Investigator suggests
studying other factors
By Gregg K. Kakesako
Star-Bulletin
At the conclusion of his three-day presentation, Rear Adm. Charles Griffiths, who conducted the initial investigation of the sinking of the Ehime Maru, presented the court of inquiry with other areas to consider:
Further examine the damage to the 360-foot submarine USS Greeneville. Griffiths said he was never able physically to examine the submarine, but only viewed videotapes of the damage.
Obtain more testimony from the officers and crew of the Greeneville and Capt. Fred Bias, who was one of the first investigative officers, and Capt. Tom Kyle, who help reconstruct the sonar data and the track of the two vessels. Bias did much of the interviewing of the crew, especially the captain and the two other officers appearing before the court, upon which Griffiths based his findings.
Obtain information from Capt. Robert Brandhuber, Pacific Fleet Submarine Force chief of staff who accompanied the 16 civilians on the Greeneville on Feb. 9, as well as the civilians themselves, two of whom are from Hawaii Kai.
Take testimony from Navy leaders here on the value of similar trips -- the Navy calls them embarks -- on warships and aircraft carriers.
Evaluate the two sonar contacts recorded by the Greeneville an hour before the collision to further understand and to ensure that these sonar contacts did not cause the collision.
The Navy needs to work to better equip U.S. attack submarines to perform search-and-rescue operations. He said submarines are not equipped to perform search-and-rescue operations in the open seas.
Fully explore the issue of active sonar -- which the Greeneville did not employ that day -- and, if necessary, demonstrate its use at sea on a submarine in a class like Greeneville.
Examine the Coast Guard's views on search-and-rescue operations.
Examine the eyesight of Cmdr. Scott Waddle, Greeneville's commander, and Lt. j.g. Michael Coen, the officer of the deck who was in charge of the Greeneville's operations at the time of the accident. Both Navy officers did periscope sweeps of the horizon before the Greeneville submerged and initiated the emergency surfacing maneuver.
