{"id":15145,"date":"2019-01-11T17:31:11","date_gmt":"2019-01-11T17:31:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/01\/11\/ship-owners-to-pay-us-government-for-fitzgerald-collision\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:56:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:56:46","slug":"ship-owners-to-pay-us-government-for-fitzgerald-collision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2019\/01\/11\/ship-owners-to-pay-us-government-for-fitzgerald-collision\/","title":{"rendered":"Ship owners to pay U.S. government for Fitzgerald collision"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The owners of a massive merchant vessel that collided with the warship <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2017\/08\/17\/water-on-deck-get-out-the-navys-official-report-of-the-fitzgeralds-catastrophe-at-sea\/\" target=_blank>Fitzgerald<\/a> in 2017, drowning seven sailors, have agreed to pay the U.S. government nearly $27 million as part of a settlement agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The two-page deal, obtained by Navy Times, states that is it\u2019s governed by Japanese law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both the Fitzgerald and the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal were transiting busy sea lanes off Japan before the 1:30 a.m. collision on June 17, 2017, when the container vessel struck the guided-missile destroyer\u2019s starboard side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The agreement states that the owners, Olympic Steamship Company, S.A., Panama, will pay about 2.9 billion Japanese yen to the U.S. government to settle potential claims because of their role in the maritime disaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That translates to roughly $26.7 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As is common in these agreements, the settlement notes that the deal is not an admission of \u201cany liability, negligence, breach of duty, or wrongdoing\u201d by the parties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Navy officials declined comment on the settlement, referring questions to the U.S. Justice Department, which signed the agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2018\/11\/16\/defense-team-navy-brass-made-it-impossible-for-former-fitzgerald-skipper-to-get-fair-trial\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"210\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/co_cdr-benson.JPG.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Defense team: Navy brass made it impossible for former Fitzgerald skipper to get fair trial<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The skipper&#039;s defense attorneys take aim at both Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson and Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Bill Moran for statements that blamed the commanding officer of the guided-missile destroyer for the deaths of seven sailors.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Justice officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Attorneys with the Japan-based law firm <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanlaw.co.jp\/en\/our_people\/mori_sotaro.html\" target=_blank>Yoshida and Partners<\/a>, which signed the agreement on behalf of the Crystal\u2019s owners, did not respond to requests for comment Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Navy has largely stayed quiet in its publicly released reports and statements when it comes to the Crystal\u2019s culpability in the collision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But in a <a href=\"http:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/CHINFO\/USS+Fitzgerald+and+USS+John+S+McCain+Collision+Reports.pdf\" target=_blank>November 2017 official account<\/a> of the collision, a Navy report states during the 30 minutes before the crash, \u201cneither FITZGERALD nor CRYSTAL took such action to reduce the risk of collision until approximately one minute prior to the collision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cCollisions at sea are rare and the relative performance and fault of the vessels involved is an open admiralty law issue,\u201d that report states. \u201cThe Navy is not concerned about the mistakes made by CRYSTAL. Instead, the Navy is focused on the performance of its ships and what we could have done differently to avoid these mishaps.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An internal Navy investigation into the collision, known as a \u201cdual-purpose investigation,\u201d has not been made public because Navy officials say it was created in part to prepare for potential litigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But that probe cites failures by the Crystal\u2019s second officer as one of the root causes of the collision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The merchant vessel was on autopilot \u201cuntil just prior to impact,\u201d the report states, and the Crystal did not sound at least five short blasts or make any attempt to hail the warship via radio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPrior to the collision, CRYSTAL watchstanders came out of autopilot and initiated a turn to starboard, too late to have adequate effect,\u201d the report states. \u201cAudio recordings from CRYSTAL\u2019s Bridge reveal what is most likely the sound of a signal light being used to get FTZ\u2019 attention just minutes before the collision. FTZ watchstanders did not recall seeing this signal light.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The unidentified second officer \u201cfailed to maintain a proper lookout so as to make a full appraisal of the risk of collision\u201d with the Fitzgerald, according to the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Crystal officer \u201cfailed to determine if a risk of collision with FTZ existed by using all available means,\u201d according to the report, and \u201che failed to appreciate, by radar or visual observation, that FTZ was on a constant bearing with a decreasing range, which observation would have led him to deem risk of collision to exist.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It also states the officer \u201cfailed to take action to avoid collision once it became apparent that action by FTZ alone would not avoid the collision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/ship-collisions\/2018\/06\/17\/the-crew-is-still-hurting-one-year-later-some-fitzgerald-shipmates-struggle-to-go-forward\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"157\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/CROP-babbitt-Fitz-1.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">\u2018The crew is still hurting\u2019: One year later, some Fitzgerald shipmates struggle to go forward<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">One year after losing seven of their shipmates when the Fitz collided with a merchant vessel, some crew say they remain traumatized and wonder if they are ready to get underway again.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIn addition, the Second Officer failed to follow CRYSTAL\u2019s Standing Orders by failing to call the Master when FTZ\u2019s CPA was within one nautical mile and failing to take frequent and accurate compass bearings of FTZ to detect the risk of collision,\u201d according to the internal Navy investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Whether the settlement money will actually go to Fitz repairs remains unclear but it\u2019s a small sum compared to what the Navy is paying to mend the 25-year-old warship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Navy has awarded roughly $533 million in contracts and modifications for repair and modernization of the ship since September 2017, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/dod.defense.gov\/News\/Contracts\/Search\/Fitzgerald\/\" target=_blank>Pentagon contract listings<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s a lot of money and it\u2019s not a lot of money,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fordham.edu\/info\/23642\/a_-_b\/7412\/lawrence_b_brennan\/1\" target=_blank>Lawrence Brennan<\/a>, a retired Navy captain and attorney who teaches admiralty and maritime law at Fordham Law School, said of the settlement amount.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe really tough questions are the injury and death claims being asserted against Crystal by the deceased and survivors,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It remains unclear whether any claims have been filed by the families of the seven sailors who drowned in the collision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.navytimes.com\/news\/ship-collisions\/2018\/06\/17\/one-year-after-the-fitzgerald-collision-the-families-of-the-fallen-grieve-and-search-for-answers\/\" target=_blank>Darrold Martin<\/a>, the father of Xavier Martin, one of the sailors who died, said Friday he had been in touch with an attorney but was not sure if any litigation had been filed on the behalf of the families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An attorney representing Fitz victims and their families, David M. Schloss \u2014 a partner in the Washington, D.C. firm of <a href=\"https:\/\/koonz.com\/\" target=_blank>Koonz, McKenney, Johnson, DePaolis and Lightfoot <\/a>\u2014 told Navy Times that he\u2019s pleased the vessel\u2019s owner and charterer \u201crecognized their obligation to compensate the Navy for the property damage they caused.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhile no amount of money is sufficient to compensate the families of the seven brave sailors who gave their lives in the service of their country, or those Fitzgerald crewmen who continue to suffer from the devastating physical and emotional injuries associated with this collision, we are nevertheless hopeful that this settlement indicates that those same parties, along with the time charterer, NYK (Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha), will see fit to live up to their legal and moral obligations to fully compensate those whose lives have been so tragically impacted,\u201d said Schloss in a written statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Plain and simple, this collision was a preventable tragedy, and we intend to pursue all legal remedies both in Japan and here in the United States against the three parties responsible for the negligent conduct of the Crystal. &#8220;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The owners of the ACX Crystal will pay the U.S. government about $27 million in connection to the 2017 collision with the destroyer that killed seven and totaled the warship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":33019,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":65,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["your-military","news","middle-column","home"],"primary_category":"your-military"}}},"categories":[101,23,88,12,26,65],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3355],"class_list":["post-15145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-left-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-navy"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"3J7MRCBZNZG6TL7RPCXNBWYXQY","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-navy\/2019\/01\/11\/ship-owners-to-pay-us-government-for-fitzgerald-collision\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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