As HMCS Protecteur heads
to Hawaii, officials ponder whether it's worthwhile to repair vessel
A fire-damaged navy
supply ship could be headed for the scrap heap, leaving Canada with only one
vessel to support its maritime force.
Since HMCS Protecteur is
scheduled to be taken out of service sometime between 2016 and 2017, the navy
is going to assess whether it's financially viable to repair the ship or simply
dispose of it sooner, according to military sources. An engine room fire, which
broke out last Thursday as Protecteur was sailing north of Hawaii, crippled the
vessel. It is now being towed to Pearl Harbor.
An extensive damage
assessment will start once Protecteur arrives in Hawaii, according to the Royal
Canadian Navy. But there are already indications that the damage is extensive.
"There are reports of significant fire and heat damage to the ship's
engine room and considerable heat and smoke damage in surrounding
compartments," the navy noted in a statement.
Defence analyst Martin
Shadwick said the navy is facing some hard choices. "Even if Protecteur
can be repaired, the navy is going to have to figure out if it should go ahead
and do that for a ship they were going to retire in two or three years
anyways," said Shadwick, who teaches strategic studies at Toronto's York
University.
Canadian Forces
spokesman Capt. Trevor Reid said the navy has been planning for the retirement
of the Protecteur and its sister ship, Preserver, in the 2016-17 period.
"However, a full assessment of the damage sustained by HMCS Protecteur is
required before further commenting on its future," he stated in an email
Tuesday.
Shadwick said the navy
will also face a problem finding spare parts so it can repair the 44-year-old
Protecteur.
Many of the systems on
the ship are nearly obsolete, according to naval officers.
HMCS Protecteur and HMCS
Preserver use boilers to generate steam for their main propulsion. Spare parts
are no longer readily available, and the skills needed to maintain such
systems, already mature in the 1960s, are becoming increasingly rare.
In October, the federal
government confirmed the two Joint Support Ships that are to be built to
replace Protecteur and Preserver won't be ready until 2019-20.
That will create a
two-to-three year gap in which the Royal Canadian Navy will not have access to
its own vessels capable of resupplying warships at sea. The navy hopes to rely
on its allies to fill that role.
When the fire was
reported, HMCS Protecteur was returning from duties in the Pacific Ocean with
279 crew, 17 family members and two civilian contractors who joined the ship
for the return transit. Having family members on board for the last part of a
voyage is a common practice with ships returning from extended operations, the
navy noted.
A U.S. helicopter
transferred those family members off the vessel and on to the USS Michael
Murphy. They arrived in Pearl Harbor on Tuesday.
Among those were retired
vice-admiral Larry Murray, a former acting chief of the defence staff, the navy
confirmed. He later served as deputy minister at Veterans Affairs before moving
on to become deputy minister at Fisheries and Oceans until his retirement from
the public sector. Murray's son is an officer on HMCS Protecteur.
Around 20 personnel on
board the ship received minor injuries as a result of the fire. An investigation
into the cause of the blaze is underway.
The fire is the second
incident involving the supply ship in the last year. In August, HMCS Protecteur
was involved in a collision with HMCS Algonquin during towing exercises en
route to Hawaii.
There were no injuries
but both ships were damaged in that incident.
Source:
vancouver sun. 5 March 2014
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Canadian+navy+considers+scrapping+fire+damaged+based+ship/9580794/story.html
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