USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) explained

USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) is an currently in the service of the United States Navy. She is part of the Destroyer Squadron 23 within the Third Fleet, and has her homeport at Naval Station Everett in Everett, Washington.

The destroyer was involved in a collision with the tanker ship Alnic MC on 21 August 2017 off the coast of Singapore, which resulted in the deaths of 10 of her crew, and left another five injured.

Naming

This warship was originally named after John S. McCain Sr., and John S. McCain Jr.,[1] both admirals in the United States Navy. John S. McCain Sr. commanded the aircraft carrier, and later the Fast Carrier Task Force during the latter stages of World War II. John S. McCain Jr. commanded the submarines and during World War II. He subsequently held a number of posts, rising to commander-in-chief of the United States Pacific Command, before retiring in 1972. These men were, respectively, the grandfather and father of Vietnam War Navy captain and later Senator John S. McCain III.[2]

On 11 July 2018, just months before he died, at a rededication ceremony, Senator John McCain was added as a namesake, along with his father and grandfather.[3]

The ship's nickname is "Big Bad John", and has the motto "Fortune Favors the Brave".[4]

Service history

Construction and commissioning

John S. McCains keel was laid down on 3 September 1991, at the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine. She was launched on 26 September 1992, sponsored by Cindy McCain, the wife of Senator John McCain III, and was commissioned on 2 July 1994, at the Bath Iron Works with Commander John K. Ross as the first commanding officer. The former President of the United States, George H. W. Bush, was the ceremony's principal speaker.Her maiden deployment was from 10 November 1995 to 10 May 1996 to the 5th and 7th fleets with visits to Kochi, India, Fremantle and Newcastle Australia and Suva Fiji. After the ship returned to her home port in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, she shifted to the forward-deploy port in Yokosuka, Japan, in June 1997. On October 1997, she visited the port of Qingdao China, the first visit to Communist China other than Hong Kong, in 15 years.

2000s

In January 2003, John S. McCain deployed to the Persian Gulf. She launched 39 Tomahawk missiles in support of the invasion of Iraq and was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation for her service. John S. McCain was awarded the Navy Battle E for DESRON 15 in 2003 and again in 2004. On 16 February 2007, John S. McCain was awarded the 2006 Battle Effectiveness Award.[5]

On 11 June 2009, a Chinese submarine reportedly collided with the towed sonar array of John S. McCain near Subic Bay, Philippines. The incident caused damage to the array, but was described as an "inadvertent encounter".[6]

In June 2009, John S. McCain pursued the North Korean cargo ship Kang Nam 1 toward Burma in enforcement of the new United Nations resolution of an arms export embargo against North Korea. The vessel was suspected of carrying arms for the Burmese junta government. Kang Nam 1 returned to North Korea without delivering her cargo to Burma.[7]

In July 2009, the destroyer berthed at Yokohama's international passenger terminal on a goodwill tour. The ship was opened to the public on 22 July 2009.[8]

2010s

In March 2011, in company with the aircraft carrier, the ship was deployed off northeastern Honshu, Japan, to assist with relief efforts after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake.[9] [10] During that time, the ship may have been exposed to leaking radiation from the Fukushima I nuclear accidents.[11] [12]

In April 2013, John S. McCain was sent to South Korea during escalating tensions between the Koreas.[13] In June 2014, John S. McCain was sent to Subic Bay to perform in CARAT (Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training) exercises.

On 2 October 2016, USS John S. McCain and made the first port visit by U.S. Navy ships to Cam Ranh Bay since end of the Vietnam War in 1975.[14] In August 2017, John S. McCain sailed within 6round=0.5NaNround=0.5 of Mischief Reef in the South China Sea, exercising a claim to freedom of navigation. China, claiming sovereignty over the reef, expressed its "strong dissatisfaction" in response to the action.[15] A US Navy representative reported that a Chinese frigate had sent at least 10 radio messages warning that the John S. McCain was in Chinese waters, to which the US ship replied that it was "conducting routine operations in international waters."[15]

2017 MV Alnic MC collision

See main article: USS John S. McCain and Alnic MC collision. At 5:24 am on 21 August 2017, John S. McCain was involved in a collision with the Liberian-flagged Alnic MC off the coast of Singapore and Malaysia, east of the Strait of Malacca.[2] [16] [17] According to a United States Navy press release, the breach "resulted in flooding to nearby compartments, including crew berthing, machinery, and communications rooms."[18] Ten US Navy sailors died as a result of the crash, which prompted the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore to start a multi-agency SAR effort as the agency responsible for coordinating air-sea rescue operations within Singapore's Maritime Search and Rescue Region (MSRR).[19] [20] [17] [21] [22] The Singapore Transport Safety Bureau (TSIB) also launched a marine safety investigation following the collision in accordance with the International Maritime Organisation's Casualty Investigation Code in Singapore's capacity as a coastal state, and published its final report on 8 March 2018.[23] The U.S. Navy announced on 24 August 2017 that it had suspended search-and-rescue efforts for survivors in the open sea to focus on the recovery of the remains of the missing sailors still inside the flooded compartments of the ship.[24] By 27 August U.S. Navy and Marine Corps divers had recovered the remains of all 10 sailors.[25] On 12 September 2017, the United States' chargé d'affaires Stephanie Syptak-Ramnath expressed thanks for Singapore's support during the SAR operations.[26]

Throughout 2018, she was under repair in drydock and by November 2018, the ship left drydock and was transferred to a pier to continue her repairs. The repairs were completed in October 2019.[27] [28]

Investigation into the collision showed that an overly complex touchscreen system used for throttle control and training deficiencies had contributed to a loss of control of the ship just before it crossed paths with a merchant ship in the Singapore Strait, prompting a decision by the Navy to revert ships of this class to mechanical throttle controls fleetwide.[29]

2020s

While conducting a Freedom of Navigation exercise in Peter the Great Bay, in the Sea of Japan on 24 November 2020, Russian Naval destroyer Admiral Vinogradov demanded that John S. McCain leave the bay, which Russia claims as their territorial waters, or they would be "rammed". While Russian news agency TASS claims that the Russian Navy chased the US destroyer out of the bay, a spokesperson for the U.S. 7th Fleet claims that John S. McCain left bay of their own accord, after completing the exercise. The US further claims that they were in international waters at all times, which was the purpose of the exercise.[30] [31]

On 17 September 2021, John S. McCain departed her previous home port Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan as part of a scheduled shift to her new homeport at Naval Station Everett in Everett, Washington with 24 years of forward deployed service.[32] [12]

On 6 August 2023, John S. McCain and three other destroyers responded to a joint Chinese-Russian patrol in international waters near Alaska. The Chinese-Russian flotilla left without incident.[33]

Awards

See also

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Web site: About our Namesake - John S. McCain . . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20170821050148/http://www.public.navy.mil/surfor/ddg56/Pages/History.aspx . 21 August 2017 . 22 August 2017.
  2. News: Flanagan. Ed. Stelloh. Tim. Navy Destroyer USS John S. McCain Collides With Merchant Ship East of Singapore. NBC News. 20 August 2017 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20170822033155/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/navy-destroyer-uss-john-s-mccain-collides-merchant-ship-east-n794386 . 22 August 2017 . 22 August 2017.
  3. Web site: Caitlin . Doornbos . McCain joins father and grandfather on ship's list of namesakes. Stars and Stripes. 12 July 2018. 12 July 2018.
  4. News: 7 things about US warship USS John S. McCain or 'Big Bad John'. The Straits Times. 21 August 2017. 24 August 2017.
  5. Web site: Surface Force Ships, Crews Earn Battle "E" . U.S. Navy . Ludwick . Paula M. . 19 February 2007 . 2 October 2015.
  6. News: Sub collides with sonar array towed by U.S. Navy ship. . 2 October 2015 . Starr . Barbara. 12 June 2009.
  7. News: Test Looms as U.S. Tracks North Korean Ship . . 21 June 2009 . 2 October 2015. Choe . Sang-Hun.
  8. News: . U.S. destroyer visits Yokohama passenger pier . . 22 July 2009 . 2.
  9. Web site: Rabiroff . John . U.S. military delivers 40 tons of supplies to hardest-hit areas . Stars and Stripes . 17 March 2011 . 2 October 2015.
  10. Web site: Seawaves . Warships Supporting Earthquake in Japan . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110323003053/http://www.seawaves.com/japan2011.asp . 23 March 2011 . 22 March 2011 .
  11. Web site: Stewart . Joshua . Navy ships off Japan move to avoid radiation . . 14 March 2011 . 2 October 2015 . 17 March 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110317231932/http://www.militarytimes.com/news/2011/03/navy-ships-japan-radiation-move-031411w/ . dead .
  12. Web site: Wilson . Alex . 17 September 2021 . USS John S. McCain heads to new homeport in Washington after momentous 24 years in Japan . 2024-05-22 . Stars and Stripes . en.
  13. News: US Navy shifts destroyer in wake of North Korea missile threats . . Jim . Miklaszewski . Courtney . Kube . 1 April 2013 . 2 October 2015.
  14. News: United States warships make first visit to Vietnam base in decades. South China Morning Post. 4 October 2016. 5 October 2016.
  15. News: China protests, challenges US warship near its artificial islands. News Corp Australia . . 11 August 2017 . 30 August 2017.
  16. Web site: 'Some remains' of missing 10 sailors found after collision, admiral says. McKirdy. Euan. Lendon. Brad. Sciutto. Jim. 22 August 2017. CNN. 22 August 2017.
  17. Web site: UPDATE: USS John S. McCain Collides with Merchant Ship . U.S. Navy . 21 August 2017 . 21 August 2017.
  18. Global. IndraStra. 10 U.S. Navy Sailors Missing after USS John S McCain Collides with Oil Tanker. IndraStra. 2381-3652.
  19. Web site: Remains of all 10 missing USS John S. McCain sailors recovered. Euan . McKirdy. CNN . 28 August 2017 . 13 October 2017.
  20. Web site: U.S. Navy identifies 1 dead and 9 missing USS John S. McCain Sailors as search and rescue efforts suspended. Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet. U.S. Navy. 24 August 2017. 13 October 2017.
  21. News: Pentagon orders temporary halt to US navy operations after second collision. Farrer. Martin. Holmes. Oliver. 21 August 2017. The Guardian. 22 August 2017. en-GB. 0261-3077.
  22. Web site: Update 1 - Collision of US Guided-missile Destroyer JOHN S MCCAIN And TANKER ALNIC MC in Singapore Waters. Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. 21 August 2017. Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. 29 August 2019. 29 August 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190829121257/https://www.mpa.gov.sg/web/portal/home/media-centre/news-releases/detail/5ed76217-bd1d-4695-9522-7d698f7851bc. dead.
  23. Web site: Safety Investigation into Collision Between Alnic MC and the USS John S McCain in singapore Territorial Waters. Transport Safety Investigation Bureau. Ministry of Transport (Singapore). 8 March 2018. Ministry of Transport (Singapore). 29 August 2019.
  24. Web site: Navy suspends USS John McCain search and rescue efforts. Cohen. Zachary. 25 August 2017. CNN. 13 October 2017.
  25. Web site: All remains recovered of 10 sailors from USS John S. McCain collision. Jesse. Varner. 28 August 2017. U.S. Navy. 28 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170828045108/http://wavy.com/2017/08/27/all-remains-recovered-of-10-sailors-from-uss-john-s-mccain-collision/. 28 August 2017. dead.
  26. News: Top US diplomat thanks Singapore for recent warship search and rescue, hurricane aid. Leow. Annabeth. 12 September 2017. The Straits Times. 29 August 2019.
  27. https://www.upi.com/USS-John-S-McCain-transfers-from-dry-dock-to-pier-following-collision-repairs/1671543596165/ USS John S. McCain transfers from dry dock to pier following collision repairs
  28. Web site: USS John S. McCain's Return to Warfighting Readiness . United States Navy . US Pacific Fleet Public Affairs . 29 October 2019.
  29. News: Navy Reverting DDGs Back to Physical Throttles, After Fleet Rejects Touchscreen Controls. 9 August 2019. U.S. Naval Institute News.
  30. Web site: Russia 'threatened to ram' US ship in Sea of Japan. 25 November 2020 . BBC News.
  31. Web site: Russian warship stops US destroyer from violating Russia's border. TASS.
  32. Web site: Marion . Bautista . USS John S. McCain Departs U.S. 7th Fleet After 24-years Forward Deployed . . 17 September 2021 . 19 September 2021.
  33. Web site: Maya . Yang . US dispatches warships after China and Russia send naval patrol near Alaska . . 6 August 2023 . 6 August 2023.