Trend News Agency
February 18, 2014
US naval ship runs aground in Black Sea: Pentagon
One of two US naval ships sent to the Black Sea as a security precaution for the Sochi Olympic games ran aground at a Turkish port, officials said Tuesday, AFP reported.
The frigate USS Taylor briefly ran ground last Wednesday as it was preparing to moor at Samsun, where it was due to refuel, Navy officials said.
“There were no reported injuries, and the incident is currently under investigation,” the Navy said in a statement.
The ship was able to dock at the port and an initial inspection indicated the ship’s propeller blades suffered some damage, but there was no damage to the hull, officials said.
It was unclear when the ship, which has a crew of about 200 sailors, would return to its duties in the Black Sea, said Commander Philip Rosi, spokesman for the US Sixth Fleet, which oversees American ships in the Mediterranean.
He said in an email that “it is too early to determine the impact to the schedule.”
The embarrassing incident came after the Pentagon made a point of announcing the deployment of the frigate as well as another ship, the USS Mount Whitney, a command vessel, to the region to coincide with the Winter Olympics.
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US officials had previously complained that Russian authorities were reluctant to share some intelligence on potential threats.
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Stars and Stripes
February 18, 2014
USS Taylor being inspected after running aground off Turkey
The guided-missile frigate USS Taylor, one of two ships on deployment in the Black Sea, is being inspected for damage after running aground last week as it was preparing to moor in Samsun, Turkey, a spokesman for the U.S. 6th Fleet said Tuesday.
The Taylor was able to moor without further incident, and there were no injuries, said 6th Fleet spokesman Lt. Shawn Eklund.
The incident, which occurred on Feb. 12, is under further investigation, Eklund said.
The Taylor and the USS Mount Whitney, an amphibious command ship and the 6th Fleet flagship, entered the Black Sea on Feb. 4 on what the Navy said was a routine and pre-scheduled deployment to the region.
The Pentagon announced their planned deployment in January, after terrorist groups threatened to disrupt the Olympic Games in Sochi, the resort town on Russia’s Black Sea coast.
Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, chief of U.S. European Command, said in an interview with Stars and Stripes earlier this month that the ships would be available to be used as needed, along with other U.S. assets.
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