NAC News – Edition 577
Your weekly national and international naval news for the week of August 9th, 2024
Edition: 577 HMCS Givenchy “Canadians are deeply proud of our Coast Guard personnel and we’re working to ensure they have everything they need to protect Canada’s marine environment while ensuring our country’s sovereignty by maintaining a strong presence in our waters — especially in the Arctic. Proudly built by Nova Scotia’s shipbuilders along the shores of Halifax Harbour, the CCGS Donjek Glacier and the CCGS Sermilik Glacier will support countless operations and missions in the coming years.” Darren Fisher, Member of Parliament for Dartmouth-Cole Harbour.
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 an NAC member, and note the first year’s NAC/Branch membership dues are waived)
NOTICES
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.
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
Ottawa quietly announces cost of building new supply ships has jumped by almost $1 billion
Canadian, Australian defence ministers talk about closer collaboration
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CANADA
The Race for Next Generation Submarines – Ageing Fleets, Innovation, & Undersea Dominance (Editor –1:06:14 hr video)
Editor – I have been informed that the Venture Association has voted to dissolve itself effective 31 March 2025. There are many Venture Association members who are also NAC members. The contribution to the RCN by Venture graduates is incalculable – BZ to them all.
River-class destroyer (Editor – RCN website)
Le destroyer de la classe Fleuves et rivières (MRC site internet)
Vestdavit inks multi-davit contract for Canadian Coast Guard’s vessels
Defence minister promises to ‘unlock’ DND lands for housing
CANADIAN ARMED FORCES: Beyond Repair? It is time to get creative. (Editor – Esprit de Corps magazine 5:32 min video)
The Last Canadian Victoria Cross?
Canadian Submarine Force dedicates CFB Esquimalt building to World War One hero Lt Maitland-Dougall (Editor – a follow on from last week’s article, with a 13:42 min RCN video of the ceremony)
Editor – found this site the other day, just select the RCN ship to see its location. Bookmark it!
Irving Shipbuilding Orders 165-meter Shiplift Drydock from Bardex
Call for submissions – The Vice-Admiral (Ret’d) Peter Cairns Award
Crude Oil Exports Help Canada Swing to Surprise Trade Surplus in June (Editor – why maritime trade matters to Canadians)
Oceans North to design Canadian zero-emission research vessel
Uncertainty hangs over rail industry as shippers fret over potential strike (Editor – east and south coast US may strike, see article below)
Trident: 5 August 2024 Volume 58, Issue 16 (Editor – note HMCS Charlottetown and SNMG2 conclude interactions with Wasp Amphibious Ready Group on page 4/5. Le NCSM Charlottetown et le SNMG2 concluent leurs interactions avec le Groupe de préparation amphile Wasp.)
NAC Naval Affairs Programme Bibliographies Cold War RCN Activity (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: Aug. 5, 2024
America’s ‘Air Wing Of The Future’ Takes Shape In The Pacific
The Navy and Coast Guard Face a Rising Tide of Issues in Shipbuilding piling on
The Navy’s Shipbuilding Dilemma (Editor – USNI 36:59 min podcast)
Recruiting Shortfall Means Coast Guard ‘Can’t Crew All Our Ships,’ Says Vice Commandant
Austal USA launches final littoral combat ship – future USS Pierre (LCS 38)
Newport News Shipbuilding Constructing 2 New Quality of Life Facilities for Navy Submariners
Royal Navy joins US Navy for virtual carrier ops training
Investigation into 2023 U.S. Air Force CV-22B Osprey Crash off Japan
CIMSEC: Sea Control 542 – Ready to dive with Curt Newport (Editor – 23:58 min podcast)
USS Helena arrives in Bremerton, with an inactivation process planned
East Coast, Gulf Dockworkers To Meet Next Month On Strike Plan just as Port Houston Surpasses Two Million TEU Mark in Record Time
Venezuela: Oil Exports Continue After Election But Shipping Delays Mount
Ships in the Gulf of Mexico escaped Hurricane Debby in good time. It’s not always so easy
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INDO-PACIFIC
Allied Navies, Chinese Warships Hold Competing Drills off the Philippines with Philippines Holds Joint Patrols With US, Canada, Australia (Editor – HMCS Montreal is busy)
Norway to join UK’s Carrier Strike Group global deployment to Indo-Pacific region in 2025
ROK government commits to delivering Australian frigates by 2029
India’s Crude Oil Imports from Russia Surge 1000%
Deterrence and alliance power: Why the AUKUS submarines matter and how they can be delivered
China is Building the World’s Largest Amphib and Adding a Catapult while PLA Army drills cross-sea transport using ferry
U.S. Advanced Nuclear Attack Submarine Inches Closer to China
Hanwha Ocean wins contract to build advanced logistics support ship for South Korean Navy (Editor – converts to C$459,224,151.48)
Power of China’s secret Yu-10 torpedo hailed as video marks 70 years of submarine force (Editor – Fish Type 10 (Yu-10))
Defence sinks another $20m into robo-subs
Austal Delivers 7th Evolved Cape-Class Patrol Boat To Royal Australian Navy
Philippine Navy to receive two new Acero-class fast attack crafts from Israel by late 2024.
South China Sea: what is Beijing’s ‘maritime militia’ and how does it support the PLA? and CMSI Note #7: PLA Navy Reserve: Out of the Shadows and into the Forefront?
Record-Breaking Ocean Container Shipping Demand from China
‘World’s largest and most environmentally friendly’ PCTC is here
Iranian Oil Ties May Complicate Singapore Tanker Collision Insurance Claims
Cambodia breaks ground on a China-funded canal and says it will be built ‘no matter the cost’
Great Barrier Reef waters reached 400-year temperature highs in the past decade, study finds
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EUROPE
Ukraine:
Russia must feel war consequences, says Zelensky amid Ukrainian attack (Editor – not maritime but spit in your eye stuff)
Russian Attack Submarine Sunk in Missile Strike on Black Sea Port Claims Ukraine and Ukraine says it has sunk a Russian submarine in Crimea (Editor – 2:51 min CBCNN video)
Last of Russia’s Black Sea fleet leaves Crimean base
General:
The Royal Navy needs ‘more ships’ says Tory Baroness
End in sight for Royal Navy attack submarine woes?
German Navy wants explosives test on old frigate
Exclusive: Russia Appears to Load First Arctic LNG 2 Cargo on ‘Shadow Fleet’ Vessel and A Gas Carrier Faking Its Location Helps Russia Avoid Sanctions then ‘Shadow Fleet’ LNG Carrier Reemerges Off Norway After Calling at Sanctioned Arctic LNG 2
Warships of Russian, Iranian navies jointly patrol Caspian Sea
Giant ship build hall for Navy frigates named after female pioneer from WW2
Dense sea ice in the High Arctic could threaten shipping
Greek Coast Guard Makes Million Dollar Cocaine Bust
Meyer Werft floats out LNG-powered Disney Treasure
Maersk eyes up to 60 new dual-fuel ships as it seeks to match fleet renewal pace
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MIDDLE EAST
Red Sea:
August 5/ 6 U.S. Central Command Update
How Did the USS Eisenhower Strike Group Handle the Houthi Threat in the Red Sea? (Editor – 45 sec video)
Yemen’s Houthis Say They Targeted MV Groton In The Gulf of Aden and UKMTO Confirms Missile Strike On Vessel Near Yemen’s Aden
Report to Congress on Conflict in Yemen, Red Sea Attacks (Editor – surprisingly concise 2-page report)
Disinformation Effort Key to Houthi Red Sea Campaign, Says 5th Fleet Commander
Houthis Claim Attacks on US Warships as CENTCOM Dismisses “Disinformation”
Rare RPG Attack on Ship Near Yemen
Possible extra assignment Karel Doorman with Lebanon
General:
U.S. to send more warships, fighter jets to Middle East to bolster defenses with Carrier USS Abraham Lincoln Heads to Middle East as Iran Threatens Strikes Against Israel
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards: Powerful Group With Wide Regional Reach
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GLOBAL INTERESTS
The Top 100 is here: Find out how defense companies performed in FY23 (Editor – Canada CAE [#64] is our one and only)
The Hidden Battle for Fiber-Optic Supremacy | WSJ U.S. vs. China (Editor – 6:12 min video.
PLA continues Peace Unity-2024 exercises in Africa
World’s biggest iceberg spins in ocean trap
A Fraught Election Just Reshaped The Next Steps For Deep Sea Mining (Editor – note the Canadian component)
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SCUTTLEBUTT
Town-class destroyers – Guide 400 (Editor – 6:58 min video. The RCN took possession of seven destroyers: Annapolis, St. Francis, Columbia, St. Croix, St. Clair, Niagara, and Hamilton.)
Submarine , HMCS Ojibwa Story (Editor – 4:43 min video)
Boarding Party & Force Protection training for Royal Canadian Navy warship sailors | Go Bold S2 Ep5 (Editor – 46:54 min video)
Britain’s Answer to the Eboat (Editor – 1:04 mi video) I love the quote, “Life at Sea brings the best out is a man!)
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THIS WEEK IN RCN/MARITIME HISTORY
10 August 1813 Sir James Yeo’s forces capture American schooners USS Julia and USS Growler in an engagement near Twelve Mile Creek on Lake Ontario; the British rename the schooners Confiance and Hamilton and will use them as troop transports until Isaac Chauncey recaptures them near False Ducks Islands on 5 October. New York State.
10 August 1941 US President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill have their second meeting at Placentia, Newfoundland aboard the USS Augusta; four days later they will issue the Atlantic Charter setting forth eight goals for the world; a document that will serve as the basis for the United Nations Charter.
11 August 1954 HMCS Venture is commissioned in Esquimalt, British Columbia, as a naval cadet training establishment. It would go forward in one form or another until today’s HMCS Venture is the home for most of the naval elements of the Naval Warfare and Technical Officers’ training as well as an expanded role as the home of all leadership training for the RCN. Current Venture motto: To learn, To serve, To lead
12 August 1814 Royal Navy Capt Alexander Hobbs, commanding 70 seamen and marines, attacks three U.S. armed schooners supporting Major General Jacob Brown’s Fort Erie campaign; masquerading as American supply boats, the British board and seize USS Somers and USS Ohio while USS Porcupine escapes; the vessels are renamed Huron and Sauk; last naval engagement on Lake Erie in the war.
12 August 2010 HMCS Winnipeg intercepts a Thai ship, the MV Sun Sea carrying Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka, off the coast of British Columbia. BC.
13 August 1813 British schooner HMS Nancy discovered and trapped by a US squadron at the Nottawasaga River; Capt Lt Miller Worsley of the Royal Navy, warned of a close American presence, had the Nancy towed two miles up the river, where he built a blockhouse armed with two 24-pounder carronades and a 6-pounder gun from the schooner; his force consisted of 21 sailors, 23 Ojibwa and 9 French-Canadian voyageurs; the following day, 14 August, some American wood-cutting parties discovered the schooner’s hiding place, and Worsley was forced to scuttle the ship. Wasaga Beach, Ontario.
13 August 2010 The MV Sun Sea, carrying 490 Tamil migrants from Sri Lanka, is towed to the docks at CFB Esquimalt; the Thai cargo ship was intercepted off Vancouver Island on 12 August; the Tamils are moved to detention centres in the Vancouver area to await processing of their refugee claims.
14 August 1944 HMCS Iroquois commanded by CDR James C. Hibbard, DSC, RCN during a mixed melee ran German minesweeper M-385 aground.
14 August 1945 Japan offers its unconditional surrender.
14 August 1946 11 Naval Reserve Air Squadrons were authorized to be formed. Not all were ever established.
14 Aug 2008 Leading Seaman Robert Teodor Binder MB, of Mississauga was a member of the Canadian Forces Naval Reserve who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Bravery on 26 November 2010. The citation to his award notes that on the night of 14 August 2008, at the age of nineteen, he and two others repeatedly dove and performed CPR to rescue the occupants of a sinking car.
15 August 1827 Royal Navy Captain John Franklin lands at the entrance of the Rideau Canal, on his return down the Ottawa River from the Arctic, welcomed by Colonel By, he is escorted up to Barracks Hill (what is now Parliament Hill), then the encampment of the 71st Regiment. The following day, 16 August, he will lay the foundation stone of the Ottawa Locks being built by Thomas Mackay. A reporter from the Montreal Herald witnessed the event: “I have this evening to communicate to you one of the most important events that ever occurred in the Canadas — an event which will doubtless form an era in the history of this country for ages to come. It was no less than the depositing of the first stone of the locks of the Rideau Canal… to the tap of MacKay’s trowel young Capt. Franklin put the one-and-one-quarter ton stone to bed while the garrison band played and loud “huzzas” went up from the excavation in a strange and wild setting.”
15 August 1914 The Panama Canal was opened to traffic. During WW1, Canada’s first submarines CC-1 and CC-2 spent the first three years of the war patrolling the Pacific; however, the lack of German threat saw them reposted to Halifax in 1917. With their tender, HMCS Shearwater, they became the first warships to transit the Panama Canal flying the White Ensign (the RCN’s service flag). Arriving in Halifax on 17 October 1917.
15 August 1940 Convoy SC1 sailed. SC series of convoys were introduced to provide a system of protection for slow merchant ships (7.5 knots minimum, often not achieved) which had previously been sailing independently, with disastrous consequences. Sydney, Cape Breton, was chosen as the western terminus to help ease congestion on the port of Halifax. During the winters of 41 and 42 the SC convoys were shifted to Halifax, due to ice in Sydney harbour and its approaches. In Aug 42, when the terminus for the HX series of convoys was shifted to New York City, the SC convoys were moved to Halifax, with an interval originating from New York between Sep 42 and Mar 43. Of the 177 SC convoys, only three failed to reach their destination. SC52 lost 4 of its 34 ships to U-boats in Oct 41 and with the prospects for continued heavy opposition, was returned to Sydney by a tortuous circumnavigation of Newfoundland. SC62 and 63 were scattered by bad weather in Jan 42 and completed their voyages as independently routed ships. In all, only 29 of the 177 SC convoys were attacked, mainly made possible by signals intelligence and evasive routing, and only 145 ships were lost from the total of 6,806 (2.1%). This number is somewhat misleading as many ‘stragglers’ were sunk when they dropped out of convoy that were not counted against convoy losses. Likewise, a few ‘rompers’, ships that detached from the convoy to move ahead independently, were lost, and not counted.
15 August 1944 HMC Ships Prince David and Prince Henry participate in the Allied landing in southern France, codenamed Operation Dragoon.
15 August 1945 VJ-Day ends WWII.
16 August 1940 LCdr Henry “Harry” George Dewolf, RCN, was posted ashore to NSHQ, Ottawa as the Director of Plans and Secretary to the Chiefs of Staff Committee, after a tour of duty as the Commanding Officer of HMCS St Laurent since 1937.
16 August 1956 HMCS Assiniboine is commissioned into the RCN as the second of the new St. Laurent class of destroyer escorts. She was the first to be converted to a DDH reaching the fleet in 1963.
16 Aug 1977 VENTURE, the Naval Officer Training Centre (NOTC), was established in the Canadian Forces Fleet School in NADEN in September 1976, and welcomed its first students on 16 August 1977.
16 August 2011 Government announces that the name “Air Command” is being changed to the air force’s original historic name: Royal Canadian Air Force, and the name of Maritime Command to RCN to better reflect Canada’s military heritage and align Canada with other key Commonwealth countries whose military units use the royal designation.
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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