PCU, Zumwalt: turbine started,first electric-drive surface combatant

Aboard the future USS Zumwalt,  one of the main turbine units was started for the first time on September 23.   The 610-foot-long warship will be the first electric-drive surface combatant built for the U.S. Navy since a line of smaller destroyer escorts in the 1940s.

[November 25][December 21 2013 PCU Zumwalt: formal launch put off to Spring]
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the not-yet-launched Zumwalt-class destroyer he toured here today “represents the cutting edge of our naval capabilities.” The ship, now known as the Pre-Commissioning Unit, or PCU, Zumwalt, will become the USS Zumwalt, named for former Navy Adm. Elmo Zumwalt. Officials said the ship is about a year away from joining the fleet.



[October 21]
USS Zumwalt, the first entirely new ship built  by Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, since the original Arleigh Burke was christened more than 20 years ago.The ship is 100 feet longer than the existing class of destroyers.

It features an unusual wave-piercing hull, electric-drive propulsion, advanced sonar and guided missiles and a gun that fires rocket-propelled warheads as far as 100 miles. Unlike warships with towering radar-and-antenna-laden superstructures, the Zumwalt will ride low to the water to minimize its radar signature, making it stealthier than other warships.

The ship was envisioned for shore bombardment, but its size and a power plant that can produce 78 megawatts of electricity — enough to power 78,000 homes — make it a potential platform for futuristic weapons such as the electromagnetic rail gun, which uses a magnetic field and electric current to fire a projectile at seven times the speed of sound.

With so many computers and so much automation, it will need fewer sailors, operating with a crew of 158 — nearly half the complement aboard the current generation of destroyers.

HAI YANG SHI YOU 981 finds gas outside disputed area

China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) has announced its first deepwater gas field discovery in the South China Sea,. The discovery was made by HAI YANG SHI YOU 981 MO: 9480344 .

The newly discovered gas field, dubbed Lingshui 17-2, is located 150 kilometers south of Hainan — in other words, not in a disputed area of the South China Sea.





[June 23 2011 Marine Oil 981: semisub rig to Spratly Islands]



Marine Oil 981, HAI YANG SHI YOU 981, 船主, will begin testing this week for the first time in preparation for its deployment to the South China Sea in July. 48.1 miles Northeast bearing 66° from Zhoushan, Zhejiang, China
The deployment of the semi-submersible platform comes as tensions rise in the hotly contested South China Sea. Shortly after China announced the completion of the platform — which took more than three years to build and cost more than $900 million. The oil rig is 114 m long, 140 m high and weighs 31,000 t. According to China State Shipbuilding Company, the deepwater platform is capable of drilling in waters up to 3,000 m deep, and of using a drill that goes as deep as 12,000 m.
China's ambassador to the Philippines, Liu Jianchao, has insisted China's intentions were peaceful and said that China was not looking for oil in the disputed waters and, therefore, no other country should. Philippine Daily Inquirer
2009 China Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding H1188 CNOOC Hai Yang Shi You 981 ABS Semi Sub Drilling Rig IMO: 9480344



Name: HAI YANG SHI YOU 981
Ex-names: 6 FMZ AF
MMSI: 413464330
IMO: 9480344
Callsign: BYDG
Flag: China

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American Petroleum Tankers sees flood of domestic and Canadian crude

NASSCO built five product carriers for American Petroleum Tankers, including Empire State, shown here during "float out" day for the hull in September 2009.  APT was then mostly owned by the investment firm Blackstone Group.

To capitalize on a flood of domestic and Canadian crude into the U.S. Gulf Coast, logistics giant Kinder Morgan Energy Partners recently acquired U.S.-flagged tankers that can move crude and products between domestic ports as required under the Jones Act.   They acquired American Petroleum Tankers (APT) and State Class Tankers (SCT) from affiliates of The Blackstone Group and Cerberus Capital Management for an aggregate consideration of approximately $962 million in cash. APT and SCT are engaged in the marine transportation of crude oil, condensate and refined products in the U.S. domestic trade, commonly referred to as the Jones Act trade.    American Petroleum Tankers already has five medium range product tankers in operation, each with a 330,000 barrel cargo capacity. In addition a new Jones Act qualified tanker is being commissioned for construction,  and State Class Tankers has ordered four other medium range tankers with expected delivery dates in 2015 and 2016 and the same cargo capacity of 330,000 barrels.   
 General Dynamics NASSCO, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has entered into a contract with an affiliate of American Petroleum Tankers (APT), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: KMP), for the design and construction of an additional 50,000 deadweight ton LNG-conversion-ready product carrier with a 330,000 barrel cargo capacity. Construction is scheduled to begin the fourth quarter of 2015, with delivery scheduled for the second quarter of 2017. This new tanker, supported by a long-term charter, will be constructed at the NASSCO shipyard in San Diego, meeting the Jones Act requirement that ships carrying cargo between U.S. ports be built in U.S. shipyards.
American Petroleum Tankers LLC
State Class Tankers II LLC
State Class Tankers III LLC
State Class Tankers IV LLC
State Class Tankers V LLC
State Class Tankers VI LLC
American Petroleum Tankers Holding LLC
APT New Intermediate Holdco LLC
American Petroleum Tankers Parent LLC
APT Intermediate Holdco LLC

PNS Zulfiqar: attempted hijack of Pakistani frigate stopped

PNS Zulfiqar

An attempt to hijack PNS Zulfiqar [a frigate purchased from China and inducted in July 2009] was stopped by guards.
The attack was carried out by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which said it had inside help.
 Karachi's naval dockyard is about four kilometres from the mouth of Karachi harbor.

Pakistan Navy — a 31,000-man branch of the military – has tried to keep the investigation in its sole control without sharing on the record information with civilian agencies

PNS Zulfiquar (251), is a general purpose frigate built by Pakistan and China for the Pakistan Navy (PN). They are an adaptation of the Type 053H3 frigates of China but include elements of the Type 054 frigates as well.
General characteristics
Type: Frigate
Displacement: 2,500 tonnes (standard)[1][2][3]
3,144 tonnes (full load)[4]
Length: 123.2 m (404 ft)
Beam: 13.8 m (45 ft)
Draught: 3.76 m (12.3 ft)
Propulsion:
CODAD (Combined Diesel and Diesel)
2 × Tognum MTU 12V 1163 TB 83 @ 10.5 MW
2 × MTU cruise diesels @ 6.6 MW
Speed: 29 kn (54 km/h) maximum[1][2]
Range: 4,000 nmi (7,400 km)
Complement: 170 crew
Sensors and
processing systems:
SUR 17 air surveillance radar
SR-60 air/surface search radar
KH 2007 navigation radar
Type 347 CIWS fire-control radar
CIWS electro-optical director
Radar warning receiver suite
Electronic warfare
& decoys:
RWD-8 intercept, NJ8I-3 jammer
Decoy flare, chaff launchers
Armament:
Guns:
1 × 76.2 mm calibre AK–176M main gun
Type 730B CIWS (2 × 30 mm 7-barrel Gatling guns)
Missiles:
1 × 8-cell FM-90N SAM launcher
2 × 4-cell C-802 SSM launchers
Other:
2 × 3-cell ET-52C torpedo launchers
2 × 6-cell RDC-32 anti-submarine rockets
Aircraft carried: 1 × Harbin Z-9EC ASW helicopter
Aviation facilities: Flight deck and enclosed hangar
Notes:
Ships in class include:
PNS Zulfiquar (251)
PNS Shamsheer (252)
PNS Saif (253)
PNS Aslat (254)

[November 2 2008 Saudi-supported Islamists against pirates?


Negotiations between the pirates and the ship's Saudi owners are being conducted through an interpreter on a satellite phone using an outside company that specialises in dealing with kidnaps and ransom demands. Blackwater Maritime Security Services, a division of the firm active in Iraq, is said to be sending it's 183 ft McArthur former NOAA research vessel to the Gulf of Aden from its base in Virginia.

Armed Islamic militants were angry pirates had attacked a ship owned by Muslims. The Sirius Star is owned by a Saudi-controlled company. "The Islamists say they will attack the pirates for hijacking a Muslim ship," an unnamed local tribal elder said. Militants have entered the port of Haradheere close to where the ship is moored . It is common for Somali pirates to booby-trap vessels they have seized raising the prospect of the Sirius Star being blown up if Islamists start a firefight with those who seized her. Meanwhile, unknown armed young men have started a fierce firefight in the capital. After the Mogadishu attack, another resident Dahir Mohamed said he had seen the bodies of 15 young men.
"They were unfamiliar faces in the our district, so we think they were the insurgents." The Islamists have not commented on the incident.

Northern Iraq airstrikess from CVN 77 - F/A-18 Super Hornets are recovered aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77)

F/A-18 Super Hornets are recovered aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) while underway in the Arabian Gulf. Bush is operating in the Arabian Gulf on a scheduled deployment to U.S. 5th Fleet. The president has authorized U.S. Central Command to conduct military operations in support of humanitarian aid deliveries and targeted airstrikes in Iraq to protect U.S. personnel and interests, in response to activities conducted by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorists. (RELEASED) ARABIAN Gulf (Aug. 8, 2014)

U.S. air assets taking part in the campaign include Boeing F-15E Strike Eagles, Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons and General Atomics MQ-1 Predators. The Navy is participating with Boeing F/A-18 Hornets flying off the deck of USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77).

HMS Enterprise,- survey vessel, has evacuated another 93 individuals from Libya.

KAROL WOJTYLA supplying bunkers to HMS ENTERPRISE H 88 whilst berthed at the Grand Harbour, Malta -

The HMS Enterprise, the British Royal Navy survey vessel, has evacuated another 93 individuals from Libya.  The ship carrying mostly Brits, as well as Irish, Danes and Norwegians, arrived in Malta on August 6..

HMS Enterprise (H88)

Echo and Enterprise are the first Royal Navy ships to be fitted with azimuth thrusters. Both azimuth thrusters and the bow thruster can be controlled through the integrated navigation system by a joystick providing high manoeuvrability. Complete control and monitoring for power generation and propulsion, together with all auxiliary plant systems, tank gauging and damage control functions is provided through the integrated platform management system (IPMS), accessible through workstations around the ship.

[April 20 2011 Britain moves; RN RFA to Libya- marines, helos]









British Foreign Secretary William Hague said an experienced team of about a dozen British military advisers would help rebels work on organization, logistics and communications.

Hague said the advisers would not take part in any fighting, nor train or arm the opposition. He said the group would expand the work of British diplomats already in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.
France is joining Britain in sending military advisers to Libya to help rebel forces.

A spokesman for the French government announced the move April 12 as French President Nicolas Sarkozy prepared to meet the head of Libya's rebels, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, in Paris.

Italy has now joined France and Britain is sending military advisers to assist rebel forces in Libya.

Maurizio Massari, a spokesman for the Italian Foreign Ministry, said Rome will dispatch military instructors to train the rebels in self-defense tactics.

THE THREE British navy ships carrying hundreds of Royal Marines to Cyprus for training are in no way linked to operations in Libya, said a British bases spokeswoman yesterday.

A report in The Times of London yesterday quoted the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) saying that a flotilla of British vessels and 600 Royal Marines would be deployed to Cyprus for amphibious exercises within the next two weeks.

The report triggered speculation that the UK was planning land operations in Libya, which was yesterday quashed by British bases spokeswoman, Connie Pierce, who said: “This is not linked to Libya at all.”

A taskforce of about 600 Royal Marines and at least six ships has left for the region, massively enhancing the UK's military strength there.

The Trafalgar- class submarine HMS Turbulence, and Type-22 frigate, HMS Cumberland – both Devonport-based – are already stationed in the Med off Libya.
Yesterday, The Sunday Times reported that Britain was sending a "taskforce" of marines and naval ships to Libya this week on a "humanitarian" mission.

The aim of the mission was to deliver emergency medical and food supplies to rebel-held towns, it said. The taskforce would include up to 600 marines from Taunton-based 40 Commando to protect ports where humanitarian supplies would be unloaded.

The newspaper said the ships, including the Devonport-based assault ship HMS Albion, were due to leave Plymouth either today or tomorrow, initially for Gibraltar. The marines will fly out to Gibraltar this week, it said.

Yesterday, Foreign Secretary William Hague denied the report, insisting they were actually "preparing for an exercise elsewhere".

Despite Mr Hague's denials, a taskforce of ships – including Albion – is due to sail for the Med shortly.

The assault ship is part of the Royal Navy's Responsive Force Task Group, which is deploying this month on Operation Cougar, the first phase of which will run in the Mediterranean until June. Also due to take part are HMS Ocean, RFA Cardigan Bay, RFA Mounts Bay, RFA Fort Rosalie, RFA Wave Knight and RFA Argus.

Five support teams from the new Maritime Aviation Support Force at RNAS Culdrose are also being deployed.

The long-planned operation will mean a significant British military resource will shortly be passing by the Libyan coast. Ocean's primary role is to carry marines supported by 12 medium support helicopters and six attack helicopters. As a landing platform, Albion is also able to embark and deploy troops and equipment by sea and air.

The use of commandos inside Libya, even as part of a humanitarian mission, would increase concerns over mission creep. The greatest need for humanitarian aid is in the rebel-held city of Misrata where fighting continues. Doctors in the city, 130 miles east of Tripoli, say at least 200 people have been killed there and 1,500 wounded. more read

Libyan-flagged Anwaar Libya,Nine million litres of petrol for Tripoli

mt Anwaar Libya

London, 7 August 2014:
Libyan-flagged Anwaar Libya, arrived in the capital at midday on August 6. It had left Misrata on Sunday. Nine million litres of petrol arrived in Tripoli by ship to address crippling fuel shortages that have paralysed the capital for a month.

Vessel's name: Anwaar Libya          Last updated: Jul 11, 2014
Ex-name(s): Maersk Rye                IMO number: 9275256
Flag: Libya                                     Call sign: 5AMV
Port of Registry: Tripoli                  Summer DWT: 34656 MT
Type of vessel: Oil Tanker              Built: May 20, 2004
Type of hull: Double Hull                Owner: Libyan Sea Carrier Ltd
Class Society: Lloyds Register       Operator: General National Maritime Transport Company


[March 23 Morning Glory arrives in Tripoli]

Morning Glory, North Korean flag

The Morning Glory is seen at the Tripoli port, March 23, 2014.

The oil tanker Morning Glory has docked back in the capital Tripoli. Libyan soldiers removed the crew on a small boat where they huddled in the open in the back on their way to Tripoli port. "They will be referred to the relevant judicial authorities," said Lieutenant Colonel Salim ash-Shwirf, standing on the tanker.

Morning Glory was being escorted by the USS Stout, a guided-missile destroyer, and 25 U.S. sailors were embarked aboard the tanker, overseeing the crew and detaining the three Libyan rebels who had taken control.

[March 20]

 The governments of Libya and Cyprus had requested American assistance in apprehending the tanker. President Obama authorized the operations just after 10 p.m.March 16 in Washington.

Within 10 minutes — before dawn March 17 over the Mediterranean — the SEALs launched their boats from the Roosevelt, a guided-missile destroyer, which also provided backup support from a shipboard helicopter.

Quickly fanning out across the Morning Glory, the SEALs captured and disarmed the three Libyans described by the tanker’s crew as hijackers. The mission was complete within two hours of boarding.

The official said the three Libyans would be in United States custody until the tanker returned to Libya, in about four days.
[March 15]The Cyprus authorities are questioning three individuals who allegedly approached the tanker which is suspected of transporting stolen quantities of oil from the rebel-held port of Sidra in Libya. 
The Attorney General of Cyprus and investigators are looking into the activities of the three, who hired a local boat from Larnaca and approached the ‘Morning Glory’ that is lying east off the coast of the island, with the intent of buying the estimated 32,000 tonnes of crude on board. 
The Cyprus Foreign Ministry said it received a request by the government of Libya on March 11 to assist in the return of the stolen amount of oil from the port of Sidra. 
The tanker did not request to moor in a Cypriot port and reports earlier on March 15 said it changed its course in a southeasterly direction in international waters.
[Earlier]A team of U.S. Navy SEALs boarded and took control of an oil tanker seized earlier this month by three armed Libyans, the Pentagon announced this morning.
The action, in international waters near Cyprus, was taken at the request of both the Libyan and Cypriot governments, the Pentagon said, adding that no one was hurt.   The SEAL team embarked and operated from the guided missile destroyer USS Roosevelt (DDG-80). USS Roosevelt provided helicopter support and served as a command and control and support platform for the other members of the force assigned to conduct the mission.

[March 15]
234,000 barrels of crude @ $109.00 might be usd 25. 5 MILLION

North Korea's Shipping Registry disowned the tanker Morning Glory. It said its dealings with Alexandria, Egypt-based Golden East Logistics Company were null and void.   That company said it had just handled the now dishonored registry negotiations and did not own the company.

[March 12 ]




The bizarre tale of the North Korean-flagged oil tanker that has been trying to escape the clutches of Libya's fragile central government has prompted days ofconflicting news coverage, precipitated the fall of the country's prime minister, and underscored the continued threat posed by its patchwork of heavily armed militias. But the tangled saga also raises a more basic question: Why on earth would a North Korean-flagged ship risk being bombed "into scrap," as one official threatened, in order to load up on Libyan crude?


It's a question that has puzzled North Korea watchers, and prompted some to speculate about deteriorating commercial relations with China or even Pyongyang's desire to shore up its energy resources ahead of a possible rocket test. Others viewed the episode as a predictable outgrowth of North Korea's growing energy needs -- and lack of scruples when it comes to bargain hunting.


"It signifies how much risk North Korea is willing to take," said John Park, a North Korea specialist at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, who emphasized that nothing can be said for certain in the absence of more information about the tanker. "The risk is much higher than just paying a Chinese broker and then shipping oil a shorter distance."


China is North Korea's primary trading partner and the supplier of as much as 90 percent of its energy. But several recent provocations have strained the relationship, from Pyongyang conductingits third nuclear test in Feb. 2013 to its missiles fired in early March that came dangerously close to a China Southern passenger jet.


Little is known about the vessel at the heart of the current standoff, the Morning Glory, beyond that it was previously flagged in Liberia. Libya's National Oil Company hassaid that it belongs to Saudi Arabia, but few experts think the ship is flying the North Korean flag of convenience (if anything, flying the Hermit Kingdom's flag all but insures surveillance and inspection.) Saudi Arabia has issued a statement denying government ownership of the vessel, and some experts believe that it could belong to Pyongyang.


"It just implies that there is a strong DPRK interest in this," said Hazel Smith, a professor of Korean studies at the University of Central Lancashire in Britain. Smith also emphasized that she was speculating with very little information. "My guess is that the ownership [of the ship] has been transferred to the DPRK recently, so the record may not have caught up with it yet."


It is also possible that a North Korean trading company is leasing a Saudi Arabian ship. "Anything much bigger than 37,000 tons would be too expensive for DPRK," said Smith. "They don't have big tankers that can carry large amounts of oil, but they can lease them, of course."


Other experts have expressed doubt about direct North Korean involvement, suggesting that the Morning Glory's crew most likely planned to sell the stolen oil on the black market. The idea that Pyongyang would attempt to purchase crude owned by Waha Oil, a joint venture between Libya's National Oil Company and Hess, Marathon, and ConocoPhillips struck some as far-fetched because of its potential to antagonize Washington. 
Mar 11, 2014 19:01:08 GMT Morning Glory, which is carrying a cargo of  Sidra [ Es Sider] crude loaded by rebels who are in control of the port in eastern Libya.   A member of the Libyan General National Congress, the country's highest political authority,says the vessel had slipped its escort.  The oil tanker took advantage of poor weather conditions to head for the open sea. The ships that were surrounding it were not in a position to follow,   The Morning Glory docked at Sidra oil export terminal in the east of the country on March 8. Sidra is one three oil ports that have been under the control of federalists under the control of Inbrahim Jadhran.   The vessel allegedly loaded 230,000 barrels of oil.   Italians deny intercepting, they say.