The Royal Norwegian Navy has eliminated all torpedoes remaining in the sunken Helge Ingstad frigate, an ignoble finish for the multimillion-dollar ship that sank in an avoidable collision final November.
The Helge Ingstad was one of essentially the most trendy ships in Norway’s navy, and value over $500 million {dollars}. It now sits on the backside of the Hjeltefjorden, between the port metropolis of Bergen and the North Sea, following a collision with an oil tanker in November.
Military divers eliminated round half of the frigate’s missiles final week, taking them inland to be destroyed at a landfill web site. The different half had been detonated on web site after the navy determined they had been too unstable to danger transferring.
Video footage of the detonation reveals plumes of water towering lots of of meters into the air.
More ammunition stays on board the sunken vessel, which is able to should be reviewed earlier than the stays could be raised.
The Helge Ingstad met its finish whereas coming back from NATO workouts in November. Meant to counter perceived Russian aggression, the drills concerned 50,000 troops, 10,000 autos, and 65 ships.
On a routine patrol on the best way again, the Helge Ingstad was struck by a Greek oil tanker, which tore a gap within the frigate’s starboard facet. The Helge Ingstad’s 137-man crew deserted ship, and the stricken vessel was towed towards the shore. However, metal cables maintaining the ship upright snapped every week later, and the ship was virtually fully submerged.
The tanker, which carried round 625,000 barrels of crude oil, was principally undamaged. A subsequent investigation revealed that the expensive sinking was solely avoidable.
On the evening of the crash, the Helge Ingstad’s crew had a few of its positioning programs off. They observed a cluster of lights within the distance that they thought was an object onshore, however was, in actuality, the tanker.
As the tanker drew nearer, its crew couldn’t determine the Helge Ingstad, as a result of its positioning system being disabled. When the tanker’s crew realized they had been on a collision course, they tried to radio the Helge Ingstad crew, who thought the transmission was meant for one more ship.
By the time the frigate’s crew took evasive motion, it was too late. The crash tore by way of the Helge Ingstad, flooding its engine rooms. The investigation discovered that the fast unfold of floodwater by way of the vessel is a “safety critical issue” that should additionally apply to the Norwegian Navy’s 4 different frigates.
Three months later, the Ingstad is now gathering rust on the backside of a freezing fjord. Haunting video footage reveals the previous warfighting large ruptured and deserted to the deep.
