A nearly £800,000 contract has been awarded by the Ministry of Defence for a detailed wreck survey of HMS Cassandra, a British light cruiser lost in the Baltic Sea during the closing weeks of the First World War.
The £791,667 contract was awarded to Cwaves, a marine services company based in London, to assess the current condition of the shipwreck, which lies at a depth of 95 to 100 metres approximately 36 kilometres west of Vilsandi, Estonia.
HMS Cassandra was part of a Royal Navy force deployed to the Baltic in 1918 as part of Allied efforts to influence the outcome of the Russian Civil War. On 5 December of that year, the cruiser struck a naval mine while en route to Tallinn. The ship sank within an hour of the explosion.
More than a century later, the Ministry of Defence is commissioning a comprehensive survey of the wreck. The aim is to determine the physical condition of the vessel and assess the presence of any potentially hazardous materials still on board, including fuel residues and unexploded ordnance.
The work will include a full visual and multibeam echosounder (MBES) survey of the wreck site, combined with hull thickness measurements. These will be taken using a work-class remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The contract stipulates that the supplier must deliver a complete turnkey solution. This includes providing the vessel, equipment, and qualified personnel, along with securing the necessary environmental and operational permissions from the Estonian government.
The awarded contract is expected to run for five months, allowing time for mobilisation, the technical survey itself, and the production of a final written report outlining findings.
Cwaves will be responsible for all elements of the project, including adherence to environmental protection standards. The survey is part of the Ministry of Defence’s ongoing efforts to responsibly manage and monitor the UK’s historic naval wrecks, especially those that may pose environmental or safety concerns due to ageing structures or residual munitions.
HMS Cassandra is one of several Royal Navy ships lost in Baltic operations in the immediate aftermath of the First World War, a period that remains underexplored in British naval historiography.
Begs an interesting question as to why survey work needs to be contracted out as this should have been an Echo Enterprise job.
Sadly we have a capability that has withered and the drones are not yet there in capability or availability.
Neither do the mothership platforms and crews…..
Crazy really that we have announced to the world that RN anti mine, which was world class, has taken a holiday.
Apologies, wrong reply button. Obviously too early in the morning. Thoughts below.
I guess the answer to your question is economics; that we are not doing survey work all the time. That said, although Echo and Enterprise have been decommissioned unless I missed it neither has been sold or scrapped. Relatively modern ships too.
Yup, but they have other functions too….rungs on the command ladders which MCM and survey used to fill.
Now RN just have the Rivers and Archers.
Where do you learn seamanship and command to take care of both the ship and the crew with all the other variable interactions that need to be deal with?
At some point it isn’t just about cash it is about experienced blue suits.
We still haven’t canned the Hunts. I hope they revamp them to take the place of the B1Rs rather than sell them.
How many of the Hunts are actually in service ready to go with a crew?
You do realise that HMS Spey just sailed through the Taiwan Taiwan Strait? The OPVs aren’t pottering about in Devenport, they are deployed all over the world
The MoD should look into the pillaging of HMS Abukir, HMS Hogue and HMS Cressy (the “Live Bait Squadron”) which were sunk on 22nd September 1914 by Otto Weddigen, commanding the German submarine U-9. Their task was to patrol the relatively shallow waters of the Dogger Bank and the Broad Fourteens in the North Sea.
1,397 men and 62 officers were lost that dreadful morning, many of whom were navy reservists who were called up on the outbreak of the war.
The wrecks, which are war graves, have been repeatedly pillaged for non-ferous metals by German and Dutch salvage firms with the approval – some would say the conivance – of the MoD.
Good old Drachinifel has made a decent start into producing content on the subject. I’d say far from exhaustive at this stage ( mainly as what he produces is partially driven by viewer ‘nominations’) but the kid knows his stuff and isn’t in the slightest averse to spending days at the NRO and/or scrutinising Naval Records, relentlessly pursuing any opposing countrys equivalent then interrogating the data and any 1st or 3rd hand sources ( persons) still alive to provide testimony.
I legitimately wonder if the RN and/or the contractor might be well served to reach out to him for some form of consultation. His work and specifically the unbiased integrity of what he produces places him imho and that of many around the world as a Naval Historian rather than a YouTuber.
He has managed to obtain direct source, 1st hand, evidence of many battles/ Naval events/ Naval Personnel long thought lost too history by others so it’s not outside the realm of possibility he holds, or knows the current keepers of some pertinent data.
For those with an interest in Naval History ( upto circa 1950 which is his personally imposed limit specifically so what he does avoids more modern political influence) then I strongly suggest looking the chap up.
Interesting that this survey is being carried out in an area that is subject to Russian and Chinese sabotaging of undersea cables and pipelines.
What are you talking about ca ss a n d ra ? Khhhh
M8 im having george deported deported not golden eye its dead eye an d ra with me tt le they are with me im just goingvto kill rest your blood blood as of 6 o clock this morning
You are delusional you are insulting to me im putting out a healthy reward for destroying your train and killing you sn a fat little shit stain dublin ca w ca w that was along time ago khhhhhh c e sp A ce r
Spetsnaz wont be coming back sp et snaz hardly want to go home to u crack heads would they now how may years has your family wasted enjoy the parde crack heads junkies drunks fat bodies you whoukd do I basiclly just keep them as a pile of fat dogs laugh at what going hate me out if you only you could hate me as much as I hate you fruits pears 2s fruit caks gay Lords id be still be making a wanker outta yas u scurvy dogs
Any way I did need right of that faggot old cunt now saddly I find myself being woken up by a bunch cock sucking fenian cunts tell boy george I request his presence going to murder your entire family you cave dwellers take that lol lip from ppl tried hate radiation deflect it of planet me r u fuvking cunt
I really liked my granda Richard and your assumptions 1 of us we are cut sort of same cloth but we are nothing alive you cowardly inbred family fuvking dog now you se you im going to hurt u
Mother,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,is that you?
Someone needs to chill out and have a nice game of chess
Why are we spending a million pounds on this?