British Navy

Russian Sub Rescue Update: Too Little, Too Late?

Indecision from Russia regarding help from foreign nations in aiding efforts to rescue an estimated 118 sailors trapped in a Nuclear submarine lying on the bottom of the Barents Sea evaporated today, as Norway said that divers due to join a British bid to save 118 Russian sailors trapped in a submarine on the bed of the Barents Sea would arrive on Saturday. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov said on Thursday the situation around the sunken nuclear submarine Kursk was "next to catastrophic", but he hoped chances remained to save its 118 crew, Russian news agencies reported. "During the past night there were no changes for better or worse," Interfax news agency quoted Kasyanov as telling a government meeting. "We want to hope that there are chances to rescue the crew." The navy said the crew of the Kursk submarine, on the bottom of the Arctic Barents sea since the weekend, stopped tapping SOS signals on the hull on Tuesday. The Seaway Eagle, carrying 12-15 divers, was likely to arrive off north Russia at around midday on Saturday, roughly the same time as a separate supply vessel - the orange-painted supply vessel Normand Pioneer -- carrying a British mini-submarine which will be used to try to rescue the crew of the Kursk. "The divers should arrive at about the same time as the British on Saturday," Foreign Ministry spokesman Karsten Klepsvik said. The ministry had initially estimated the divers would arrive on Friday night.

Oil Prices Slip

According to reports, oil prices fell by three per cent Monday, slipping below $59 a barrel as traders looked ahead to U.S. supply data due out Wednesday that is expected to show rising inventories of crude. Doubts about OPEC's ability to implement a 1.2 million barrels a day production cut also weighed on prices. Last week, oil prices surged after the U.S. Energy Department data showed a large decline in crude-oil inventories

This Day in Naval History - Aug. 24

From the Navy News Service 1814 - British invasion of Maryland and Washington, D.C.; Washington Navy Yard and ships burned to prevent capture by the British. 1912 - Launching of USS Jupiter (AC 3), first electrically-propelled Navy ship. 1942 - U.S. carrier aircraft begin two-day Battle of Eastern Solomons where a Japanese task force is defeated and one Japanese carrier sunk. Japanese recall expedition to recapture Guadalcanal.

This Day in U.S. Naval History - April 6

1776 - Sloop-of-war Ranger, frigate Queen of France and frigate Warren capture British Hibernia and 7 other vessels   1862 - Naval Gunfire from Tyler and Lexington help save Union Troops at Battle of Shiloh   1909 - Commander Robert E. Peary reports reaching the North Pole   1917 - U.S. declares war on Germany   1945 - First heavy kamikaze attack on ships at Okinawa.   1961 - USS Lake Champlain brings oxygen to aid stricken passenger of British liner Queen of

'Little Ships' Sail To Denmark

A fleet of "Little Ships" left the famous white cliffs of Dover behind them and set off across the Channel on Friday to mark the 1940 Dunkirk evacuation of 340,000 Allied soldiers from France. The 58-strong flotilla had been due Thursday, but rough seas forced them to postpone 24 hours. Sixty years ago, a rag-tag British flotilla plucked 340,000 Allied soldiers from certain death or capture at Dunkirk. Dubbed the "great tide of small vessels" by British wartime leader Winston Churchill

This Day in Naval History – April 6

1776 - Sloop-of-war Ranger, frigate Queen of France and frigate Warren capture British Hibernia and 7 other vessels 1862 - Naval Gunfire from Tyler and Lexington help save Union Troops at Battle of Shiloh 1909 - Commander Robert E. Peary reports reaching the North Pole 1917 - U.S. declares war on Germany 1945 - First heavy kamikaze attack on ships at Okinawa. 1961 - USS Lake Champlain brings oxygen to aid stricken passenger of British liner Queen of Bermuda.

This Day in Naval History - April 04

From the Navy News Service 1776 - The Continental Navy frigate Columbus captures HM Tender Hawke; this is the first American capture of a British armed vessel. 1854 - Sailors and Marines from sailing sloop Plymouth, protect U.S. citizens at Shanghai. 1898 - Appointment of the first Civil Engineering Corps officer, Rear Adm. Mordecai Endicott, as chief of Bureau of Yards and Docks. 1949 - NATO is established

Trimaran RV Triton visits Washington Navy Yard

A technology partnership between the United States and United Kingdom brought the trimaran research vessel RV Triton to the Washington Navy Yard for a week beginning June 3. Measuring 295 ft. (90 m), the three-hulled ship is the largest motor-powered trimaran ever built, and faster than conventional warships. Together, the U.S. Navy and Royal Navy are testing trimaran concepts using the British research vessel RV Triton. The U.K. designed and built the ship and the U.S

This Day in Naval History - March 28

From the Navy News Service 1800 - Essex becomes the first U.S. Navy vessel to pass the . 1814 - HMS Phoebe and Cherub capture USS Essex off . Before capture, had captured 24 British prizes during the War of 1812. 1848 - USS Supply reaches the of , anchoring under Mount Carmel near the of , during its expedition to explore the and the River Jordan.

This Day in Naval History – March 17

1898 - USS Holland, first practical submarine, launched 1942 - United States Naval Forces Europe established to plan joint operations with British 1958 - Navy Vanguard rocket launches 3.25 pound sphere from Cape Canaveral 1959 - USS Skate (SSN-578) surfaces at North Pole (Source: Navy News Service)