| History | |
|---|---|
| Name: | ACX Crystal |
| Owner: |
|
| Port of registry: |  Manila, Philippines |
| Builder: | STX Offshore & Shipbuilding, Changwon, South Korea |
| Yard number: | 1240 |
| Launched: | 20 June 2008 |
| In service: | August 2008 |
| Identification: |
|
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Container ship |
| Tonnage: | |
| Length: | 222.6 metres (730 ft) loa |
| Beam: | 31.1 metres (102 ft) |
| Installed power: | 28,880 kW (39,265 bhp) |
| Speed: | 25.3 knots (46.9 km/h; 29.1 mph) |
| Capacity: | 2,858 teu containers |
| Crew: | 20[1] |
ACX Crystal ( IMO number: 9360611; MSSI: 548789000; callsign: DYUG)[2] is a container ship, built in South Korea in 2008. In June 2017 the ship was damaged in a collision with USS Fitzgerald south of Yokosuka, Japan.
Description[edit]
ACX Crystal is a 730-foot (220 m) container ship of 29,060 gross tons, 39,565 tonnes deadweight and a container capacity of 2,858 teu.[3] The ship is 222.6 metres (730 ft) in length overall and 31.1 metres (102 ft) wide. ACX Crystal was built in 2008 by STX Offshore & Shipbuilding at their Jinhae shipyard in Changwon, South Korea.[3] The ship’s main engine, made by STX to a MAN B&W design, is an 8-cylinder diesel of 28,880 kW (39,265 bhp) mcr, giving a maximum speed of 25.3 knots (46.9 km/h; 29.1 mph) and a service speed of 23.0 knots (42.6 km/h; 26.5 mph).[3]
The ship is technically classed with the Japanese NK (Nippon Kaiji Kyokai) ship classification society, and insured with the Japanese Shipowners P&I Association.[4]
Ownership and deployment[edit]
ACX Crystal has been owned by Olympic Steamship Co SA, Panama (a subsidiary of Japanese shipowner Sunford Shipping Ltd) and managed by Sea Quest Ship Management Inc of Bacoor, Philippines since 2008.[4][3] The ship has been bareboat-chartered to Sinbanali Shipping Inc of Manila since 2014,[3] but is reported by NYK Line on June 17 as being actually owned by Dainichi-Invest Corporation, a Japanese ship investment firm.[5] ACX Crystal is a mid-size container ship employed by ACX (‘Asia Container Express’), the intra-Asia container shipping trade subsidiary of NYK Line, the global shipping and freight logistics division of the Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi.
In June 2017, ACX Crystal was employed by NYK on its ‘PX1’ (Phoenix 1) intra-Asia trade line linking Japan, Vietnam and Thailand ports. As is common in the container shipping industry, the ship’s cargo capacity is shared by NYK with other lines, such as Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, K Line and other lines.
2017 collision[edit]
At 02.30 local time on 17 June 2017 (17.30 UTC 16 June), ACX Crystal, carrying 1,080 containers from Nagoya to Tokyo, collided with USS Fitzgerald near Shizuoka, Japan, about 56 nautical miles (104 kilometres; 64 miles) south of the Yokosuka Japanese and US naval base at the entrance of Tokyo Bay.[6][7] The merchant ship’s bow and the destroyer’s starboard side were damaged. Fitzgerald‘s commanding officer and two sailors were injured and evacuated by helicopter, and seven Navy sailors were found dead in the damaged, flooded starboard compartments.[8]
NYK stated that none of the 20 crew members aboard the container ship, all Filipino, were injured, and that the ship was not leaking oil. They also confirmed their full co-operation with the Japan Coast Guard’s investigation of the incident, which began the same day.[7][1] Although the cause of the collision is not yet known, local broadcaster NHK claimed that ACX Crystal made a U-turn 25 minutes before the collision (based on automatic identification system (AIS) data). The ship later continued to Tokyo Bay.[7][9]