Findings by the Royal Navy Chief Naval Judge Advocate Corps
Official Inquiry into the sinking of two Croatian patrol boats and an Italian Trawler off the coast of Croatia (former Yugoslavia) on the night of 4 March 1995 between the hours 20:00 and 22:00.
Excerpts from the testimony of Lieutenant Commander Dwin Mctaggart Craig, RN, First Officer HMS Argyll F231
Senior Military Council: The honorable Admiral James E. Worthington III, RN
Judge: Let the record reflect that the psychiatric evaluation of Commander Teddy Broderick, RN, has been entered into the record of this hearing and that the officer under investigation is deemed fit to stand trial. Now the court will hear the testimony of the First officer of Argyll as to the events of the 4th. Lieutenant Commander Craig, please tell this board of inquiry in your own words the events as they transpired on the night of 4 March 1995.
Lt. Commander Craig: By 2000 local time we were in our patrol area off the coast of Croatia and monitoring the ship traffic into and out of the port city of Salat (Split). Our orders were to investigate any evidence of arms smuggling by the belligerents and board any ship that we had reason to believe might be transporting arms into the country.
Judge: Commander Craig it would please the court if you were to also clearly state for the record, what were your rides of engagement?
Lt. Commander Craig: They were that we, HMS Argyll, was not to fire upon any ship or aircraft unless it fired upon us first, or displayed hostile intent. This was defined to include locking of weapons radars on our vessel or approaching at high speed until within weapons range.
Judge: Thank you commander. You may continue your testimony.
Lt. Commander Craig- About 2040 hours we picked up five radar surface contacts. One lay approximately 10 kilometers to our north, the other four were about 30 kilometers northeast of our position. Captain Broderick ordered our Sea Lynx prepared for takeoff. We changed course to allow for the proper cross wind on the helo deck and went to flight quarters.
The helicopter was launched and proceeded north for a few minutes until it detected the trawler, which running north without lights. Captain Broderick ordered Argyll to maximum speed and changed course to intercept the trawler. He also ordered the helicopter to investigate the four surface contacts to the northeast, which were moving northwest along the coast, in formation, at high speed.
The helicopter quickly closed on the surface contacts, and I heard the report identifying them as "patrol boats." Captain Broderick immediately ordered them over Channel 13 to heave to and stand by the be inspected for contraband.
Judge: Commander Craig, I want us all to be dear on this point. You mean to say that without properly identifying these patrol boats as to class or even nationality, Captain Broderick ordered them to "heave to?"
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sit, Captain Broderick broadcast that message over the open radio frequency Channel 13.
Judge: Where were these ships and the helicopter located when this transpired?
Lt. Commander Craig: Both the group of ships and our helicopter were in Croatian airspace, your honor.
Judge: Commander, were you aware of any special information or intelligence reports that would have caused Captain Broderick to believe that these warships were carrying weapons or even what nationality these ships might be?
Lt. Commander Craig: No, sir.
Judge: Was this standard procedure on Argyll for investigating contacts?
Lt. Commander Craig: No sit.
Judge: Commander, do you have any idea why Captain Broderick ordered the surface contacts to heave to and prepare to be boarded?
Lt. Commander Craig: He stated that his orders required him to investigate all ships for contraband.
Judge: Did you agree with his interpretation of the orders to include stopping and boarding foreign combatants in a war zone?
Lt. Commander Craig: Sir, No, sir.
Judge: Very well, continue your testimony.
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes, sir. The formation ignored the call over Channel 13. The captain then ordered the helicopter to fly over the patrol boats and drop a flare, "To show we meant business."
The helicopter crew, as far as we are able to determine, followed their orders and dropped the flares. They reported back that the patrol boats did not change course. This surprised the captain and he seemed at a loss for a few moments. Then the captain's face began to display a noticeable twitch.
Judge: A twitch? Could you repeat that?
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sit, on the right side of the captain's face his jaw became very tight, to the point where you could see blood vessels showing, and then there was a twitch, what seemed a swift movement on the right side of his mouth.
Judge: And then what happened? Did the captain say anything?.
Lt. Commander Craig- Yes sir, He said, in a very low voice, "Let's see how those Slavic rats like the feel of British steel," or something to that effect. Sir.
Judge: Are you sure, commander?
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sir.
Judge: Continue your testimony.
Lt. Commander Craig: The captain then ordered Lynx crew to launch a Sea Skua. antiship cruise missile at the patrol boat with its guidance homing seeker head turned off. He stated that his was equivalent to firing a shot across their bows.
The Lynx crew responded and asked for verification of the orders to launch a Sea Skua at the patrol boars. I felt compelled to mention to the captain that this action could be interpreted as an act of war, especially since the unknown warships had no way of knowing that the guidance was disabled, and that we were exceeding our authority under the UN provisions and our own rules of engagement.
Judge: How did Commander Broderick respond to your advice?
Lt. Commander Craig: He said that he was not used to every order he issued being questioned and that if I didn't know my place aboard his ship then he would find an officer that would. Then his cheek twitched again as it had a few moments before, sir.
Judge: Very well, Commander Craig, carry on.
Lt. Commander Craig: The helicopter crew replied that they would launch the missile and a few moments later we heard a Mayday signal come over the speakers on the bridge. The port lookout then said that a sudden flash had been observed on the horizon and a few moments later we heard what sounded like the report of naval gun fire and a large explosion. Based on the wreckage recovered later, we believe that the patrol boats shot down the helicopter with medium-caliber gunfire almost immediately after the missile was launched.
At this stage the captain's cheek twitched again and he was muttering almost continuously under his breach. He ordered the ship to general quarters.
Judge: Commander Craig this is not a forum for you to speculate on what events transpired, this panel is only interested on what you witnessed leading up to your relieving Commander Broderick of command of Argyll. Is this understood?
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sir.
Judge: Very well, carry on.
Lt. Commander Craig: The Captain then ordered two Harpoon missiles be launched from the port side launcher and programmed to attack the patrol boats. I again mentioned to the captain that we were committing acts of war and that we were not adhering to the rules of engagement. By this time the group of four contacts had split into two pairs of ships. One pair headed northwest up the coast at 30 knots while the second pair turned and slowed, dosing on us at 15 knots. The northern pair were the ones our helicopter had fired the Sea Skua at.
The captain turned to me and said, "Isn't it obvious? This is a trap, we must defend ourselves." I replied, "Yes sir," and the missiles were launched. About 30 seconds later the port lookout reported another flash on the horizon followed by the sound of an explosion and then 10 seconds after that he reported a second flash followed by the sound of an explosion. CIC then reported that the two northern surface contacts were gone.
But Let Me Explain ....
Judge: Now, Commander Craig, tell the court about the attack on Agropoli.
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sir. By this time Argyll had closed on the first contact our helicopter had investigated. Our lookout confirmed chat the contact was a trawler, which we tracked steaming north at 12 knots. CIC also reported that the trawler was moving toward the western end of Otok Hvar, one of the small islands in the area. They reported that if the contact got to close to the island then they would lose it in the clutter from the land.
Judge: Were there any dues as to the nationality or cargo of the trawler?
Lt. Commander Craig: No, sit, none at all. It was suspicious but not illegal to run without lights in this area. Captain Broderick ordered the vessel over radio to heave to and stand by to be boarded. We received no reply.
The captain then said, "Swift and sure action is required now to ensure our survival. This vessel is part of the trap they are trying to spin about us." He ordered our 4.5 inch gun to fire a shot across the trawler's bow.
Judge: Again, your captain made no other attempts to identify the vessel?
Lt. Commander Craig: No, sir. None at all. The Mk8 gun fired one round, which landed ahead of the ship. The only reaction we saw was that it turned and headed in even closer to the shore.
The captain became enraged. His face purpled and his fists balled and trembled at the trawler's lack of reaction to the warning shot. He barked out an order: "Open fire on the trawler. Sink it." Our forward gun battery opened up on the trawler at short range. We saw shells striking the vessel amidships, and a split second later it disappeared in an earthshattering explosion. We felt the shock wave on the bridge wing three thousand yards away, and our ship was struck by several pieces of debris.
Judge: And the cause of the explosion?
Lt. Commander Craig: Most probably from contraband ammunition. From the size of the explosion the trawler's entire hold must have been loaded with ammunition.
Judge: And the captain's reaction to this?
Lt. Commander Craig: The captain seemed extremely pleased with the result. He stood on the bridge wing grinning, almost dancing with excitement and pounding his fist on the rail.
Judge: Was he saying anything?
Lt. Commander Craig: Well, sir, he did say "That'll teach 'em to ignore me!"
Judge: At this point Commander Craig, did you take command of Argyll?
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sir, I told the captain that he had violated our rules of engagement and broken international law by firing indiscriminately on surface shipping. I told him that under the articles of the Naval Discipline Act I was relieving him of command and returning Argyll to port.
Judge: This is when the master of arms placed Commander Broderick under arrest and you made contact with Admiralty concerning this incident?
Lt. Commander Craig: Yes sir. We were told to return to home and that HMS Lancaster would relieve us.
Judge: Thank you, Commander for your testimony.
Lt. Commander Craig: Sir.
More Split Personality Harpoon Scenario
BT
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