NAC News – Edition 576
Your weekly national and international naval news for the week of August 2nd, 2024
Edition: 576 HMC Dockyard Halifax “Through the National Shipbuilding Strategy, Canada continues to achieve significant milestones for the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships project, while strengthening our marine industry and creating good jobs for Canadians. Today’s announcement is a big step toward providing our Canadian Coast Guard members with new, advanced vessels to accomplish their missions on Canadian waters.” The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement
Rod Hughes: Editor NAC News rhughes@shaw.ca (Comments welcome to help improve this service.) Links to keep in touch with the NAC and RCN can be found at the bottom of this email. Contact Kevin Goheen executivedirector-nac@outlook.com if you wish someone to be added to the NAC News email distribution. (Influencer or good candidates to become a NAC member, and note the first year’s NAC/Branch membership dues are waived)
NOTICES
NEW 14 Sept 2024 at 1400(2:00PM) The VENTURE (1954-1968) Legacy Committee are pleased to inform you of the dedication of the VENTURE (1954-1968) Legacy cairn at the Naval Museum in STADACONA, CFB Base Halifax. A reception will follow at the ballroom in the Wardroom.
23-26 September Oceans Conference & Exposition 2024 Halifax Convention Centre, The OCEANS 2024 Halifax conference is for global maritime professionals to learn, innovate and lead in the protection and utilization of the world’s largest natural resource – our OCEANS.
30 Oct/1 Nov 2024 Seaspan announced their upcoming National Shipbuilding Strategy Industry Day, in partnership with the Association of British Columbia Marine Industries (ABCMI). It will be held at the Vancouver Convention Centre. More details to come for those who Register.
14 November 2024 Super Early Bird Registration is open for the Vanguard Deep Blue Forum 2024 to be held at The National Arts Centre, 1 Elgin Street, Ottawa. If you’re not able to attend in person, all speaker sessions will be live streamed, to permit virtual attendance. FREE registration for all serving navy & government personnel.
UPDATED 25 February 2025 ShipTech Forum 2025 Super Early Bird registration is open!, The National Arts Centre, Ottawa ON
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THIS WEEK’S SIGNIFICANT ARTICLES
Is Canada’s Navy Prepared For the New Global Security Environment? (Editor – 50:51 min CDAI podcast with NAC members Adam Lajeunesse, Tim Addison, and Norman Jolin)
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CANADA
Canadian Frigate Makes Taiwan Strait Transit As China Forces Monitor (Editor – HMCS Montreal) but of course Canadian warship passes through Taiwan Strait, drawing China’s ire
HMCS Regina Returns From Chinese Bering Strait Provocation with Canadian warship shadowed Chinese vessel off Alaska last month, National Defence says amplification Appearance of Chinese ships off Alaska heralds new stage of rivalry with US — expert
CFB Esquimalt building to be renamed in honour of Duncan-born submariner
Editor – see below 6 August 1942 A/CPO RCNVR Max Bernays, Assiniboine’s Coxswain. HMCS Max Bernays is named in his honour.
New DND strategy warns Canadian military’s approach to artificial intelligence ‘fragmented’
Loi sur la Journée des anciens combattants de la guerre de Corée
Back to the future: Canada’s plan to buy 12 submarines is straight out of 1987
Marshall to built launcher tubes for SEA TLS torpedo system (Editor – for Fraser Class)
Davie intends to create U.S. shipbuilding presence in alignment with ICE Pact
Commanding HMCS Winnipeg a Halifax class surface combatant warship of the Royal Canadian Navy (Editor – 15:17 min video)
HMCS Vancouver Destroys UAV During RIMPAC 2024
Faces of RIMPAC 2024: Royal Canadian Navy Sailor 1st Class Matthew Lupul (Editor – 1:26 min USN video)
Canadian Forces monitoring personnel’s social-media accounts in operation codenamed Fence Post
Coast Guard to end staffing at 2 B.C. lighthouses, following safety concerns
Ship fire off Victoria shows Canada isn’t prepared for marine emergencies: TSB
Retiring military members face months-long delays for severance, benefit payouts
Exclusive visit of the new C295 FWSAR for Canada (Editor – another look in an impressive company 5:24 min video)
New Strike Threats Loom in August Over Canada’s West Coast Ports and Rails
Electric Tug HaiSea Wamis Arrives at Kitimat Home Base
DP World backs decarbonization of Canada’s freight-transportation sector
Cruise pollution panned as Victoria’s harbour ponders shore power alternatives
Seaspan Ferries: Connecting Vancouver Island to the World (Editor – 1:48 min video)
VAC Salute July 2024 (Editor – note article, “Spotlight on women Veterans”. Commodore (Retired) Laraine Orthlieb’s Naval Legacy)
ACC Salut! Juillet 2024 (Éditeur – article à noter, « Pleins feux sur les vétéranes». L’héritage naval du commodore (à la retraite) Laraine Orthlieb)
Canadian Military Journal [Vol. 24, No. 1, Winter 2024]
Lookout: Volume 69, Issue No. 30, July 29, 2024
NAC Naval Affairs Programme Bibliographies Aircraft Carriers (Editor – Please share with anyone you think may benefit from the knowledge, after all, that’s what our naval affairs programme is all about – enlightening Canadians)
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USA & AMERICA
USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: July 29, 2024
How strong is China’s navy? (Editor – useful perspective in a Brookings Institution in a 1:02:25 min video)
US and Japan procure nine E-2D Advanced Hawkeye in $1.5bn deal
US Navy steps towards deactivating oldest active aircraft carrier
US Navy christens destroyer USS Patrick Gallagher
U.S. Navy Accepts Delivery of Future USS Nantucket (LCS 27)
US Navy accelerates development of shipboard lasers for enhance defense capabilites.
CIMSEC: Unmanned maritime systems and warships: interpretations under the Law of the Sea
Russian Warships Make Routine Visit To Cuba
Panama Canal Continues Progress Toward Normal Operations
Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone is 12th Largest on Record
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INDO-PACIFIC
Joint Statement from the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Tokyo
NATO Wakes Up to the Chinese Threat
Chinese, Russian Warships Sail Around Japanese Islands
PLA’s electromagnetic catapult aircraft carrier completes third sea trial: media
Philippines completes resupply mission at Ren’ai Jiao under China Coast Guard’s supervision following deal with Beijing but of note Philippines ‘will never seek permission’ from China in Ayungin missions thus Philippines to Increase External Defense Budget in Face of South China Sea Tensions.
New advanced Chinese Submarine may be in the works; Features X-shaped stern
South Korea accuses Chinese students of taking illegal drone video of US aircraft carrier (Editor – precedence set: 6 points penalty, send them home for a year, plus $226K fine!)
Australia Secures $2.2 Billion Contract for Collins Class Submarine Sustainment.
USS Preble to forward deploy to Japan strengthening US Naval presence in Indo-Pacific.
Pakistan Navy Commissions Third OPV PNS Hunain in Romania
INS Brahmaputra fire leads to broader safety reviews
Russian Navy inducts icebreaker Evpatiy Kolovrat into Pacific Fleet.
Philippine Coast Guard Responding to Oil Spill from Sunken Tanker ‘Terra Nova’ then Oil Spill from Sunken Tanker Reaches Shore in the Philippines
Philippines, US Navies Hold Joint Exercise in South China Sea
Vietnam’s coast guard to hold first drills with Philippines
Watch: Dramatic Collision Between Bulk Carriers Off Queensland Coast (Editor – includes 1:45 min video. Slow motion trainwreck, so, what happens if the LNG tankers are full?)
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EUROPE
Ukraine:
Russian Navy “Missing” From Sea of Azov
RUSSIAN $50 Billion Shadow Fleet Shutdown as West Closes Waters for Fleet of Rusty ‘Dark’ Tankers (Editor – 10:00 minute video)
General:
Russian Navy outstrips world’s leading navies — official (Editor – strange assertion)
Russian navy starts major drills involving most of its fleet and Russian, Chinese vessels team up for Gulf of Finland naval exercises and Russian Navy wraps up exercises of its fleets
U.S. 6th Fleet and Royal Navy Kick Off Exercise Sea Breeze 2024-1
Russia deploys three submarines armed with cruise missiles to sea for the first time
Russia’s Hybrid Warfare Against NATO
Russia Launches World’s Largest Floating LNG Facility Under Military Protection
Russia Launches New Variant Of Tarantul-Class Corvette
British nuclear missile submarine fires new torpedo
Finland mulls an end to Barents cooperation
The US may have just ripped the heart out of the Royal Navy (Editor – the never-ending debate continues)
Turkey launches second Ada-class corvette Hetman Ivan Vyhovsky for Ukrainian Navy.
Nuclear submarine Knyaz Pozharsky begins sea trials in White Sea.
Finland Suspects Russian Vessel of Territorial Violation
Top Chinese navy officer Hu Zhongming and PLA ships head to Russia for maritime parade and Russia Navy Day: President Putin greets Navy personnel onboard INS Tabar for Russia celebrates Navy Day with Main Naval Parade on Neva River
‘Overworked, underpaid, undervalued’ Royal Fleet Auxiliary officers set to strike
Romania’s Damen Shipyard finalizes HNLMS Den Helder Combat Support Ship for the Netherlands.
Greek, Turkish ships face off in the Aegean, but no hostile engagement
Chinese Container Ships Take Arctic Shortcut Avoiding Red Sea more detailed Arctic Shortcut | Russian Northern Route | What If Iran & Hezbollah Interdict More Chokepoints? (Editor – 16:20 min video)
Russia’s Arctic LNG 2 Production Hit by U.S. Sanctions while Moscow’s Arctic policy is corrupt and based on lies says exiled energy expert
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MIDDLE EAST
Red Sea:
July 30 U.S. Central Command Update
July Red Sea recap: Houthis continue to target commercial vessels
General:
Israeli Navy Shoots Down Drone Near Karish Offshore Gas Field (Editor – Karish oil field article)
What is Hezbollah in Lebanon and will it go to war with Israel? (Editor – not maritime, but a useful article for perspective. What they will do now that they are “headless”.)
Pakistan Relieves Canada of CTF150 Command
Task Force 59 Holds Change of Command Ceremony
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GLOBAL INTERESTS
The Future of Deep Sea Mining Hinges on a Contentious Election
Container ship fleet grows by 11%
Grounded Cargo Ship ‘Ultra Galaxy’ Breaks Apart in South Africa
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SCUTTLEBUTT
CIMSEC: Sea Control 540 – the library of Captain John Anderson with Robert Maclean (Editor – 18:24 min podcast)
British ship sunk by German U-boat during WWI finally found after 107 years
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THIS WEEK IN RCN/MARITIME HISTORY
4 August 1910 The Rainbow was commissioned as an H.M.C. ship at Portsmouth as the first warship in the RCN. She was manned by a nucleus crew supplied by the Royal Navy and the Royal Fleet Reserve. The Rainbow was a light cruiser of the Apollo class, and the Canadian Government paid £50,000 for her and assigned her to the west coast.
4 August 1914 War is declared between Great Britain and Germany. Canada is automatically at war with Germany as well. HMC ships placed under Admiralty operational control.
4 August 1943 A Sunderland from RCAF Squadron 423 sank U-489 west of the Faroes.
5 August 1914 Two submarines, later designated CC-1 and CC-2, are purchased for the RCN by the Premier of British Columbia in Seattle, Washington. Commissioned into the RCN 7 August.
5 August 1944 HMCS Iroquois commanded by Cdr James C. Hibbard, DSC, RCN, with HMCS Haida commanded by Cdr Harry G. DeWolf, DSO, RCN, and other allied forces, sank German minesweepers M-263 and M-486.
6 August 1942 RCN destroyer HMCS Assiniboine commanded by A/LCDR John H. Stubbs, RCN, pursues and rams German submarine U-210 in the fog, finally sinking her with a 4.7 inch shell. While Assiniboine was maneuvering to ram the U-Boat A/CPO RCNVR Max Bernays, Assiniboine’s Coxswain ordered his telegraph operators who were giving orders to the engine room to leave, as the fire began to surround the wheelhouse. Bernays manned the helm and did the work of the two telegraph operators while the CO gave orders to ram U-210. As the gun battle grew in intensity Assiniboine rammed U-210 abaft of her conning tower, crippling the submarine. 38 of the 48 German crew were rescued. Assiniboine’s losses were minimal, with one killed and 13 wounded. Bernays, although nominated for the Victoria Cross, was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal for his heroic actions. HMCS Max Bernays is named in his honour.
7 August 1975 Pierre Trudeau announces that Canada will seek agreement to set up 370 km (200-mile) economic coastal zone.
8 August 1813 US Commodore Isaac Chauncey’s ships Hamilton and Scourge capsize in minutes in a heavy gale off Forty Mile Creek on Lake Ontario, and 53 sailors drown; the ships were putting on extra sail to escape British Captain James Yeo’s fleet and sank from a shift in weight of the guns; largest loss of life suffered by the United States Navy in the war. Yeo did not see the disaster happen and did not press his advantage.
8 August 1944 German U-boat U-667 torpedoes and sinks RCN Flower Class corvette HMCS Regina off Trevose Head, Cornwall, UK; thirty of her ship’s company are lost. Between 1939 and 1945, 36 Flower-Class corvettes were lost between the four navies operating them, of which 22 were torpedoed by enemy U-boats. On the balance sheet the RCN sank 33 Axis submarines, 30 German and 3 Italian. For perspective, during World War II Germany built 1,162 U-boats, of which 785 were destroyed and the remainder surrendered (or were scuttled to avoid surrender) at the capitulation. Of the 632 U-boats sunk at sea, Allied surface ships and shore-based aircraft accounted for the great majority (246 and 245 respectively).
9 August 1945 Temporary Lt (RCNVR) Robert Hampton Gray VC, DSC was shot down and killed in a dive-bombing raid at Onagawa Wan as he attacked and sank a Japanese destroyer; serving with the Royal Navy as a Corsair pilot aboard HMS Formidable Gray; he was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. As Gray’s remains were never found, he was listed as missing in action and presumed dead. In 1989, in Sakiyami Park, Japan, Gray became the first member of the Allied Forces honoured by the Japanese with a memorial and it is the only memorial dedicated to a foreign soldier on Japanese soil. Of Canadian VC recipients, although they were all serving in or with the RN, Lt Gray was the only actual member of the RCN and one of the two Canadian born Naval personnel to receive the VC during the Second World War. Lt Gray was tragically one of the last Canadians to die during World War II and was the second to last Canadian to ever be awarded the Victoria Cross. Lt Gray is the most highly decorated pilot from BC, a history now recognized at North Saanich’s BC Aviation Museum with a three-piece monument following a campaign led by a group of former navy members and members of the Naval Association of Canada. It is fitting that among Canadian men and women who acquired 1,677 British and 64 foreign decorations, that this highest recognition should have gone to one of the many Canadians who spent much or all the war apart from the main body of the RCN. Altogether some 4,000 men and women served for varying periods “on loan” to the Royal Navy. HMCS Robert Hampton Gray is named in his honour.
9 August 1941 HMC Ships Assiniboine and Restigouche escort HMS Prince of Wales, with Prime Minister Winston Churchill aboard, into Placentia Bay, Newfoundland.
SIGNIFICANT RCN DATES – If you see any omissions or errors please inform me, and any more modern significant dates are also welcomed. The list draws primarily from the Directory of History and Heritage’s comprehensive “Significant Dates in Canadian Military History”, the now defunct “Canada Channel”, “Legion Magazine”, The Naval Service of Canada, Its Official History Vol 1-3, NAC member Roger Litwiller’s excellent web site, encyclopedic guidance from NAC member Fraser McKee, the Uboat.net site, and anywhere else I can find credible information. For the merchant ship history, a special thanks to NAC member Bill Dziadyk for his able assistance and detailed work. The RCN lost 1,965 men and 24 ships during the War, most of them in the Atlantic. A comprehensive list of the staggering merchant losses – sunk, damaged, or lost – Canadian Merchant Ship Losses of the Second World War, 1939-1945 by Rob Fisher {Revised June 2001}, and for the loss of individual personnel RCN Ship Histories, Convoy Escort Movements, Casualty Lists 1939-1947)
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