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The NTSB says the sub turned after
doing a periscope check, just
before the collision

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Staff & wire reports

A U.S. submarine raced underwater past a Japanese fishing trawler but changed course just before a rapid ascent that sent the sub tearing through the bottom of the trawler, investigators say.

The National Transportation Safety Board yesterday revealed details of what happened in the 10 minutes before the USS Greeneville accidentally sank the Ehime Maru.

The NTSB analysis of the minutes before the collision was made based on sonar data from the Greeneville:

The sub ascended to an initial periscope depth at 1:38 p.m. -- five minutes before the impact.

Then the submarine ascended about 3 feet higher and stayed there for 1 minute. Witnesses said that both Waddle and Lt. j.g. Michael Coen, the officer of the deck, used the periscope to make visual sweeps of the surface for ships.

At 1:40 p.m., the sub descended and reached 405 feet two minutes later.

The Greeneville then began a rapid surfacing maneuver called an emergency main ballast blow. The drill was a demonstration for 16 civilian guests aboard, the Navy has said.

The ascent took about 50 seconds. Impact occurred at 1:43 p.m. in what was an apparent head-on collision between the Ehime Maru and the Greeneville.

The NTSB showed the 190-foot fisheries training vessel was traveling in a south-southeast direction at 11 knots.

The much-faster Greeneville had first headed south and then north toward the accident site, nine miles south of Diamond Head.

The NTSB said that prior to rising to periscope depth, the Greeneville executed a series of turns. One more turn occurred after the periscope check, just before the collision.

Waddle, Coen and the submarine's executive officer, Lt. Cmdr. Gerald Pfeifer, declined to talk to the NTSB while a Navy investigation was being held.

Click on the image or here for a large version.

Waddle, who assumed command of the Greeneville in March 1999, has been relieved as the sub's captain, pending the outcome of the investigation.

Also yesterday, the U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for nine people lost at sea during the collision.

The four students, two teachers and three crewmen of the Ehime Maru have been missing since Feb. 9 and presumed dead.

Coast Guard Lt. Christina De Leon said last night that no ships would be sent out to continue searching for them, pending further developments.

The missing students' school, Uwajima Fisheries High School, and local government officials said they had no comment on the Coast Guard's decision.

The Navy is scheduled to open a Court of Inquiry into the accident Monday in a Pearl Harbor courtroom, focusing on the actions of the Greeneville's officers.

Attorneys for Adm. Thomas Fargo, Pacific Fleet Commander, today reviewed a request from a lawyer for the captain of the Greeneville, Cmdr. Scott Waddle, to grant him "testimonial immunity."

By FL Morris, Star-Bulletin
Six relatives of the nine people lost aboard the Ehime Maru arrived
in Honolulu today. Here for Monday's start of the Navy Court of
Inquiry regarding the accident were: Ryosuke Terata, father of Yusuke
Terata; Miyako Takashima, mother of Toshiya Takashima; Katsuyoshi
Mizuguchi, father of Takeshi Mizuguchi; Kazuteru Segawa, son of
crewman Hirotaka Segawa; and Kazuo and Mikie Nakata, parents
of Uwajima high school teacher Jun Nakata. The United States
government is paying expenses for family members who wish
to attend the proceedings, according to a staffer with the Consulate
General of Japan. At the far upper right is Minoru Shibuya,
the Japanese consul general to Hawaii.

If approved by Fargo, the immunity would prevent Navy lawyers from prosecuting Waddle for anything he says during the hearing.

However, Waddle still could face prosecution based upon testimony of others.

The Navy will begin its own investigation with the convening of a special panel of three senior admirals at 8 a.m. Monday.

The panel will develop recommendations for Fargo, the Pacific Fleet commander, which could include convening of a court-martial to determine if any of the Greeneville's crew acted negligently.

The Court of Inquiry could take as long as three weeks.

Six relatives of those killed in the accident arrived in Honolulu at 9:15 a.m. today to attend the Navy inquiry. The family members will take turns attending the inquiry as there are only three seats reserved for them, said Ryosuke Terata, 45, father of the missing 17-year-old Yusuke Terata and the representative of the Families of the Missing Persons Association.

The six will stay for about a week before other family members travel to Honolulu to take their place, he said.

Ehime Maru captain Hisao Onishi, 58, is expected to testify during the inquiry.

The Navy yesterday recalled its two deep-diving remote drones as it completed its search and salvage assessment operations. An underwater area six square miles around the sunken Ehime Maru was surveyed. Personal items recovered were turned over to the Japanese consulate to be returned to the families.

In a 12-page statement to the families of the students and crewmen of the Greeneville, Adm. William Fallon, the second-highest ranking officer in the Navy, said an international civilian salvage company is currently assessing the survey done by Deep Drone and Scorpio II to determine if the Ehime Maru can be raised from 2,003 feet of water.

"The Navy will be completed with the proposed evaluation on about March 12," Fallon said.

Fallon, who served as special envoy to Japan, met with family members of the students and crewmen of the Ehime Maru in Japan this week.

As he stopped in Honolulu yesterday, Fallon released a written statement, saying he completed his mission to Japan to offer the apologies of President George Bush, the U.S. Navy and the American people.

"The families of the victims have graciously accepted our apology," Fallon said.

"They are appreciative of our intensive search and recovery efforts and are assured that we will do everything we can to prevent such tragedy from happening again."

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Star-Bulletin reporter Gregg K. Kakesako contributed
to this report. Also included are files from the
Associated Press and Kyodo News Service.