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MY Verizon tablet works better than my damn internet; REUTERS: currently 10 sailors are missing; five injured. Search ongoing with 'copters.

Originally Posted by MADEF

isn't this the third such mishap involving the 7th fleet,

Precisely my concern; these things always happen in threes...which 'three' we're on is what's distressing me.... @ Gargamel:

And only skip the third if you are flying the jolly roger, but then you still should do the second one.

NOT funny in this particular locale: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracy_in_the_Strait_of_Malacca EDIT:from my Verizon tablet: the Guardian reflects the USS McCain is sailing to port under its own power. EDIT TO MY EDIT: The NY times 2 hours ago: < after collision; looks like tanker bow bulb hit at water line. This is one of the world's most difficult narrow, shallow passages https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/20/world/asia/uss-john-mccain-collision-merchant-ship.html

....one recurring problem was that while naval ships tended to have live crews on watch, most commercial ships work on autopilot mode to reduce costs, which can lead to problems in busy sea lanes.
Nighttime duty on Navy ships like the John S. McCain is often in the hands of relatively young officers, between 22 and 24, according to a senior Navy officer. They are backed up by officers working the radar and looking out from the command center below the bridge. For the John S. McCain to have hit the Alnic MC, a handful of separate functions in the safety chain must have failed, the officer said.Commercial tankers can be reluctant to shift their course because maneuvering requires turning off the autopilot and costs time and money, the officer added. The Alnic MC has a gross tonnage roughly three times that of the John S. McCain.
The Strait of Malacca is a strategic choke point between the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Often the visibility and dense haze from chronic forest fires on Sumatra reduce visibility to 200 yards-although that is not cited as a factor....yet