Naval ship’s pontoon crash captured on camera

Engineers from the Naval Service are assessing damage caused to the LÉ Aoife after the 65-metre-long patrol vessel crashed into a pontoon at the deep water quay in Cobh, Co Cork.

The incident occurred last Saturday afternoon and was captured on camera.

The accident was posted on YouTube, reportedly by Scandinavian tourists.

In the footage, the ship, launched in 1979, can be clearly seen striking the pontoon with its bow.

A Naval Service spokeswoman said the accident had been caused by a mechanical problem which led to the vessel propelling forwards when it should have been gone backwards. She said the age of the ship, due to be decommissioned by the end of next year, may also have been a factor.

“LÉ Aoife is 34-years-old and the lifespan of a ship is normally 30 years,” the spokeswoman said.

The ship was taken back to the naval base a short distance away at Haulbowline.

The spokesperson added: “She won’t have to be put in dry dock (for the inspection) as the damage to her bow is above the waterline.”

LÉ Aoife was not on patrol when the accident happened and, in naval terms, was “in time”.

The vessel was not scheduled for patrol and, according to the spokeswoman, it should give engineers enough time to carry out running repairs.

“Our own engineers will be assessing the damage in the next couple of days. The main priority was nobody on board was injured and neither were a number of spectators on the quays.”

Damage to the pontoon, used by cruise liners, was also described as minimal.

Meanwhile, the LÉ Emer, due to be decommissioned in the next few weeks, left Haulbowline for her last patrol yesterday.

“She will be decommissioned when she finishes that patrol in around four weeks’ time,” the spokeswoman said.

LÉ Emer is a year older than LÉ Aoife and a replacement ship is due to be handed over to the Naval Service before the year end.

Two replacement patrol ships are being built in Appledore, Devon.

Cork auctioneer Dominic Daly has been appointed by the Department of Defence to auction off both LÉ Aoife and LÉ Emer when they are decommissioned.

Mr Daly said that he had already received a lot of interest in LÉ Emer from countries in Africa along with offers from private interests in Turkey and Ireland.

Mr Daly said a number of naval services worldwide were always looking for ships which could provide spare or extra capacity.

However, he said many ex-naval vessels are snapped up by private companies which use them for maritime research and energy exploration purposes.

Cork County Council has been urged to buy one of the vessels and use it as a floating museum and restaurant as part of its plans to turn Spike Island into a tourist attraction.