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Three Sisters Schooner by David Goulden - RESTORATION

• three sisters
• restoration

By David Goulden June 19, 2016 in - Build logs for subjects built 1901 - Present Day

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David goulden.

This log is for the restoration of  a model wooden schooner my grandfather made for me sometime around 1960 when I was born.

• Mark Pearse , gieb8688 , ccoyle and 7 others

Restoration:  Three Sisters Schooner

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kees de mol

Wow that little ship needs a lot of work.

Nice memory to your grandfather and that is in my opinion something to remember when you restore the model. Don't over do and let some parts or paintwork like they are now. So when you have a restored model, you can still see your grandfathers hand on it.

Kind regards, Kees

• coxswain , mtaylor and Omega1234

Current build: Dutch beamtrawler KW88, Pelikaan 1/75

Completed build: Dutch sidetrawler KW49, Antje 1/75

Completed build: Scottisch 10m trawler 1/25

Want to see some real Kitsch... With a capital K?!! Visit my 'museum' here at MSW

JerseyCity Frankie

My advice-which runs counter to the strict "Museum Restoration Protocol"- is to replace all the rigging if its not strong enough. Grasp a sample piece of rigging between your fingers and pull lightly. Does the line snap easily? if so I would recommend replacing all of it, since all of it will likely be in the same condition. If it doesn't break, use as much of it as you can! A museum restoration professional's agenda is to preserve as much of the artifact as possible. But as a practical matter its best to complete the restoration in a way that ensures the ship model will last as long as possible into the future. If the rigging is still weak and brittle after you have restored the model its only going to be a high maintenance artifact for the foreseeable future, requiring frequent restoration.

  Niagara   USS Constitution  

Kees, thank you. That is exactly my plan. I'm hoping once cleaned up and the cracks repaired, I won't have to do any painting. Or at most very minor touch ups.

Frankie, good advice. There are two types of material in the rigging. Thin copper wire which seems in relatively good shape, and thread (rope? string? don't know the proper terminology) which snaps with a strong tug. I am fine with replacing the latter. Out of curiosity is it usual to have the two types of rigging on a model ship? Obviously I have a lot to learn! If someone can point me to a primer on rigging that would be helpful.

David: that is a nice winter project for you! I see that you lived in Halifax: do you still have contacts there? If so, they could get you all kinds of information from the Bluenose II folk there. There is also a book of plans that someone drew up on Bluenose (I can't recall the author or title, but it is a large, landscape format, soft-cover production). It gives an amazing amount of detail of both hull and rig.

Be sure to sign up for an epic Nelson/Trafalgar project if you would like to see it made into a TV series    http://trafalgar.tv

druxey, thanks for the suggestion. Most of my family still lives in Halifax, and I will be visiting next month. If the Bluenose II is in port I'll be sure to take plenty of photos. If not I'll ask my family, and I'm sure there will be no shortage of books on her in the tourist shops! Maybe even the book of plans you mentioned.

• druxey , Omega1234 and mtaylor

I think if someone were building a Bluenose from scratch they would not use actual wire these days, but your mode did and I think that means you should stick with wire in the restoration. But that is my opinion and I could imagine others saying wire has no place on a model. I once took a bunch of wire off a very old ship model I was restoring, but only because I determined the wire was not original to the model and was part of a slipshod restoration that had taken place in the past. Also I think if you elected to remove the old wire on your model and replace it with heavy thread, nobody would fault you for it. Wire has the drawback that once it gets a kink in it, the kink is hard to remedy and calls attention to itself. I like the look of the model you have, it has a LOT of character plus it has the family history. Congratulations on restoring it!

Hello Druxy; I have a book "Bluenose II" Saga of the Great fishing Schooners

      Measured Drawings by LB Jensen. This is a soft-cover book  11"x14" (almost).

Nimbus Publishing 1994/2002    ISBN 1-55109-063-5   125pp.

Is this the book you're referring to?  Regards, Pollex (Calgary)

• mtaylor and druxey

4th generation helping in the restoration

• yvesvidal and mtaylor

Now that is a cool picture.  That smile says she's really into this.

Mark "The shipwright is slow, but the wood is patient." - me Current Build:                                                                                              Past Builds:   La Belle Poule 1765 - French Frigate from ANCRE plans  - ON HOLD            Tri ton Cross-Section    

  NRG Hallf Hull Planking Kit                                                                             HMS Sphinx 1775 - Vanguard Models - 1:64                

Non-Ship Model:                                                                                           On hold, maybe forever:           

CH-53 Sikorsky - 1:48 - Revell - Completed                                                      Licorne - 1755 from Hahn Plans (Scratch) Version 2.0  (Abandoned)           

Yes, Pollex, that's the volume I was thinking of! Thanks for providing the information. hopefully, David, you can locate a copy. Try abebooks.com or Amazon. Oh, and the author is Jenson with an 'o'.

Ordered, thanks!

Try getting hold of the book  FISHING SCOONER 'ELSIE'  by  Erik A. R. Ronnberg Jnr

Nautical Research Journal   ISBN   0738  7245

The Nautical Research Guild Inc

6413 Dahlonega Road

Maryland 20816 

In the Good old US of A

I picked up a copy in England so you should beable to get a copy you side of the pond

This covers everything plans and details for building a first class model ,it will give you all the enfo you need to rerig your model

Please keep us updated on your progress

Good Luck with the rebuild and Enjoy it

Regards  Reg

Thanks Reg, I couldn't find 'Elsie' but I found 'Gloucester Clipper Fishing Schooners' by the same author, do you think that would be ok?   https://www.amazon.co.jp/Gloucester-Clipper-Fishing-Schooners/dp/0961502150

I cant read or speak Chinese,( I have trouble with read , speaking  or spelling english and Iam a Londoner  born & bread ) but looked it up on amozon uk ,and it looks as if it covers the same sort of thing

Good Luck   Reg

The ship is cleaning up nicely with just paint brushes, q-tips and water. It is a slow process though, sure teaching me patience!

The Jenson book arrived a few days ago. Although I hate the handwriting-like font, there is lots of useful info in there. I now know the model is roughly 1/80 scale and rather loosely based on the Bluenose.

The more I work with it, the more I think I'll need to replace most if not all the rigging. The thread breaks easily, and a lot of the wire is loose or broken. I'll probably spend some time in hobby shops while I'm in Toronto next month. Any suggestions as to what type of thread I should get?

If you are working with rigging thread, you might wish to consider the line that the Syren Ship Model Company produces. (Scroll down and click the link on the right side of the cover page of this site for the Syren web site) It is produced in many diameters and is probably the best commercial line available.

And you are right: patience is the word for any model work!

One can never have too much line! I think you will be happy with Syren's cordage.

Another very good book on fishing schooners in general is "The American Fishing Schooners 1825-1935" by Howard I. Chapelle. It is available on Amazon but it is not cheap - $43 new - and even used copies are not inexpensive. It is full of incredible detail in its 690 pages. Perhaps a book that is only useful to those who have a real love for this type boat. Back when I was building Bluejacket's Smuggler, I found it to be invaluable and well worth the cost.

http://modelboatyard.com

Recently Completed: Chesapeake Bay Buyboat - F.D. Crockett

Hello David Goulden; Please look at <metromarine.org> This is the website of

"Metro Marine Modellers" of Toronto.  They usually have a club meeting each month,

on the 3rd Friday I believe. Check the site to see if you can "connect" in July or August. 

They used to have a list of hobby shops and sources most useful to model builders. 

It would be great if you could "connect" with someone either at a Fun Run or a Sunday

sailing event. There are Static, Scale & Sailing Divisions. This club was a special part of

my life during the 10+ years I lived in Toronto.  Regards, Pollex

• mtaylor and yvesvidal

Pollex, thanks for the link to the modelling club in Toronto. Not sure how much free time I'll have, but will be sure to check out the website.

I'm sure you'll find a use for any extra line that you may have left over, David!

To glue a crack, white glue and clamps of some sort work well. Any actual gaps or missing pieces will need to have more substantial fillers. Softwood shaped and glued in to fill most of the gap, then a suitable filler such as Bondo would be one way to go.

• 2 years later...

hello from newfoundland canada,your ship is beautiful.Would you believe i just got a old model schooner from my wifes family and the name of the ship is  Three sisters,its in grteat condition with sails intact,same split in stem as your model,looks like flag is new zeland.I will send pics if u want

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Plymouth Fastnet 500 Race

11th august 2024.

• Race Tracking

The Plymouth Fastnet 500 Race 2024

The Royal Western Yacht Club of England in Plymouth is excited to announce the RWYC ‘Plymouth Fastnet 500 Race’.

RACE DOCUMENTS:

Notice of Race 2024

Entry Form 2024

Amendment 1

PF500SIAmendment

Sailing Instructions

Hearing Request Form

Race Report –  Plymouth Fastnet 500 second edition.

1200hrs, Sunday 13 th August saw the start of the Plymouth Fastnet Race. A South- south westerly 14-16 knot wind greeted them as they made their way out of the western entrance of Plymouth Sound towards the Eddystone Lighthouse. The sea state and winds were to increase overnight as the fleet made their way to the west.

Monday 14th August – The day after the night before

There have been a number of key updates after what was a very challenging period at Lands’ End. First We heard that #superbigou had issues with their canting keel. As they came off a wave there was a loud bang, which brought their race to an end. Co-owner Will Claxton from Padstow Boatyard said he was “really gutted, as we were about to bear away on to a fast reach too!” Thankfully everyone is safe and the Open 60 will be back with us next year for one of the big races!

Having been in the hunt throughout yesterday and into the night, the crew on David Goulden’s ‘Bandit’ found the going very hard. Unfortunately they have been unable to recover sufficiently and so ‘Bandit’ have made the sensible call to turn around and fight another day. All ok on board, if not a little sick We wish them a smoother, safe sail home!

For the rest of the fleet, the first night proved to be just as challenging. As of 2030hrs a big call was being made as to how the teams would deal with the 3 x TSS, ‘do we go north or do we push west’. Within 2 hours it was clear that, with just 5 miles between them, only 1 would head north over the Eastern most TSS. Splitting from their rivals, ‘Sunfire’ were not taking any prisoners and through their first dice! (There will be more!!!!)

By 0700hrs, the teams hit a pretty huge transition zone, which was to see the 2 leaders, ‘Manu’ and ‘Sunfire’, scrapping for the best angles they could find for over 2 hours. By 1115hrs ‘Manu’ Crossed ‘Sunfire’ within 5 miles to regain their lead. Based on their rating, this would be a marginal net gain to ‘Sunfire’. With just 3 on board, the question now is how much has this first tough night taken out of ‘Manu’ and will they be able to keep their speed up with ‘Sunfire’ breathing down their necks.

Daniel Flannagan’s Manu vs Steve Andrew’s Sunfire – locked horns all the way from the start

Tuesday 15 th –  Rounding the Rock

It has been a really interesting night with ‘Manu’ staying between ‘Sunfire’ and the Fastnet rock, not letting them out of their sights. At 2245hrs a right shift saw a marginal gain to ‘Sunfire’ which put them on a higher lay line to ‘Manu’. A left shift then got ‘Manu’ back in a prime spot at 0200hrs when she tacked to cross ‘Sunfire’. As they approached the mark, ‘Manu’ made twice as many tacks as ‘Sunfire’, effecting their elapsed time sufficiently to give ‘Sunfire’ the lead for the first time in 24 hours. As they round the Fastnet rock at 1000hrs and whilst ‘Manu’ lead on the water, bragging rights go to Steve Andrews team on ‘Sunfire’ as they lead ‘Manu’ by a projected corrected time of 59mins 23seconds.

All is to play for, the breeze is light and shifty, and whilst only 3-up, ‘Manu’ has a distinct weight advantage but will it be enough to keep the full squad onboard ‘Sunfire’ behind them and extend to regain their projected IRC lead.

Photo – Manu leads around the Rock with Sunfire 2nd and ‘Nova’ back in 3rd but most importantly they are still in the game!

Sunfire Gybes inside of Manu to take advantage of the shift.

Wednesday 16th – All change at the front!

Following the mark rounding a tight cover from Manu has reversed into a tight cover from Sunfire as the teams bore away for the homeward leg across the Celtic Sea. Conditions were to get lighter and lighter as the day progressed, worse, it was to become variable as the wind would begin its 24-hour transition from Northwest to Southeast. Once clear of the Fastnet TSS, Manu made the first call to gybe along the lowest edge of the no-go zone to stay in breeze as long as possible, Sunfire duly followed. Being further up the course, Sunfire were able to take advantage of the first right hand shift and gybed onto starboard. Manu followed some 5 miles to the east-northeast, which essentially put the 2 RWYC boats level. Advantage Sunfire! Being far enough to the East, Manu was able to stay in breeze longer and by 1630 had managed to hold a 2-knot advantage for the 4 hours since gybing, putting them back in the lead and by midnight had re-established their 5-mile gap to Sunfire. Looking further back up the course Mona were making steady progress towards the rock, albeit directly upwind. By 1910hrs they were able to take their time for rounding the rock, in daylight, at 7knots. Interestingly, their social media does show that they have 2 stow-aways, who will have been a great relief to the crew through night 1 of this ‘500 race! The breeze overnight has been challenging, with barely 5 knots recorded and the transition now being fully active will not see much more until much later today where it will go on the nose for the remainder of the race. Sunfire has remained in the predatory position of being in sight of Manu and direct astern. Their overnight speed has constantly been higher and throughout the night Manu will have seen the masthead light on Sunfire getting taller and taller. Sunrise, and Manu only had to look over their port quarter to see that, following a hugely challenging overnight spell of concentration and strategy, Sunfire were now abeam and ahead not only on corrected but also on the water. As of now, it would appear that Manu have recovered from what must have been an exhausting past 12 hours with almost 2/3 less crew co-manage the conditions and have picked up the pace to rechallenge for first the lead on the water and to then extend. Throughout the night and way out to the Northwest, Nova has been making excellent progress against her rivals constantly achieving twice the boat speed as they manage to find something in the dying westerly breeze. Now it is a battle to see who can get to the next phase of this race first. By 1900hrs we expect the North-easterly gradient to gradually veer to East and by Thursday morning settle at Southeast. So with this in mind there is a new throw of the dice, do you head north of the rhumb line to make the most of the live conditions or head south to pick up the stronger new breeze early…

Manu retakes the lead on the water, but Sunfire still hold the Overall lead. It could not be tighter.

Thursday 17 th August – Almost there!!!

Today saw the closest finish yet in the ‘500 race, with just under 1 hour 8 minutes separating both boats on the water. Both enjoyed a fresh Easterly breeze as they traversed the sound and entered the Cattewater to finally finish an epic second edition of the Plymouth Fastnet 500 . Videos of both finishes are now available on the https://www.facebook.com/rwycracing Facebook page. During which time Nova was battling to find some consistent breeze due south of Penzance. With light and shifty winds overnight, Nova was making slow progress East towards the finish, often under 2 knots SOG. But if we know anything about this crew, they are resilient! This morning however paints a very different picture as they enjoy a building southerly breeze and are averaging 4 knots in the right direction! Currently around 18-20knots, the breeze is only going to build and free their angle to make their final stretch into the finish line off the RWYC clubhouse the most enjoyable it could be.

It has been without question a herculean effort for this crew, with very little around them to gauge their performance, they have managed to sail a strong course and have kept fighting when others have fallen by the wayside.

We expect Nova to cross the finish line at any time from 1800hrs this evening and we hope for a tremendous welcoming cheer from their many followers, who must win the top accolade for being the most supportive social media following of the entire race!

A reminder, the prize giving is planned for 1900hrs this evening. We will confirm later today once we are assured of Nova’s finish time.

Photo; Light winds off the Isles of Scilly – Nova searching for breeze

Friday evening saw the GT35, Nova crossing the finish line in an elapsed time of 5 days, 4 hours and 25 minutes. After what was a testing sail up the southwest coast all the way from Lands’ End with variable wind conditions, the 4-crew onboard Nova were in very good spirits as they reached across the sound and into the Cattewater to claim 3rd place overall in the ‘500 race.

With that we bring 2023 to a close and look forward to next year, when we will be running the 3rd edition of the ‘500 in once again in August.

Photos; Credit – Jerry Lock – Fotocraft.net

Nova entering Plymouth Sound 1st – Steve Andrews ——- Sunfire 2nd – Daniel Flannagan —- Manu 3rd – Sean Koehler ——– Nova

13th August 2023 will see the 2nd edition of this new offshore race from the Royal Western Yacht Club. The ‘Plymouth Fastnet 500 Race’ will start in Plymouth Sound, exit via the Western Entrance of Plymouth Sound, round the Fastnet Rock to port, pass the Isles of Scilly to port and then finish between the Breakwater Lighthouse and the navigation buoy, ‘Queens Ground’ in Plymouth Sound.

The challenges of this race are much the same as the Original Lonely Rock Race. Set at around 500 miles long, this is a race with 4 challenging segments. Starting from Plymouth, the race will not have to deal with the tidal gates at Hurst Castle, Portland and Start Point giving its competitors a chance to experience a shorter race around the Fastnet rock without potential for huge tidal gains and losses and without the logistical challenges of start and finish being in 2 different cities.

Entries will be open to MOCRA, IMOCA, Class40, Mini Transat, IRC, single-handed, 2-handed and of course fully crewed. Entry numbers are likely to be limited, so please send your intent to enter to [email protected] .

Next Event Begins In…

Plymouth fastnet 500 race event partner offers.

Invitation for 2 to the Commodores Reception to meet the skippers at RWYC Plymouth

Banner / flag in race village (supplied by the company)

Listed on the event website – Facebook page & Event Brochure

Social media coverage on event Facebook page

Advertising in Event Race Brochure

Full page £500

Half page £250

Quarter page £125

Invitation for 2 to go afloat to watch the start in Plymouth Sound from a spectator vessel

Invitation for 2 to attend the Half Crown Club party at the National Marine Aquarium – Reef

Invitation for 2 to attend the Awards ceremony – October 2020

Race Director Adrian Gray: [email protected]

Plymouth Fastnet 500 – second edition

1200hrs, Sunday 13th August saw the start of the Plymouth Fastnet Race. A South- south westerly 14-16 knot wind greeted them as they made their way out of the western entrance of Plymouth Sound toward...

Race Details

13th August 2023

Race Director Sailing Secretary

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Path to Becoming a CFO | David Goulden, CFO at Booking Holdings Path to Becoming a CFO presented by Airbase

Join us for this conversation between David Goulden, CFO at the world’s leading provider of online travel and related services Booking Holdings — which includes Booking.com, Priceline, OpenTable, Kayak, and others — and Jeff Epstein, Operating Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.  David has operated in multiple international roles, both directly and indirectly involved in finance. His path to CFO is not the typical story of a CPA/accountant or investment banker that we normally see. Having acted as CEO at EMC Information Infrastructure after working in sales, engineering, and product development within the EMC Corporation, as well as COO for the Americas and Asia Pacific at Getronics N.V. earlier in his career, David has multinational, and multidisciplinary insights to draw from.  He shares lessons from his broad and extensive career, and brings a worldly set of perspectives and knowledge to this discussion with the Airbase community. Path to Becoming a CFO | Airbase www.airbase.com LinkedIn

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• © 2023 Path to Becoming a CFO presented by Airbase

Booking Holdings Makes Good on Long-Standing Goal to Take U.S. Market Share

Dennis Schaal , Skift

February 23rd, 2023 at 7:05 PM EST

Booking.com made headway in the U.S. while Expedia was likely distracted getting its internal house in order. Throw Hopper into the mix, and Booking will have to fight to solidify any inroads.

Dennis Schaal

Booking Holdings officials have spoken for years about their aim to take market share in rival Expedia Group’s stronghold, namely the U.S., and Booking appears to be delivering on that goal.

 “In the U.S., both our Priceline and Booking.com brands continue to execute well and contributed to U.S. room night growth of almost 30 percent and gross bookings growth of about 60 percent in 2022 versus 2019,” CEO Glenn Fogel said during Booking Holdings fourth quarter earnings call Thursday. “On our volume and consumer spend basis, we have grown our U.S. business to be meaningfully larger than it was prior to the pandemic.”

Without specifying the amount, Fogel said Booking gained market share in the U.S., and outpaced the broader accommodations market there. He said the U.S. gains came from brand marketing, adding flights to Booking.com, increasing adoption of the company’s payments platform, and working with “partners to ensure we are delivering incremental value to them.”

He said the company strives to access competitive rates from partners, such as hotels, and when it can’t Booking often discounts rates on its own to provide value to travelers.

Booking Holdings’ largest brand, Booking.com, is based in the Netherlands and has always seen Europe as its strongest market. It thought it could do better in the U.S., and is now starting to deliver on the effort.

Sluggish Competitors

Speaking about global competition, Fogel said Booking made inroads because competitors in 2021 “just didn’t seem to be out of the gate so fast in terms of their marketing, in terms of what they’re doing, whether it be brand or performance marketing in terms of trying to get the same demand that we are out getting there.”

In 2022, Booking went “full throttle” trying to gain customers through performance marketing in search engines, and increased its spending on brand marketing.

In the fourth quarter, Booking saw its room nights jump 39 percent year over year. Net income increased 100 percent to $1.2 billion on revenue of $4 billion, a 36 percent jump compared with the fourth quarter of 2021.

The company notched $3.1 billion in net income for full-year 2022, outpacing the prior year by 162 percent. Booking Holdings generated $17.1 billion in revenue, a 56 percent year over year increase.

Artificial Intelligence ‘Hype’

In response to an analyst’s question, Fogel said there is a lot of hype about generative AI (Artificial Intelligence) at the moment.

“I think we’re still probably in the peak of inflated expectations, but there’s no doubt this technology has seems to be accelerating all the time,” he said. 

Fogel said he’s not scared about any competitive threats from generative AI, and is excited about it. He said the company has been working on AI for years, and will adapt to any far-reaching changes as it has done for the past 20 years, including the transition from desktop to mobile.

“So I am confident in the future, and I am not scared, I’m actually encouraged by being able to use all of these new tools to provide a better service for both sides of the marketplace,” Fogel said.

Strong Demand, Longer Booking Windows

The company is seeing strong demand and customers booking trips further in advance. Room nights booked in January 2023 hit 95 million, which surpassed the previous record set in May by more than 10 million. The 95 million room nights was 16 percent compared to January 2019.

Much has been said about how the length of booking windows — the span between when a traveler books a trip and actually takes it — greatly diminished during Covid.

Chief Financial Officer David Goulden said at Booking Holdings, the booking window for next summer has reverted to pre-Covid lengths, if not longer.

“So summer bookings, yes,” Goulden said. “So we have seen, as I mentioned, the travel window the booking window recover completely on a global basis. But actually, the booking window has now expanded a little bit in Europe and North America and still slowly was — or shortly was, I would say, in Asia.”

$1.2 Billion Gain on Meituan Investment

Goulden said the company sold its investment in China’s Meituan in February and realized a $1.2 billion gain, which was 250 percent compared with its original investment. Booking still has a partnership in Meituan.

Fogel announced that Goulden would retire in early 2024. Goulden, who’s been chief financial officer since February 2018, will remain at the company for an additional two years after his retirement working on various projects, Fogel said.

The Daily Newsletter

Our daily coverage of the global travel industry. Written by editors and analysts from across Skift’s brands.

Have a confidential tip for Skift? Get in touch

Tags: booking holdings , earnings , online travel newsletter

Photo credit: Glenn Gogel, Booking Holdings CEO (left) with Skift's Dennis Schaal at Skift Global Forum in September 2022 in New York City. Fogel said Booking made market share gains in the U.S. in 2022.

• International

March 24 Moscow concert hall attack

By Heather Chen , Andrew Raine , Catherine Nicholls, Antoinette Radford, Maureen Chowdhury and Kathleen Magramo , CNN

Here's what we know about the four suspects in the Moscow concert hall attack

From CNN’s Masha Angelova and Josh Pennington

Each of the four defendants charged with committing a terrorist act in the Crocus City concert hall attack was brought to court individually in Moscow on Sunday.

They are accused of committing a crime under part 3, provision “b” of article 205 of the Russian Criminal Code (terrorist act), which the Russian Criminal Code states is punishable with up to life imprisonment.

Three pled guilty to all charges, according to state media news agency TASS .

Here's what we know about the accused:

• Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev: The 32-year-old was the first defendant brought to court. Mirzoyev, from Tajikistan, had a temporary registration for three months in the southern Russian city of Novosibirsk in Siberia, but it expired, according to RIA Novosti.
• Saidakrami Rachabalizoda: He appeared as the second defendant, and told the the court that he had Russian registration documents but couldn't remember where they were. He communicated through an interpreter, according to state media RIA Novosti. Rachabalizoda was reportedly born in 1994.
• Shamsidin Fariduni: He was born in 1998 in Tajikistan and is a citizen of the Central Asian country. Fariduni was officially employed at a factory in the Russian city of Podolsk and was registered in the city of Krasnogorsk, according to state media RIA Novosti.
• Muhammadsober Faizov: The fourth defendant appeared nonresponsive in a wheelchair and was accompanied by a doctor to his court appearance, as seen in Moscow City Court’s video shared on Telegram. Faizov was temporarily unemployed, before which he worked in a barber shop in Ivanovo, a city northeast of Moscow, and is registered in that city, according to state media RIA Novosti. He was reportedly born in 2004.

This post has been updated with more information on the charges against the suspects.

Moscow court orders preventive detention for all four defendants in concert hall attack case

The Basmanny District Court of Moscow on Sunday granted the investigators’ motion for detention, as the chosen preventative measure, for all four defendants in the Crocus City Hall attack case.

All four men have been remanded into pre-trial detention until May 22, stated Moscow City Court via Telegram.  

They are all charged with committing a terrorist act, according to the courts of general jurisdiction of the city of Moscow, which under the Russian Criminal Code is punishable up to life imprisonment.

Each of the four defendants was brought to court individually on Sunday.

Three pled guilty to all charges, according to state media news agency TASS. 

The names of the four accused in the case are Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, Shamsidin Fariduni and Mukhammadsobir Faizov, Moscow City Courts announced via Telegram.

All four are from Tajikistan, a former Soviet republic, and have been in Russia on either temporary or expired visas.  

The court held closed hearings for each of the accused with no members of the public allowed, TASS reported, citing the court’s press service. 

2 defendants identified in Crocus City Hall attack

From CNN’s Masha Angelova, Michael Bodenhorst and Josh Pennington

The first defendant in the Crocus City concert hall attack case, Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, has pleaded guilty on all counts, the press service of Moscow City Court told state media RIA Novosti.

He will be held in preventive custody at least through May 22. 

Mirzoyev is one of two defendants implicated in the attack who are facing possible life imprisonment, as reported by state media.

The suspects — Mirzoyev and Saidakrami Rachabalizoda — appeared in a Moscow court on Sunday on charges related to the attack.

Both individuals are accused of committing a terrorist act and could be sentenced to life imprisonment, according to state media outlet RIA Novosti. The prosecution has requested detention as a precautionary measure for both defendants.

Authorities have petitioned the court to conduct Mirzoyev's hearing behind closed doors to safeguard the integrity of the proceedings, state media news agency TASS reported. 

First suspect apprehended in the Crocus City Hall attack arrives in court

From CNN’s Masha Angelova

The first suspect apprehended after the attack on Crocus City Hall that killed at least 137 people has arrived in court at the Basmanny Court of Moscow. 

Crocus City Hall killings are deadliest since Beslan school siege — these are some other recent attacks in Russia

From CNN Staff

The attack on Moscow's popular Crocus City Hall that left at least 133 dead has become the deadliest attack in Russia since the Beslan school siege in 2004.

Some other recent attacks include:

• September 26, 2022 : Eleven children and four adults were killed when a gunman wearing Nazi symbols opened fire at a school in the western Russian city of Izhevsk. The shooter, who was reportedly wearing a black T-shirt with Nazi insignia and a helmet, died by suicide following the attack.
• April 3, 2017 : At least 11 people were killed in a blast on the St. Petersburg metro. The explosion tore through a train as it was traveling between two stations in Russia’s second-largest city.
• October 31, 2015 : A Russian passenger jet, Metrojet Flight 9268 crashed  on October 31 after departing from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh,  killing all 224 people  on board. US intelligence analysis suggested that ISIS or its affiliates  planted a bomb on the plane .
• December 30, 2013 : A massive explosion at a train station in the Russian city of Volgograd killed at least 16 people, including one police officer, the Investigative Committee of Russia said.
• January 25, 2011 : A suicide bomber attacked Domodedovo Airport , Moscow's busiest airport, killing 35 people and wounding about 100, authorities and state television said.
• March 29, 2010 : Two explosions rocked the subway stations in central  Moscow during rush hour, killing at least 38 people and wounding more than 60 others, spawning widespread public outrage. A website associated with Chechen separatists, who have long fought for independence from Russia, claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Rescuers, robotic systems and canine teams are currently on site of Crocus City concert hall

From CNN’s Darya Tarasova and Eve Brennan

More than 300 “specialists” and 154 pieces of equipment are currently on site at the Crocus City concert hall in Krasnogorsk, Moscow region, where a deadly attack took place Friday , Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations said on Telegram on Sunday.

The ministry said more than 400 cubic meters of structures had been dismantled by rescuers while specialized robotic systems, canine teams and psychologists from the ministry continue to work.

More than 1,600 calls have already been received on the department’s hotline, the ministry added.

The post was accompanied by a video showing dozens of emergency workers digging through the rubble of the partially burned-down concert hall.

Remember : At least 137 people died on Friday after attackers opened fire on civilians at the Crocus City concert hall, and set the building ablaze. The Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, has claimed the attack and  released graphic footage  purporting to show the incident. 

Putin lit a candle in memory of victims of the concert hall attack

From CNN's Eve Brennan and Anna Chernova

Russian President Vladimir Putin lit a candle Sunday in memory of victims of the deadly attack at the Crocus City concert hall in Moscow region on Friday.

Putin also expressed deep condolences following the Moscow shooting, calling it a "barbaric terrorist act" in a video statement released Saturday.

More background: The deadly attack comes barely a week after Putin secured his fifth presidential term. The large-scale attack is damaging for a leader who portrays himself as someone able to guarantee order.

Death toll in concert hall attack rises to 137 — including 3 children, Russian Investigative Committee says

From CNN's Darya Tarasova 

The Russian Investigative Committee has updated the death toll in the Crocus City attack to 137.

In a statement released online, the committee said "the bodies of 137 people have been found at the site of the terrorist attack, three of which are children."

The committee added that 62 bodies have been identified so far. 

"For the remaining victims, genetic examinations are being carried out to establish their identities," the statement said. "The investigation of the crime scene continues." 

Russian Embassy in US says it did not receive notification of impending terrorist attack

From CNN’s Katya Krebs in Moscow and Eve Brennan in London

The Russian Embassy in Washington says it did not receive any warnings about a potential terror attack in Moscow from the US, Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti on Sunday.

The US diplomatic mission had warned Americans to “avoid large gatherings” at the beginning of March due to reports “that extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow.”

Earlier this week Putin had dismissed those warnings, telling the FSB that the embassy warnings were "provocative" and "outright blackmail."

“We did not receive any notifications or messages in advance,” Antonov told RIA.

“We paid attention to this, but,… I had no contacts with either the White House or the State Department on this issue,” he added.

In light of Friday’s attack at Crocus, Antonov told RIA Novosti that contacts between the US and the Russian Federation in the fight against terrorism have been “destroyed,” adding that the fault was not Moscow’s.

“I always reminded the Americans that our president was the first who, in 2001, extended his hand to the Americans and declared his readiness to provide help. And something worked, it worked... and it’s not our fault that all of this has been destroyed today,” he said.

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Red Square & Moscow City Tour

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Description

Highlights:.

• Experience medieval Kitay Gorod (China town).
• Wander picturesque Red Square and Alexander Garden.
• Explore grand Christ the Savior Cathedral on our Red Square tour.
• Breathtaking panoramic views from Patriarch bridge.
• Enjoy a hearty lunch on the large open verandah and marvel at the stunning views of the Kremlin.
• Learn about Russian culture from the local through relaxed cultural discussions.

Tour Itinerary:

Red square:.

Russia and Moscow are synonymous with Red Square and the Kremlin and that's hardly surprising as you'll find these places absolutely stunning!

• - Walk-through the Resurrection Gate and don’t forget to flip a coin so you’ll be sure to come back one day!
• - Visit the world's famous Kazan Cathedral .
• - See the State Department Store (GUM), once the Upper Trading Stalls, which were built over a century ago and still operating!
• - Admire the lovely St. Basil's Cathedral! The French diplomat Marquis de Custine commented that it combined "the scales of a golden fish, the enamelled skin of a serpent, the changeful hues of the lizard, the glossy rose and azure of the pigeon's neck" and wondered at "the men who go to worship God in this box of confectionery work".
• - Walk by Lobnoye Mesto (literally meaning "Execution Place", or "Place of Skulls"), once Ivan the Terrible's stage for religious ceremonies, speeches, and important events.
• - Entering the Alexander Garden , you’ll take in spectacular views of Russian architecture from ancient to Soviet times, as well as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with an eternal flame. Watch Changing of the Guard Ceremony every hour in summer and every half an hour in winter.

Kitai-gorod:

Stroll along medieval Kitai-gorod with its strong ancient Russia feel, known for its bohemian lifestyle, markets and arts.

• - Nikolskaya Street. Here you will find the Russia's first publishing house, the second oldest monastery, and Ferryn Pharmacy, known as the number one pharmacy back in Soviet times and famous for its Empire-style architecture.
• - Ilinka Street. The financial street of the Kitaigorod (China Town) district, where you’ll find the Gostiny Dvor (Merchant’s Yard), which is now a showroom for Ferraris and Maseratis. The street was designed in the 1790s by Catherine the Great.
• - Varvarka street. The oldest street in Moscow, which dates back to the 14th century, and still has remnants of early Muscovite architecture, such as the Old English Court and the Palace of the Romanov’s.
• - Kamergersky Lane. Only a small road of about 250 meters, it is home to some of the oldest artifacts of the city, as each building holds a fascinating story. Some of Russia's most famous writers, poets, and composers from as far back as the Golden Age of Russian culture, have lived or worked on this lane.

Historic City Center

Walk the historical old center of Moscow with its cool local vibe, including the main Tverskaya street , and indulge in desserts in the first grocery “Eliseev's store” , housed in an 18th century neoclassical building, famous for its baroque interior and decoration.

From our tour. Impressions of our American tourist:

At 3:30, as energy flagged, lunch was on the agenda at a Ukrainian restaurant.  Just in time!  We asked our guide to order for us.  We all had the same thing....borscht (the Ukrainian version has beans and more tomatoes than the Russian version, which has more beets and includes beef). 

The special high bread served is called galushki.  Our main course was golubtsy...a dish of minced meat rolled in braised cabbage leaves.  Both dishes called for optional sour cream as a topping....of course, yes, please....I recommend it. 

Full, satisfied, and completely refreshed, it was off to Red Square and St. Basil's and GUM department store.  Red Square is not so named because of the color of the brick walls of the Kremlin.  Rather the word for 'red' and the word for 'beautiful' are similar in pronunciation....and, there you have it. 

As we made the turn by the National Museum in front of which is the mounted sculpture of the "Marshall of Victory," Giorgy Zhukov from WWII and caught our first view of St. Basil's, my friend and I simultaneously emitted "Oooohhhhh!"  There it was....the iconic onion domes of St. Basil's!  Hooray....it was open until 7....we had about 30 minutes and were allowed in, AND we could take photos with no flash. 

Now, I can give you a taste of what we saw in the other cathedrals in Cathedral Square.  What we learned is that St. Vasily and St. Basil are one in the same....Russian/English.  He was a common man who wandered Moscow unclothed and barefoot.  But, all, even Ivan the Terrible, heeded his opinions derived from his visions.  Ivan had this cathedral built over his tomb. 

As we exited and took photos up close of the onion domes, Inna presented us with chocolate (how did she know we were ready for another energy boost, and we each got a big piece of chocolate.  The baby's name pictured on the wrapper of this famous Russian chocolate is Alyonka....the Russian Gerber baby, don't you think? 

One could wear out the credit card in GUM's (capitalized because it is actually a government abbreviation), but the 'kitty' and my credit card stayed in my pocket as we strolled through the glass-topped arcade. 

We then strolled through some of Moscow's lovely pedestrian streets; paused to listen as a wonderful quartet performed Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" in an underground passage to cross the busy street (hooray!....we DID have our 'classical concert' experience after all; a request Alina tried in vain to fill because none was scheduled those days), saw the Bolshoi, which means 'big' (my friend has yet to recover that their performance schedule did not coincide with our cruise), saw the Central Telegraph Building, dating from the 1930's, and made our way to the Ritz-Carlton to see the night view of Moscow from the rooftop bar, called O2. 

There were fleece blankets to wrap yourself in....yes, it got that cold when the sun set.  We each ordered something hot to drink...the ginger, mint, lemon tea served to me in a parfait glass (for 600 rubles...about $9....you pay for the view here!) was delightful and hit the spot perfectly.  It was time to call it a night....

What you get:

• + A friend in Moscow.
• + Private & customized Moscow tour.
• + An exciting city tour, not just boring history lessons.
• + An authentic experience of local life.
• + Flexibility during the tour: changes can be made at any time to suit individual preferences.
• + Amazing deals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the very best cafes & restaurants. Discounts on weekdays (Mon-Fri).
• + A photo session amongst spectacular Moscow scenery that can be treasured for a lifetime.
• + Good value for souvenirs, taxis, and hotels.
• + Expert advice on what to do, where to go, and how to make the most of your time.

*This Moscow city tour can be modified to meet your requirements.

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Meet Moscow’s Take On The Twisting Tower: Evolution Tower

Evolution Tower is a twisting 255 meter tall skyscraper located in ‘Moscow City’, Moscow, an initiative by the Russian government to create a new business district on an old industrial site. The twisting tower provides approximately 85,000 m² of retail and leisure facilities and 85,000 m² of offices and public functions. It is the twelfth tallest building in Russia and the 20 th tallest in Europe.

 The dramatic form of the tower was designed by architects RMJM in collaboration with Scottish artist Karen Forbes. The double helix DNA inspired form has become an iconic landmark in the Moscow skyline, as the city has never been known for its skyscrapers or architectural identity. The form is also reminiscent of two ribbons wrapping around each other. Each of the 51 floors of the tower is rotated 3 degrees relative to the previous one, so the building is “swirled” by more than 150 degrees. In this way, the central core and eight columns with 15-meter spans between the axes remain strictly vertical all the way up. The spiral geometry is repeated only by four corners of the building. The top of the tower is crowned with two asymmetric “arches” spanning 41 m, visually uniting the two opposite facades.

The facade of the tower boasts a near complete covering of LED lights, this media façade is the largest in all of Asia. The scale and the form of the building made the installation and management of the LED system quite a challenge, thus the building also boasts one of the most sophisticated lighting management and control systems on the planet.

The plot covers an area of 2.55 hectares, of which most are landscaped into a terrace while the rest is used for the tower. The tower and the terrace are built on a three-level stylobate designated the Evolution Gallery with an area of 28,000 square metres (300,000 sq ft). There are exits from the tower that lead directly to the nearby metro station. This podium features a shopping mall and the roof is landscaped to provide additional space for users to unwind in the midst of fountains, terraces and cafes, thus providing a strong connection with the larger urban sphere.

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Advertisement

Ships fooled in GPS spoofing attack suggest Russian cyberweapon

By David Hambling

10 August 2017

GPS signals of 20 ships in the Black Sea were hacked to indicate they were 32km inland

plainpicture/Tilby Vattard

Reports of satellite navigation problems in the Black Sea suggest that Russia may be testing a new system for spoofing GPS, New Scientist has learned. This could be the first hint of a new form of electronic warfare available to everyone from rogue nation states to petty criminals.

On 22 June, the US Maritime Administration filed a seemingly bland incident report. The master of a ship off the Russian port of Novorossiysk had discovered his GPS put him in the wrong spot – more than 32 kilometres inland, at Gelendzhik Airport.

After checking the navigation equipment was working properly, the captain contacted other nearby ships. Their AIS traces – signals from the automatic identification system used to track vessels – placed them all at the same airport. At least 20 ships were affected .

While the incident is not yet confirmed, experts think this is the first documented use of GPS misdirection – a spoofing attack that has long been warned of but never been seen in the wild.

Read more: “I’m alarmed at how much infrastructure is open to online attack”

Until now, the biggest worry for GPS has been it can be jammed by masking the GPS satellite signal with noise. While this can cause chaos, it is also easy to detect. GPS receivers sound an alarm when they lose the signal due to jamming. Spoofing is more insidious: a false signal from a ground station simply confuses a satellite receiver. “Jamming just causes the receiver to die, spoofing causes the receiver to lie,” says consultant David Last , former president of the UK’s Royal Institute of Navigation.

Todd Humphreys , of the University of Texas at Austin, has been warning of the coming danger of GPS spoofing for many years. In 2013, he showed how a superyacht with state-of-the-art navigation could be lured off-course by GPS spoofing. “The receiver’s behaviour in the Black Sea incident was much like during the controlled attacks my team conducted,” says Humphreys.

Humphreys thinks this is Russia experimenting with a new form of electronic warfare. Over the past year, GPS spoofing has been causing chaos for the receivers on phone apps in central Moscow to misbehave . The scale of the problem did not become apparent until people began trying to play Pokemon Go. The fake signal, which seems to centre on the Kremlin, relocates anyone nearby to Vnukovo Airport , 32 km away. This is probably for defensive reasons; many NATO guided bombs, missiles and drones rely on GPS navigation, and successful spoofing would make it impossible for them to hit their targets.

But now the geolocation interference is being used far away from the Kremlin. Some worry that this means that spoofing is getting easier. GPS spoofing previously required considerable technical expertise. Humphreys had to build his first spoofer from scratch in 2008, but notes that it can now be done with commercial hardware and software downloaded from the Internet.

Nor does it require much power. Satellite signals are very weak – about 20 watts from 20,000 miles away – so a one-watt transmitter on a hilltop, plane or drone is enough to spoof everything out to the horizon.

If the hardware and software are becoming more accessible, nation states soon won’t be the only ones using the technology. This is within the scope of any competent hacker . There have not yet been any authenticated reports of criminal spoofing, but it should not be difficult for criminals to use it to divert a driverless vehicle or drone delivery, or to hijack an autonomous ship. Spoofing will give everyone affected the same location, so a hijacker would just need a short-ranged system to affect one vehicle.

But Humphreys believes that spoofing by a state operator is the more serious threat. “It affects safety-of-life operations over a large area,” he says. “In congested waters with poor weather, such as the English Channel, it would likely cause great confusion, and probably collisions.”

Last says that the Black Sea incident suggests a new device capable of causing widespread disruption, for example, if used in the ongoing dispute with Ukraine. “My gut feeling is that this is a test of a system which will be used in anger at some other time.”

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