The submarine USS Greeneville spotted the Japanese fishing vessel Ehime Maru more than an hour before the collision that sank the ship, according to the
National Transportation Safety Board.
It was one of several revelations made Tuesday night by the NTSB that appears to add to the cloud of suspicion about the conduct of the Greeneville's crew in the moments before the crash and the role civilian guests played in it.
Commissioned: Feb. 16, 1996
Los Angeles-class attack nuclear submarine
Homeported in Pearl Harbor in March 1997
Max crew: 130
Specs:
499 tons
190.8 feet long
30.5 feet wide
Max crew: 76
NTSB investigators also disclosed that the fire control technician on duty during the collision told investigators that he neglected to manually chart the position of the Ehime Maru, in part because of the 16 civilians aboard the vessel at the time.
"He told us in the interview that he was not able to continue his plotting on the (contact evaluation plot) because of the civilians in the area," lead NTSB investigator John Hammerschmidt said. "He also said that he did not ask anyone to move."
One of the jobs of the fire control technician is to constantly track other vessels and potential targets during combat. Military experts say that he is at the hub of all the directional information on a submarine, making him valuable in finding out what went wrong.
The Greeneville first made sonar contact with the Ehime Maru at 12:32 p.m., according to Hammerschmidt, more than an hour before the 1:45 p.m. collision on Feb. 9. The NTSB confirmed that the Greeneville made three more sonar contacts with the vessel, which was designated Sierra-13.
NTSB officials also disclosed that the Greeneville's sonar station was being manned by a trainee, along with a qualified sonar operator and a supervisor.
"For this trip, the sonar room should have been staffed with two qualified sonar operators and a supervisor," Hammerschmidt said. NTSB investigators added that the trainee was being closely watched by the qualified sonar man.
Hammerschmidt said that NTSB investigators have completed interviewing the 16 civilians on the Greeneville during the collision.
Officials said that one of the guests who witnessed the periscope sweeps by the Greeneville's crew just prior to the collision told them that she saw a ship in the periscope's video display. However, after viewing the underwater wreckage of the Japanese ship, the woman insisted to investigators that the ship she witnessed was not the Ehime Maru.
Two other guests who were also watching the display told investigators that they saw nothing.
Sources told KITV4 News that one theory investigators are exploring is whether the Greeneville crew mistakenly thought that the Ehime Maru was heading away from the submarine when it was in reality heading toward the sub. Investigators do not know when the crew made the assessment and why it was incorrect, according to sources.
NTSB investigators said that they have interviewed 18 members from the Greeneville crew, including the top three officers on duty at the time of the collision. Skipper, Cmdr. Scott Waddle, executive officer Lt. Cmdr. Gerald K. Pfeifer and the officer of the deck, Lt. j.g. Michael J. Coen, refused to answer questions on the advice of their attorneys.
All three will be scrutinized by a Navy Court of Inquiry that is due to begin next week (see more below).
Military sources also told KITV4 News that investigators have seized printed and electronic data that was sent to shore from the submarine. Officials hope the information may explain how the mistake happened.
The Navy moved the Greeneville into dry dock for repairs Tuesday afternoon. Navy officials said that they won't know how long the repairs will take until after dry dock crews have determined the seriousness of the damage.
Other Developments
The
U.S. Navy has postponed the Court of Inquiry into the USS Greeneville collision until Monday. It was originally scheduled to begin Thursday at 8 a.m. on Pearl Harbor.
Navy officials gave no reason for the postponement.
Meanwhile, the governor of Ehime prefecture in Japan arrived in Honolulu Tuesday.
Moriyuki Kato met with
U.S. Coast Guard officials to get an update on the search for the nine missing crewmen from the Ehime Maru.
He also met with U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Adm. Dennis Blair. Kato has been criticized in Japan for not coming to Hawaii sooner.
Previous Stories:
- Febaruary 19, 2001: Navy Likely To Raise Ehime Maru
- February 19, 2001: Sub Mishap Survivors Still Haunted
- February 18, 2001: Sucess Of Raising Ehime Maru 'Questionable'
- February 17, 2001: Navy To Convene Court Of Inquiry
- February 16, 2001: Sources: Maneuver Partly Result Of Civilians
- February 15, 2001: Search Continues While NTSB Interviews Sub Crew
- February 14, 2001: Two Island Residents On Greeneville
- February 14, 2001: U.S.-Japan Relations Turning Tense
- February 13, 2001: Sub Captain Could Face Criminal Inquiry
- February 12, 2001: Robot To Search For Sunken Ship
- February 12, 2001: Japanese Minister Meets With U.S. Admiral
- February 11, 2001: Search For Ehime Maru Victims To Continue
- February 11, 2001: Captain Of Ehime Maru Speaks
- February 11, 2001: Government Calls Submarine Collision 'Tragedy'
- February 10, 2001: Sub Commander Reassigned As Search Continues
- February 10, 2001: U.S. Offers Another Apology To Japan
- February 10, 2001: Anxiety Turns To Anger In Japanese Town
- February 10, 2001: Sub Collided During Emergency Maneuver
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