Page 10. MAINE COASTAL NEWS May 2014 United States Navy News


PCU North Dakota Commissioning Postponed


From Team Submarine Public Affairs


WASHINGTON (NNS) -- PCU North Dakota (SSN 784) commissioning will be postponed, the Navy announced, April 16. This decision is based on the need for additional design and certifi cation work re- quired on the submarine’s redesigned bow and material issues with vendor-assembled and delivered components. As the Navy works with all vested parties to certify the quality and safety of the submarine and toward taking delivery of the boat, it will determine a new commissioning date. The Navy is committed to ensuring the safety of its crews and ships. High quality standards for submarine components are an important part of the overall effort to ensure safety.


The lessons learned from North Dakota are already being applied to all Block III submarines. Team Submarine oversees the subma-


rine force’s research, development, acqui- sition, maintenance and life cycle support.


Russian Aircraft Flies Near U.S. Navy Ship in Black Sea


By Jim Garamone, American Forces Press Service


WASHINGTON (NNS) -- A Russian attack aircraft repeatedly fl ew near the USS Donald Cook in international waters in the Black Sea on April 12, a Pentagon spokesman said. The USS Cook was patrolling in the western Black Sea when an unarmed Rus- sian Su-24 Fencer attack aircraft repeatedly fl ew near the Navy ship, Army Col. Steve Warren told reporters.


“The aircraft did not respond to multiple queries and warnings from Donald Cook,


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and the event ended without incident after approximately 90 minutes,” Warren said. “This provocative and unprofessional Rus- sian action is inconsistent with international protocols and previous agreements on the professional interaction between our mili- taries.” Two Russian aircraft were present, but only one took part in the provocative actions, Warren said. The aircraft fl ew from near sea level to a couple of thousand feet, he added, but never overfl ew the U.S. Arleigh Burke- class destroyer.


“The Russian plane made a total of 12 passes,” he said.


The wingman stayed at a considerably higher altitude, Warren said. Officials later said the aircraft ap- proached within about 1,000 yards of the ship. The USS Cook was never in danger, Warren said.


“The Donald Cook is more than capable of defending itself against two Su-24s,” the colonel said. Warren said he does not think this is an example of a young pilot joyriding. “I would have diffi culty believing that two Russian pilots, on their own, would chose to take such an action,” he said. “We’ve seen the Russians conduct themselves unprofes- sionally and in violation of international norms in Ukraine for several months, and these continued acts of provocation and unprofessionalism do nothing to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine, which we called on the Russians to do.”


The Cook arrived in the Black Sea on


April 10. The ship is now making a port call in Constanta, Romania.


Navy’s Underwater Archaeologists Dive Headfi rst into Naval History From Naval History and Heritage Command Communication and Outreach Division WASHINGTON (NNS) -- It was a simple pottery jar with cork in it. But when the team from the Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB) of the Naval History and Heritage Command eased the cork out of it, the air that came out was nearly 200 years old, perhaps created by the organic material it had stored on the sloop-rigged fl oating battery Scor- pion before it was scuttled Aug. 22, 1814. The UAB has no shortage of projects. They continue artifact recovery from well- known shipwreck sites, such as CSS Ala- bama, CSS Georgia in the Savannah River, and searching for the wreck site of the sub- marine USS Pompano that sank with all of her crew off the coast of Japan in September 1943.


Conservation work continues on the Howell torpedo found July 2013 after being alerted by two Navy-trained dolphins of something buried on the ocean bottom in San Diego.


This summer, Alexis Catsambis, Ph.D., UAB archeologist, will hunt for the wreck of the Bonhomme Richard off Flamborough Head near Yorkshire, England. The Conti- nental Navy warship, commanded by the legendary John Paul Jones, was shattered during the ship’s 4-hour battle with HMS Serapis Sept. 23, 1779. Despite his sinking ship, Jones refused to surrender to Serapis’ commanding offi cer with his infamous: “Sir, I have not yet begun to fi ght!” After Jones took command of the captured British ship, the Bonhomme Richard sank Sept. 27, 1779. And as for that 1814 air from that pot- tery jar from USS Scorpion, remnants were captured and stored for future examination into what that jar might have held as part of the Chesapeake Bay Flotilla sunk in the Patuxent River during the War of 1812.


Future USS America Delivered By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Lewis Hunsaker, Pre-Commis- sioning Unit America Public Affairs


PASCAGOULA, Miss. (NNS) -- The U.S. Navy offi cially accepted delivery of the am- phibious assault ship America (LHA 6) from Huntington Ingalls Industries during a ship custody transfer ceremony in Pascagoula, Miss., April 10.


More than 900 Sailors and Marines assigned to Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) America marched to the ship to take custody on the fl ight deck.


During the event, Capt. Robert A. Hall,


Jr., commanding offi cer of America, signed the offi cial paperwork, granting custody of the ship to the U.S. Navy.


Specializing in Tuna Towers, Hard Tops, T-Tops, and Arches America is the fi rst ship of its class,


replacing the Tarawa-class of amphibious assault ships. As the next generation “big- deck” amphibious ship, America will be optimized for aviation and capable of sup- porting current and future aircraft, such as the tilt-rotor MV-22 Osprey and the Joint Strike Fighter.


The ship will provide flexible, multi-mission capabilities spanning from forward-deployed crisis response to mari- time security operations.


America is 844 feet long, 106 feet wide and hosts a displacement of 44,971 long tons. Her propulsion system will drive it to speeds in excess of 22 knots, and she will accommodate a crew size of more than 1,100 Sailors and nearly 1,900 embarked Marines. With the ship custody transfer com- plete, the crew is now working and living aboard the ship. After a rigorous evaluation and certifi cation cycle, the ship will depart Mississippi and transit around South Amer- ica to her future homeport of San Diego. America is scheduled to be commissioned late 2014 in San Francisco.


USS Coronado Commissioned in Namesake City


By Senior Chief Mass Communica- tion Specialist Donnie W. Ryan, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacifi c Fleet Public Affairs


CORONADO, Calif (NNS) -- More than 4,000 guests watched as the littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) joined the Na- vy’s surface fl eet during a commissioning ceremony at Naval Air Station North Island in Coronado, CA, April 5.


Coronado is the fourth littoral combat ship, the second of the Independence vari- ant, commissioned into service and will be outfi tted with reconfi gurable mission pack- ages and focus on a variety of mission areas including mine countermeasures, surface warfare and anti-submarine warfare. Susan Ring Keith, the daughter and stepdaughter of Navy admirals and a long- time leader in the San Diego community, was named as the ship’s sponsor and christened the ship Jan. 14, 2012 during a ceremony in Mobile, AL.


The 2,790-ton Coronado was built by


Austal USA Shipbuilding in Mobile, Ala., at a cost of $400 million and is 417 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 100 feet, and a navigational draft of 15 feet. Coronado uses two gas turbine and two diesel engines to power four steerable water jets and can reach speeds in excess of 40 knots. Cmdr. Shawn Johnston, a native of North Carolina, is the commanding offi cer


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