in life at sea, knew how to train others in this chosen profession. knew well the job, demands and responsibilities placed on every man under their command.Then came the "new Navy". We don't have enough smart sailors, "let's lower the requirements, so we can get more sailors qualified" became the order of the day. By the time this logic was firmly entrenched, I was pretty senior and being chastised for being "demanding" and known as a "career blocker" (if you can't do the job, you can't have it)Fast forward 25 years and you have the equivalent of handing whisky and car keys to teen agers.Today's Captains are not capable of leaving a berth, making a 3500 mile journey, finding a specific port and safely docking the ship. They routinely injure and kill sailors, under their command, for lack of knowledge and training. They seem to have lots of excuses, but very little skill. Because they never learned ship handling skills, they run into other ships, run aground, sail blindly into heavy weather better avoided, and qualify subordinate officers and enlisted's without the training or experience required to do the job at hand, safely. Our elected leader (O'Bummer) dumbed down / gutted the senior officer corps, destroyed the department of the Navy and placed our children in harms way, for no good reason.There is now no one to train the young sailors. Even the CPO community is now bereft of training and experience. (I remember when Chief's ran the Navy and officers signed off on the job) My most difficult job was to build useful officers from Ensigns.I'm sorry I got off on such a rant, but it does help explain why our ships persist in running into ships that they should be 2000 yards from.Merchantmen are known to be running on autopilot, in the dark, with no lookouts posted or proper lights displayed. A competent Officer of the deck knows to keep well clear of radar contacts and wake the Captain if a contact is acting erratically. I'm told, by young sailors, that many Captains no longer write standing night orders. They get the blissful sleep of the ignorant. I sure do wish they would quit pissing away my tax money. ........................................................................................ Bill Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
arizonian Report post Posted August 25, 2017 That sea-lane is like an LA freeway at rush hour, human error is the most likely cause Close, but not quite. Human error, starting at the top, yes. I have to add this... It's been reported that 100,000 ships traverse the Straits of Malacca every year, carrying 25% of the worlds cargo. 100,000 ships / (24 hrs x 365 days/year) = 11.4 ships/hour passing a given point. If the average speed is 18 knots (20.7 mph, 36,423 yds/hr), there should be enough room for 18.21 ships/hour at 2000 yds separation between ships. Since the traffic is both directions, and the Strait at it's narrowest point is 1.5 nautical miles wide (3,040 yds), there could be a separation of 6400 yds along the direction travelled and still enough room port/port for the ship going the opposite direction. More than enough room if the crew was well trained. Bill 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
