USS Tazewell (APA-209)

USS "Tazewell" (APA/LPA-209) was a of the US Navy. She was of the VC2-S-AP5 Victory ship design type. "Tazewell" was named for Tazewell County, Illinois and Tazewell County, Virginia.
Construction.
"Tazewell" was laid down on 2 June 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 557, by Permanente Metals Corporation, Yard No. 2, Richmond, California; launched on 22 August 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Samuel I. Rosenman; and commissioned on 25 October 1944, Commander Herbert S. Olsen, USNR, in command.
Service history.
World War II.
Following her shakedown cruise in the San Pedro-San Diego, California, area, "Tazewell" arrived at Seattle, Washington, on Christmas Day 1944, and began loading troops and supplies. On 2 January 1945, the transport got underway for Hawaii where she embarked garrison troops for the Palau Islands and steamed onward. She arrived off Peleliu on 31 January. After offloading all cargo and debarking the troops, she joined a Philippine-bound convoy which sortied for Leyte on 6 February, and arrived in San Pedro Bay three days later.
Invasion of Okinawa.
"Tazewell" was assigned to Transport Squadron 17, which became a unit of Task Group 51.1 for the Okinawa invasion. The transport loaded troops and supplies and participated in amphibious training exercises for the forthcoming operation. On 21 March, the task group sortied for Kerama Retto and arrived off that island on the morning of 26 March. All boats were lowered into the water at 05:30, and the assault troops stormed ashore at 08:00. They met almost no opposition but the ships came under air attack shortly after 06:30 and were forced to remain at general quarters all day.
The task group was steaming in night retirement on 3 April, when it was ordered to proceed to a waiting area approximately southeast of Okinawa. It arrived there on 4 April, and remained until 13 April. "Tazewell" and six other APA's left the formation that morning and returned to Hagushi Anchorage, Okinawa, the next day. On the morning of 16 April, the transport got underway for Ie Shima and, at 06:10, launched her boats for the beaches. She departed at 16:00 that afternoon but returned the next day to complete unloading her cargo.
Rescue of survivors.
At 22:00 hours on 27 April, a kamikaze plane crashed a liberty ship some off "Tazewell"s port bow. "Tazewell" promptly lowered her outboard boats to pick up survivors from the ship which sank in eight minutes. Since many other boats were also in the water, "Tazewell"s boats picked up only seven survivors whom they took to the hospital ship . The other boats rescued many more survivors, minimizing the loss of life.
Transport missions.
On 30 April, "Tazewell" received orders to proceed to the Mariana Islands, and she arrived at Saipan on 5 May. On 22 May, she stood out of Saipan en route to the United States and arrived at San Francisco on 6 June. Two days later, she moved up the coast to Seattle for a three-week yard availability period. She departed Seattle on 27 June, bound for the Marianas, and arrived at Tinian on 14 July. By the next morning, the attack transport had debarked all her troops and had unloaded her cargo. She shifted to Saipan that afternoon.
After hostilities.
On 16 July, the ship sailed independently for the West Coast, and she arrived at San Francisco 14 days later. Hostilities with Japan ended while the transport was in dry dock at San Pedro; but, when the ship was ready for sea, she was ordered to the Philippine Islands.
"Tazewell" arrived at Manila on 18 September, and waited four days for orders to unload. On 22 September, she was routed to Lingayen Gulf where she debarked passengers and unloaded cargo. The ship returned to Manila on 24 September; loaded cargo and 8th Army troops; joined Transport Squadron 19 at Legaspi Harbor on 2 October; and sortied for Japan two days later.
Operation Magic Carpet.
"Tazewell" remained at Yokohama for 12 days before moving to Sasebo where she embarked approximately 500 marines of the 5th Marine Division to be returned to the United States. She arrived at San Francisco on 9 November, and disembarked her passengers.
"Tazewell" sailed for the Philippines again on 24 November, to pick up a capacity load of veterans eligible for discharge. She loaded troops at Manila and Subic Bay. The transport began her return voyage on 17 December, and arrived at San Francisco on 5 January 1946. She subsequently made round-trip voyages to Yokosuka to return servicemen to the United States. Upon her arrival at San Francisco on 9 August, from the last of these runs, she was assigned to the Pacific Reserve Fleet there for inactivation.
Decommission.
"Tazewell" was decommissioned at San Francisco on 27 December 1946, and remained in reserve for the next 12 years. "Tazewell" was transferred to the Maritime Administration (MARAD) on 25 September 1958, and moved to the Astoria Reserve Fleet, Astoria, Oregon. She was struck from the Navy List on 1 October 1958. She was removed from Astoria, 15 September 1967, due to the closing of this Reserve Fleet, on 18 September 1967, she entered the Olympia Reserve Fleet, Olympia, Washington. "Tazewell" was again move 13 April 1972, this time to the Bremerton Reserve Fleet, Bremerton, Washington. On 11 December 1972, she was sold to Zidell Explorations, Inc., of Portland, Oregon, for $51,000, under a Non-transportation use (NTU) contract to be scrapped.
Awardss.
"Tazewell" received one battle star for World War II service.
Bibliography.
Online resources
External links.


Tokio Express

Tokio Express was a container ship, built and registered in Hamburg in 1973 for Hapag-Lloyd. In 1984 she was renamed "Scandutch Edo" before being acquired by Pol Gulf International in 1993 and restored to her original name. In 1997, she was acquired by Westwind International and in 1999, by Falani, before being broken up for scrap in 2000.
"Tokio Express" is best known for being hit by a rogue wave on 13 February 1997 that caused her to lose cargo, including one cargo container loaded with 4.8 million pieces of Lego. Ever since, Lego pieces including octopuses, dragons, flippers and flowers have been washing up on Cornwall beaches and are commonly found after storms.
The ship.
"Tokio Express" was one of four "Trio" class container ships built for Hapag-Lloyd by Blohm + Voss in the early 1970s. These were all 3,000-TEU class ships. The first of these was "Hamburg Express", which was followed by "Bremen Express", "Tokio Express" and finally "Hongkong Express".
The ships were originally powered by twin-screw. During the 1980s they all underwent a refit that included single screw propulsion, while retaining one of the turbines.
After changing hands several times as Hapag-Lloyd upgraded their fleet, "Tokio Express" was eventually scrapped in 2000. The name has since been re-used for a similar sized but much more modern container ship, launched in 2000.
Accident.
While en route from Rotterdam to New York City on 13 February 1997, "Tokio Express" was hit by a rogue wave about off Land's End. She tilted 60 degrees one way, then 40 degrees back, losing 62 containers overboard. She put in at Southampton for attention after the accident.
One of the lost containers held just under 5 million Lego pieces. Coincidentally, a large portion of these were destined for toy kits depicting sea adventures, in lines including Lego Pirates and Lego Aquazone. Among the pieces were 418,000 swimming flippers, 97,500 scuba tanks, 26,600 life preservers, 13,000 spear guns, and 4,200 octopuses. Sea grass, cutlasses and dragons were also well-represented.
Since the accident, residents in Cornwall have found octopuses, dragons, diver flippers and pieces of sea grass washed ashore. Pieces may have travelled much further; a Dutch shipping clerk started an inventory which now has active participants in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas looking for the arrival of more pieces.


Conquest-class cruise ship

The "Conquest" class is a class of cruise ships owned by Carnival Cruise Lines, a subdivision of the Carnival Corporation. The "Conquest" design is an original Carnival design, based on the "Destiny" class. The "Conquest"-class design was modified from the "Destiny"-class design by lengthening the ship by around 59 feet which expanded most of the facilities, added a restaurant above the lido deck and increased the number of passenger cabins. The public rooms in both classes are very similar structurally but vary in decor, with room names that match the ship's theme.
Naming.
This class features patriotic-themed names, reflecting their order and construction following the September 11 attacks in the United States.


SS American Victory

SS "American Victory" is a Victory ship which saw brief service in the Pacific Theater of Operations during the final months of World War II, Korean War from 1951–1954, and Vietnam War from 1967–1969. Built in June 1945, she carried ammunition and other cargo from U.S. West Coast ports to Southeast Asia, then ferried cargo, equipment and troops back to the U.S. after the war ended. She survived two typhoons and one hurricane. She sailed around the world twice.
"American Victory" spent half of the period between 1946 and 1966 chartered to commercial carriers and the other half in two stints in U.S. reserve fleets. From 1966 to 1969 she delivered cargo to Southeast Asia in the Vietnam War, then three decades again in reserve.
In April 1999, she was turned over to a preservation organization to serve as a museum ship. Today she is the main feature of the American Victory Ship & Museum, also known as the American Victory Mariners Memorial & Museum Ship in Tampa, Florida's, Channel District.
History.
World War II era.
Named after the American University in Washington, D.C., the ship was built at the California Shipbuilding Yard (Calship) in Los Angeles, California in just 55 days and was delivered to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) on 20 June 1945. "American Victory", a United States Merchant Marine ship, was operated for WSA under a general agency agreement by Hammond Shipping Company, Ltd. She loaded Army cargo at Fort Mason then took on cargo at Los Angeles and other west coast ports before steaming to Manila in the Philippines. Manila had been liberated on 3 March 1945, and was in need of supplies. She took her remaining cargo to Shanghai, China.
In November 1945, "American Victory" sailed to Calcutta and Port Said, Egypt, and loaded military cargo to be returned to the USA. She arrived in New York in January 1946, and unloaded her cargo, having completed her around the world trip. At the end of the war she ferried more cargo, equipment and troops stateside.
Post-World War II.
From 29 June 1946 until November 1947, "American Victory" was bareboat chartered by American Export Lines. The ship was engaged in carrying foodstuffs and machinery exported from the United States to Europe, Russia, and the Near East under the Marshall Plan, the Post-War reconstruction of the European Continent. Some of her Ports of call were: Trieste, in Italy, Constanza, in Romania, Piraeus, in Greece, and Antwerp, in Belgium. Departing Odessa, Ukraine, to Boston, in January 1947, the Black Sea had already iced up, not waiting for the Soviet icebreaker "Turgenev" to clear the ice, Captain, A. D. Cushman, knowing "American Victory" decided to use her as an icebreaker, backing up and ramming the ice so both her and other ships could depart the Black Sea. She was then laid up in the Hudson River Reserve Fleet until she was again chartered by commercial shipping lines, U.S. Navigation Company, during the Korean War, from 1951 until January 1954, when she entered the Sabine River Reserve Fleet in Texas.
In 1963, plans were made to convert "American Victory" and 14 other ships in her class to "forward depot" vessels, to be loaded with materiel and stationed near potential flashpoints to provide American forces with pre-positioned supplies. This scheme was cancelled in February 1966, after only three conversions had been carried out. Had "American Victory" been converted, she would have been renamed USNS "Carthage" and assigned pennant AG 185.
"American Victory" was removed from the reserve fleet in 1966, and chartered to the Hudson Waterways Corporation who used her to ferry military equipment to American forces in South Vietnam. She was deactivated again in October 1969, and placed in the James River Reserve Fleet in Lees Hall, Virginia, where she remained until 1985. "American Victory" was then renovated as part of a program to determine the efforts needed to reactivate mothballed Victory ships. In June, after US$2.5 million had been spent to bring her up to fully operational condition, she sailed for just 26 hours before returning to the Naval Reserve Fleet.
Today.
One of several World War II Victory ships due to be scrapped in the late 1990s, "American Victory" was rescued by preservation efforts which began in October 1998. She arrived at Tampa, Florida, under tow to begin her new life as a museum ship and memorial on 16 September 1999.
Following extensive overhaul with the ship brought to Fully Operational status in 2003, she is now on display and included on the National Register of Historic Places. Guided and self-guided tours of the ship are available, though some areas are off-limits for tours, such as the lower areas of the engine room (but visible from a catwalk), and the wheelhouse of the command bridge, as well as the cargo hold next to the receptionist desk. Photos of her drydock restoration are hanging in the mess hall. Several rooms, such as the captain's quarters and galley cold storage, have been restored and are decorated in original period memorabilia.
"American Victory" has been upgraded with modern VHF radio and radar (visible on the command deck). More modern electronics have been added to the electricians' quarters and radio room, "Victory" is generally in her historic form, her bow mounted deck gun is still in place as well as the stern gun and another 3-inch gun next to it.
"American Victory" is a fully operational, seaworthy vessel which usually carries out two cruises a year, however, none were scheduled for 2015 due to costs. On 10 June 2015, the U.S. Coast Guard performed a safety inspection of the ship.
In addition to her floating museum role, "American Victory" still sails for "Living History Day Cruises".
Of the 534 Victory ships completed, only three remain working: "American Victory" at Tampa, at Los Angeles, and at Richmond, California. Until November 2012, a fourth, USNS "Range Sentinel", originally , was in storage, but she was sold for scrapping.
The ship is also used as an operating base for a local United States Naval Sea Cadet Corps unit.
Exhibits.
The ship has many notable exhibits in the No.3 cargo hold, which was converted to a museum exhibit area and receptionist desk. It includes an original submarine propeller from the , sunk in May 1942, by the U.S. Coast Guard cutter , and recovered in 1979. It includes photos of the shipwreck, a mannequin of a "Kriegsmarine" sailor in uniform, and a diagram of . She also has numerous ship models, including a , a , a German Type XXI U-boat, and .
There are also numerous vintage Merchant Marine recruiting posters, and a collection of Victory and Liberty ship's plaques, all of them sunk or scrapped. They date from 1844 to 1956. There is also a mock-up of the ships wheelhouse, and a lifeboat and Maritime Signal Flag exhibit.


SS Furnifold M. Simmons

SS "Furnifold M. Simmons" (MC contract 888) was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Furnifold McLendel Simmons, a politician from North Carolina responsible for the disenfranchisement of African-American voters in that state, as well as head of a Democratic Party political machine until his death in 1940.
The ship was laid down by North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in their Cape Fear River yard on January 13, 1943, and launched on February 10, 1943. "Simmons" was chartered to R.A. Nicol and Company by the War Shipping Administration until her sale to Maersk in 1947.
Cuban Convoy Attacked.
On March 10, 1943 "Simmons" was loaded with explosives for Karachi, Pakistan as part of a Key West, Florida to Guantanamo Naval Base KG convoy escorted by United States Navy and Royal Canadian Navy vessels that was attacked by German submarine U-185. The tanker "SS Virginia Sinclair" had been sunk on March 9 when the U-185 returned and torpedoed the ammunition carrying "SS James Sprunt". Flaming debris struck several vessels including the "Simmons", causing part of her crew to abandon ship.
Refloating the "SS Fairisle".
On August 29, 1946 the "Simmons" was unloading cargo in Calcutta when she was sent to the aid of a stranded vessel, the "SS Fairisle", that had grounded due to a navigational error. Reaching the scene of August 31, the crew spent five days attempting to put cables between the two vessels to pull the "Fairisle" off. The attempt succeeded on September 5, only after part of the "Simmons" crew had been forced onto the beach when their small boat overturned. Four officers and twenty-seven men sought compensation for their efforts in court from the Waterman Steamship Corporation and were eventually awarded a sum each.
Mærsk ownership.
"Simmons" was purchased by A.P. Møller in 1947 from the War Shipping Administration. At one point she was renamed "Ellen Mærsk", then in 1948 "Hada County", and finally in 1952 "Comet". She was scrapped in 1968.
Awards.
The "Simmons"' Naval Armed Guard detachment received one battle star for World War II service during the invasion of Southern France.


SS Esek Hopkins

SS "Esek Hopkins" was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Esek Hopkins, the only Commander in Chief of the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War. He was also an accomplished merchant captain and privateer. He is noted for his successful raid on the British port of Providence, in the Bahamas, and capturing large stores of military supplies.
Construction.
"Esek Hopkins" was laid down on 28 January 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 34, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; and was launched on 27 April 1942.
History.
She was allocated to Moore-McCormack Lines, Inc., on 23 May 1942. On 17 May 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama. On 27 April 1967, she was sold for scrapping to Union Minerals & Alloys Corp., for $45,501. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 13 May 1967.
Bibliography.


German Type Large MS submarine

The German Type Large MS Submarine was intended for deep sea usage and was very seaworthy, relatively comfortable and had average maneuverability.


Ethan Allen-class submarine

The "Ethan Allen" class of fleet ballistic missile submarine was an evolutionary development from the "George Washington" class. The "Ethan Allen", together with the , , , and classes comprised the "41 for Freedom" that were the Navy's main contribution to the nuclear deterrent force through the late 1980s.
Design.
Rather than being designed as attack submarines with a missile compartment added, the "Ethan Allen"s were the first submarines designed "from the keel up" as Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) submarines carrying the Polaris A-2 missile. They were functionally similar to the "George Washington"s, but longer and more streamlined and with torpedo tubes reduced to four. In the early and mid-1970s, they were upgraded to Polaris A3s. Because their missile tubes could not be modified to carry the larger diameter Poseidon missile, they were not further upgraded.
Conversions.
To comply with SALT II treaty limitations as the ballistic missile submarines entered service, in the early 1980s the "Ethan Allen"s were refitted and officially designated SSNs (fast attack submarines), but often referred to as a "slow approach". Their missile fire control systems were removed and the missile tubes were filled with concrete. "Sam Houston" and "John Marshall" were further converted to carry SEALs or other Special Operations Forces, accommodating 67 troops each with dry deck shelters to accommodate SEAL Delivery Vehicles or other equipment. The "Ethan Allen"-class submarines were decommissioned between 1983 and 1992.
All were disposed of through the nuclear Ship-Submarine Recycling Program 1992-1999.
Boats in class.
Submarines of the "Ethan Allen" class:


AIDAbella

AIDAbella is a cruise ship operated by AIDA Cruises. Built at Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, she is a sister ship to "AIDAdiva" and "AIDAluna". The ship has a passenger capacity of over 2,050. The name "AIDAbella" was chosen after a competition to name the new ship. The name was meant to signify how beautiful the ship is.
Facilities.
The ship has 1,025 passenger cabins. There is a nude sunbathing area towards the rear of the ship. Amidships is a circular, glass-walled, and roofed Theatrium in the center of the ship.


Maersk V-class container ship

The Maersk V class is a series of 7 container ships built for Maersk Line. They were the largest container ships with ice class 1A when they were built. The ships were built by COSCO Zhoushan Shipyard in China and have a maximum theoretical capacity of around 3,600 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU).


SS Rotterdam

The fifth SS "Rotterdam", also known as "The Grande Dame", is a former ocean liner and cruise ship, and has been a hotel ship in Rotterdam, Netherlands since 2010. She was launched by Queen Juliana of the Netherlands in a gala ceremony on 13 September 1958, and was completed the following summer.
The "Rotterdam" was the last great Dutch "ship of state", employing the finest artisans from the Netherlands in her construction and fitting out process. Her career spanned forty-one years. She sailed from 1959 until her final retirement in September 2000.
Concept and design.
Originally she was conceived as a running mate to the popular launched in 1937, but work was put on hold at the outbreak of World War II in Europe. When economic conditions once again became favorable for completion of the new ship in early 1954, the beginning of the end of ocean liners as basic transport was visible on the horizon.
The designers took this in mind and created a groundbreaking vessel, a two class, horizontally divided ship with movable partitions and a unique double staircase allowing for easy conversion to cruising. The christening and launch on September 13, 1958 by Queen Juliana was a huge crowd puller, with tens of thousands on both banks of the river. "Rotterdam"'s machinery was shifted aft, to the now-traditional two thirds aft position, and in lieu of a funnel twin uptake pipes were fitted.
To provide balance, a large deckhouse was built atop the superstructure in the midships position of a typical funnel. While very controversial at the time, her appearance became groundbreaking, and her then unique design features can be found on cruise ships today.
History.
As the "Rotterdam".
Her sea trials and handing over to Holland America Line took place on July 20, 1959, just a few months before her maiden crossing of the Atlantic. On her maiden voyage she carried the then Crown Princess of the Netherlands to New York.
Due to the growing popularity of air travel, an increasing number of transatlantic liners began to disappear from service. This trend led to the Rotterdam's permanent retirement from transatlantic service in 1969. Subsequently, she received a small refit for permanent cruising and began her new life as a full time cruise ship. The "Rotterdam" also became a one class ship after this refit.
She became increasingly popular throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, with mostly American and Australian passengers. Another refit in 1977 saw her passenger capacity decreased from 1,499 to 1,144. By the 1980s the ship had settled into a routine of winters in the Caribbean and summers in Alaska, with the occasional (and very popular) world cruise. Carnival Cruise Lines took over Holland America Line in 1989.
She remained in service until 1997, when Carnival announced, much to the dismay of the ship's loyal fans, that to upgrade her to meet the new 1997 SOLAS regulations would cost 40 million dollars. Carnival had been opting to retire what they had supposedly called the "old ship." A replacement, the sixth "Rotterdam", was ordered from Fincantieri shipyards in Italy. A gala finale cruise ended her final season on September 30, 1997.
As the "Rembrandt".
She was sold to Premier Cruises and renamed SS "Rembrandt". Controversially Premier was able to refit the "Rembrandt" for new safety regulations as well as many other things for half the amount Carnival had predicted.
She sailed for Premier along with the ex ocean liners "Oceanic", "Eugenio C" and "Transvaal Castle", all now named "Big Red Boat" "I", "II" and "III". She continued to serve as a fairly popular cruise ship out of Port Canaveral, Florida until September 13, 2000, when Premier Cruises shut down.
It was midnight when this was made official and the captain of the "Rembrandt" was ordered to dock in Halifax, Nova Scotia and offload all. She was subsequently placed under arrest by the Halifax Sheriff's department until the next morning, then days later she sailed to be laid up in Freeport, Bahamas.
Restoration and hotel opening.
On July 12, 2004, she arrived at Gibraltar for asbestos encapsulation and removal performed by the Cuddy Group of the UK. She next visited Cadiz where her hull was repainted its original Holland America grey, and then moved on to Poland and Germany for final restoration. She returned to the city of Rotterdam on August 8, 2008.
She opened to the public on February 15, 2010 as a combination museum/hotel and school for vocational training. On 12 June 2013, she was sold to WestCord Hotels, which also owns the Hotel New York located in the former Holland America Line headquarters building in Rotterdam.


MS Stalowa Wola

The MS "Stalowa Wola", ex "Henry Horn", ex "Pine Court", ex "Rio Pardo", was a Polish freighter during the Second World War. The ship was bought in Norway by Gdynia America Line; originally she was to be called "Bogumin", finally was named after a city in central Poland, by then a newly built centre of heavy industry.
Capitulation of France found the ship in Dakar. Commanded by captain Strzembosz, she escaped on July 5th 1940, although challenged by the shore defences. Afterwards, till the end of World War II "Stalowa Wola" participated in over 40 Atlantic convoys. Returned to Poland after the end of the war, the ship ran on lines to South America and Levant, and then was used as a tramper.
The ship sunk on 19 March 1956 during a violent storm off the coast of Spain. On March 18th "Stalowa Wola" sprung a leak and the load of iron ore she carried, turned into sludge, which movements were impossible to balance using the tanks. The crew escaped in a boat, all hands were saved by MV "Hugo Kołłątaj"; abandoned ship drifted for twelve more hours before sinking at .


HMS Spey (P234)

HMS "Spey" is a Batch 2 offshore patrol vessel of the Royal Navy. Named after the River Spey in Scotland, she is the eighth Royal Navy ship to be named "Spey" and is the fifth Batch 2 River-class vessel to commission.
Construction.
On 6 November 2013 it was announced that the Royal Navy had signed an Agreement in Principle to build three new offshore patrol vessels, based on the River-class design, at a fixed price of £348 million including spares and support. In August 2014, BAE Systems signed the contract to build the ships on the Clyde in Scotland. The Ministry of Defence stated that the Batch 2 ships are capable of being used for constabulary duties such as "counter-terrorism, counter-piracy and anti-smuggling operations". According to BAE Systems, the vessels are designed to deploy globally, conducting anti-piracy, counter-terrorism and anti-smuggling tasks currently conducted by frigates and destroyers. A £287m order, for two further ships, and "Spey", and support for all five Batch 2 ships, was announced on 8 December 2016.
Batch 2 ships such as "Spey" include some 29 modifications and enhancements over the built by BAE Systems for the Brazilian Navy. Tamar and Spey have further modifications such as carbon dioxide reducing catalytic converters.
"Spey" was formally named on 3 October 2019. She began contractor sea trials in September 2020, and after they were completed, left the Clyde on 28 October for the delivery voyage to Portsmouth. On 7 January 2021, HMS "Spey" was commissioned into the Royal Navy in Portsmouth.


MV Skorpios III

MV Skorpios III is a Chile-registered cruise ship owned and operated by Cruceros Skorpios. The Ship was built in 1995 in the Skorpios, Chile shipyard under Chilean regulations and international navigation as SOLAS and IMO. It is classified by ABS (American Bureau of Shipping), Class Nr 951.93.18, A1 ice. It was remodeled in 2012, in his hotel equipment and booths. It has a length of 70 meters, a width of 10 meters and a draft of 3.30 meters, displacing 1,600 tons with International Load Line Certificate and certificate of registration number 2869 of the Directorate General of Maritime Territory of Chile. Its capacity is up to 90 passengers, based on 45 double cabins.


W. T. Preston

W. T. Preston is a specialized sternwheeler that operated as a snagboat, removing log jams and natural debris that prevented river navigation on several Puget Sound-area rivers. She is now the centerpiece of the Snagboat Heritage Center in Anacortes, Washington. She was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989. Built in 1929, she is one of two surviving snagboats built and operated by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, and the only one on the American west coast.
History.
"W. T. Preston" operated from Olympia to Blaine, including the Skagit, Stillaguamish, and Snohomish rivers. Dead trees that reached Puget Sound often became half-submerged deadheads that could pierce the hulls of wooden vessels. The federal government began building snagboats to remove obstructions and facilitate river based commerce. "W. T. Preston" was named in honor of the only civilian engineer to work for the Army Corps of Engineers at the time of her construction in 1929. "W. T. Preston" used the main single expansion reciprocating steam engines, as well as many pumps and other hardware from her 1914 predecessor "Swinomish". The Swinomish was built to replace the earlier Skagit, the first snagboat to work the rivers of the Puget Sound.
In many respects the "W. T. Preston" is similar to the "Samson V", a former Canadian Department of Public Works snagboat now preserved as a museum in New Westminster, British Columbia. Sternwheeler machinery was simple and rugged and often outlasted the shallow-draughted hulls of the vessels. When the "Samson V" was built in 1937 it incorporated engines and a paddlewheel shaft from the "Samson II" of 1905, A-frame crane components from the "Samson III" of 1914 and the steam-winch from the "Samson IV" of 1924. Like the "W. T. Preston", the "Samson V" maintained waterways for navigation and when retired in 1980, she was the last steam-powered paddlewheeler running in Canada.
The original "W. T. Preston" was a 163-foot, wooden-hulled vessel which pulled snags, performed light dredging, and otherwise worked the waters of Puget Sound until 1939; when, the Army Corps of Engineers built a new superstructure atop a welded steel hull and transferred the stern wheel, main engines, smokestack, foredeck equipment, and other items onto the second "WT Preston". The mission of "W. T. Preston" changed throughout the years. As rivers were used less and less for transportation of goods, "W. T. Preston" began to dredge, fight fires, and perform other general work. Throughout her commission, she even retrieved a sunken military bomber, and several automobiles.
The Army Corps of Engineers operated "W. T. Preston" out of the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, in Seattle, Washington. This boat served the Puget Sound for more than forty years before the Army Corps retired her in 1981. Her replacement, "Puget", still operates today out of "W. T. Preston"s previous dock at the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks.
Snagboat Heritage Center.
"W. T. Preston" is now permanently dry berthed on the waterfront near Cap Sante, in Anacortes, Washington. The vessel is a National Historic Landmark and remains officially a designated city historic landmark in Seattle (her former location). The ship now operates as a history museum, and is owned and operated by the City of Anacortes' City Museum. In 2005, the Snagboat Heritage Center was built just north of "W. T. Preston". This interpretive center houses artifacts, models, maps and other historical text and information about the snagboats that maintained the area's navigable waterways.


SS Norjerv

Norjerv was a cargo ship that was built in 1919 as West Islip by Ames Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co, Seattle, Washington, United States for the United States Shipping Board (USSB). In 1928, she was sold and renamed Golden Rod. A further sale in 1935 saw her renamed Willhilo. She was renamed Indianan after a sale in 1937. In 1940, she was transferred to the Ministry of Supply (MoS) and renamed Empire Eagle, passing later that year to the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). In 1942, she was transferred to the Norwegian Government and renamed "Norjerv", serving until June 1944 when she was transferred to the British Government. In July 1944, she was sunk as a blockship at Juno Beach, Calvados, France to reinforce Gooseberry 4.
Description.
The ship was built in 1919 by Ames Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co, Seattle, Washington. She was yard number 17.
The ship was long, with a beam of . She had a depth of , and a draught of . As built, she was assessed at , .
The ship was propelled by a 369 nhp triple expansion steam engine, which had cylinders of , and diameter by stroke. The engine was built by Ames. It drove a single screw propeller and could propel the ship at .
History.
Pre-war.
"West Islip" was built in 1919 for the United States Shipping Board. She was launched on 24 June, and the United States Official Number 218782 was allocated. She was in service by October, arriving at Shanghai, China on 20 October from Seattle. In 1928, she was sold to the Oceanic & Oriental Steam Navigation Co, San Francisco, California and was renamed "Golden Rod". The Code Letters LSNC were allocated and her port of registry was San Francisco. On 6 February 1931, "Golden Rod" ran aground at the mouth of the Fraser River, British Columbia, Canada. She was refloated the next day and sailed to Seattle.
In 1935, "Golden Rod" was sold to the Williams Steamship Co Inc, New York and renamed "Willhilo". In 1937, "Willhilo" was sold to the American-Hawaiian Steamship Co and was renamed "Indianan". The Code Letters KIKX were allocated and her port of registry was New York.
World War II.
In 1940, "Indianan" was transferred to the MoS. "Indianan" departed from Cristóbal, Panama on 31 March 1940 for New York, arriving on 10 April. She departed three days later for Baltimore, Maryland, where she arrived on 15 April. She departed five days later for Tampa, Florida, arriving on 26 April and then sailing three days later for Bermuda, where she arrived on 5 May. "Indianan" was a member of Convoy BHX 41, which departed from Bermuda on 7 May 1940 and joined Convoy HX 41 at sea on 13 May. She was carrying a cargo of phosphates. Convoy HX 41 had departed from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on 8 May and arrived at Liverpool, Lancashire, United Kingdom on 23 May. "Indianan" was bound for Garston, Liverpool.
"Indianan" was renamed "Empire Eagle". The MoS became the MoWT later that year. The United Kingdom Official Number 167583 and Code Letters GLJC were allocated. She was placed under the management of Runciman (London) Ltd and her port of registry was changed to London. She was assessed as , . "Empire Eagle" was a member of Convoy OB 186, which departed from Liverpool on 20 July and dispersed at sea on 22 July. Her destination was Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she arrived on 8 August. She departed a week later and sailed to Sydney, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, where she arrived on 20 August. "Empire Eagle" departed on 25 August as a member of Convoy SC 2, which arrived at Liverpool on 10 September. She was carrying a cargo of scrap iron and steel, bound for Barrow in Furness, Lancashire, which was reached by detaching from the convoy and sailing to the Clyde, where she arrived on 10 September. She sailed for Barrow-in-Furness two days later, arriving on 15 September.
"Empire Eagle" departed from Barrow-in-Furness on 28 September and sailed to Liverpool. She then joined Convoy OB 221, which departed on 29 September and dispersed at on 3 October. "Empire Eagle" put back into Liverpool. She then joined Convoy OB 226, which departed on 9 October and dispersed at sea on 12 October. "Empire Eagle" was in ballast and bound for Boca Grande, Florida, United States, where she arrived on 30 October. She sailed on 3 November for the Hampton Roads, Virginia, arriving on 8 November and departing three days later for Halifax, where she arrived on 15 November. "Empire Eagle" was a member of Convoy HX 89, which departed on 17 November and arrived at Liverpool on 1 December. She was carrying a cargo of phosphates bound for London. On 27 November, she straggled behind the convoy due to an engine breakdown. She detached from the convoy and arrived at Stornoway, Outer Hebrides on 1 December, departing the next day to join Convoy WN 47, which had departed from the Clyde on 30 November and arrived at Methil, Fife on 4 December. She departed two days later as a member of Convoy FS 354, which arrived at Southend, Essex on 8 December.
"Empire Eagle" departed from Southend on 16 January 1941 as a member of Convoy FN 385, which arrived at Methil on 18 January. She then joined Convoy EN 69/1, which departed on 9 February and arrived at Oban, Argyllshire on 13 February. She detached from the convoy and sailed to Loch Ewe, arriving on 13 February, then sailing to New York, where she arrived on 3 March. She departed on 21 March for Halifax, arriving on 24 March. She then joined Convoy HX 117, which departed on 27 March and arrived at Liverpool on 15 April. "Empire Eagle" was carrying general cargo and steel, bound for London. During the voyage, she made excessive smoke at times, the cause of which was stated to be the low quality of the coal she was burning. She arrived at Loch Ewe on 13 April and then joined Convoy WN 114, which had departed from the Clyde that day and arrived at Methil on 16 April. She then joined Convoy FS 466, which departed on 17 April and arrived at Southend on 19 April.
"Empire Eagle" departed from Southend on 19 May as a member of Convoy EC 22, which arrived at the Clyde on 24 May. She left the convoy at Methil on 21 May, sailing six days later to join Convoy EC 25, which had departed from Southend on 26 May and arrived at the Clyde on 31 May. She left the convoy at Oban on 30 May, departing two days later to join Convoy OB 329, which had departed from Liverpool on 31 May and dispersed at on 5 June. She was bound for Phildadelphia, where she arrived on 20 September. Having loaded a cargo of steel, "Empire Eagle" departed on 12 October for Halifax, arriving on 16 October. She was a member of Convoy HX 142, which departed from Halifax on 1 August and arrived at Liverpool on 18 August. She arrived at the Clyde on 17 August.
"Empire Eagle" departed from the Clyde on 5 September to join Convoy ON 13, which had departed from Liverpool that day and dispersed at sea on 11 September, although she had straggled behind the convoy the previous day. She arrived at Philadelphia on 20 September, departing on 12 October for Halifax, where she arrived on 16 October. "Empire Eagle" was a member of Convoy HX 162, which departed on 27 November and arrived at Liverpool on 11 December. She was carrying a cargo of steel and vehicles. "Empire Eagle" returned to Halifax, arriving on 7 December.
"Empire Eagle" departed from Halifax on 12 March as a member of Convoy SC 74, which arrived at Liverpool on 28 March. She was bound for Hull, Yorkshire. which was reached by detaching from the convoy and sailing to Loch Ewe, arriving on 27 March and joining Convoy WN 263 to Methil, where she arrived on 29 March. She then joined Convoy FS 764, which departed on 30 March and arrived at Southend on 1 April. She arrived at Hull on 31 March.
On 14 April, "Empire Eagle" was transferred to the Norwegian Government and renamed "Norjerv". The Code Letters LNAJ were allocated and her port of registry was changed to Oslo. She was placed under the management of Nortraship. She had a crew of 37, of whom seven were British. On or about 23 April, she joined Convoy FN 688, which had departed from Southend on 22 April and arrived at Methil on 25 April. She then joined Convoy EN 76, which departed that day and arrived at Oban on 27 April. She left the convoy at Loch Ewe that day and sailed to Liverpool, arriving on 28 April. "Norjerv" then joined Convoy ON 90, which departed that day and arrived at Halifax on 15 May. She departed that day with Convoy XB 20, which arrived at Boston, Massachusetts on 17 May. "Norjerv" left the convoy at the Cape Cod Canal and sailed to New York, arriving on 18 May and departing two days later for Philadelphia, where she arrived on 21 May. She departed on 2 June for New York, arriving later that day and then sailing to the Cape Cod Canal, joining Convoy BX 23B, which departed from Boston on 8 June and arrived at Halifax on 10 June. She then joined Convoy HS 13, which departed the next day and arrived at Sydney on 18 June. "Norjerv" was due to have joined Convoy SC 87, which departed from Sydney on 12 June and arrived at Liverpool on 27 June, but did not arrive at Sydney until after the convoy had sailed. She joined Convoy SC 88, which departed on 19 June and arrived at Liverpool on 4 July. She was carrying a cargo of cotton and steel.
"Norjerv" was a member of Convoy ON 112, which departed from Liverpool on 13 July and arrived at Cape Cod on 30 July. Her destination was New York, where she arrived on 1 August, sailing later that day for Baltimore, arriving on 4 August. She departed on 20 August for New York, arriving on 26 August and sailing four days later for Cape Cod, from where she joined Convoy BX 36, which departed from Boston on 2 September and arrived at Halifax two days later. "Norjerv" was a member of Convoy SC 99, which departed on 5 September and arrived at Liverpool on 20 September. She was carrying a cargo of steel. She left the convoy at Loch Ewe on 20 September and joined Convoy WN 339, which sailed the next day and arrived at Methil on 23 September. She then joined Convoy FS916, which departed on 24 September and arrived at Southend two days later. She left the convoy at Hull on 25 September.
"Norjerv" departed from Hull on 11 October to join Convoy FN 836, which had departed from Southend that day and arrived at Methil two days later. She then joined Convoy EN 150, which departed on 14 October and arrived at Loch Ewe on 17 October. She sailed on to Oban, arriving on 18 October and departing that day to join Convoy ON 140, which departed from Liverpool on 17 October and arrived at New York on 7 November. She departed the next day for Baltimore, where she arrived on 9 November. "Norjerv" departed on 17 November for Philadelphia, arriving that day and departing on 20 November for New York, where she arrived that day. Laden with general cargo, she then joined Convoy SC 111, which departed on 25 November and arrived at Liverpool on 17 December. She left the convoy and put into Halifax, arriving on 30 November and departing on 6 December to join Convoy SC112, which had departed from New York on 4 December and arrived at Liverpool on 25 December. She left the convoy at Loch Ewe and joined Convoy WN 376, which arrived at Methil on 27 December, sailing three days later with Convoy FS 1000, which arrived at Southend on 2 January 1943.
Laden with a cargo of chalk, "Norjerv" departed from Southend on 25 January for Loch Ewe, which was reached via convoys FN 927 and EN 190, arriving on 31 January. She then joined Convoy ON 165, which departed from Liverpool on 2 February and arrived at New York on 1 March. Her destination was Philadelphia, where she arrived that day. She departed on 22 March for New York, arriving the next day and departing on 25 February for Boston, arriving the next day. She then joined Convoy BX 39, which departed on 27 March and arrived at Halifax two days later. "Norjerv" was a member of Convoy SC 125, which departed on 31 March and arrived at Liverpool on 16 April. She left the convoy and put into St. John's Newfoundland, arriving on 6 April. "Norjerv" departed on 19 April to join Convoy SC 127, which had departed from Halifax on 16 April and arrived at Liverpool on 3 May. She was carrying general cargo, bound for the Clyde, where she arrived that day.
"Norjerv" departed on 17 May to join Convoy ONS 8, which had departed from Liverpool that day and arrived at Halifax on 1 June. She then joined Convoy XB 56, which arrived at Boston on 3 June. She left the convoy at the Cape Cod Canal and sailed to New York, arriving on 4 June, departing the next day for the Hampton Roads, where she arrived on 7 June. "Norjerv" departed from the Hampton Roads on 20 June for New York, arriving the next day and departing the day after that for Boston, from where she departed on 30 June as a member of Convoy BX 60. She arrived at Halifax on 2 July. "Norjerv" was a member of Convoy SC 136, which departed from Halifax on 8 July and arrived at Liverpool on 23 July. She was carrying a cargo of ammunition and steel.
"Norjerv" was a member of Convoy OS 53 km, which departed from Liverpool on 8 August and separated at sea on 17 August to form convoys OS 53 and KMS 23. The latter convoy arrived at Gibraltar on 18 August. "Norjerv" was in the part of the convoy that formed OS 53 and arrived at Freetown, Sierra Leone on 27 August. She was carrying a cargo of chemicals bound for Buenos Aires, Argentina. Her armament consisted of a 4-inch or 4.7-inch gun, a 12-pounder gun and four Oerlikon guns. She arrived at Buenos Aires on 12 September, sailing a week later for Montevideo, Uruguay, where she arrived on 20 September. The next day, "Norjerv" departed for Freetown, arriving on 11 October. She departed on 13 October with Convoy SL 138, which rendezvoused with Convoy MKS 28 on 24 October. That convoy had departed from Gibraltar on 23 October and the combined convoys arrived at Liverpool on 5 November. She was bound for Gibraltar, where she arrived on 25 October. "Norjerv" then joined Convoy KMS 30, which departed on 31 October and arrived at Port Said, Egypt on 11 November. She left the convoy at Alexandria, on 11 November. She departed on 20 November for Port Said, arriving the next day and then sailing to Suez, from where she departed on 24 November for Aden, arriving on 30 November. "Norjerv" was a member of Convoy AKD 8, which departed on 3 December and arrived at Durban, South Africa on 19 December. She left the convoy at Lourenço Marques, Mozambique on 16 December.
"Norjerv" departed from Lourenço Marques on 1 January 1944 for East London, South Africa, arriving three days later and sailing on 5 January for Buenos Aires, where she arrived on 27 January. She sailed on 18 February for Rosario, arriving the next day and departing on 27 February for Buenon Aires, where she arrived the next day. She departed on 4 March for Freetown, arriving on 24 March. "Norjerv" was a member of Convoy SL 154, which departed on 1 April 1944 and rendezvoused at sea with Convoy MKS 45 on 11 April. MKS 45 had departed from Gibraltar on 10 April. The combined convoys arrived at Liverpool on 23 April. Apart from general cargo, "Norjerv" was carrying corned beef and wheat.
"Norjerv" departed from Liverpool on 13 June for Swansea, Glamorgan, arriving two days later. She sailed on 18 June for Barry, arriving later that day. At midnight on 26 June, ownership of "Norjerv" was transferred to the British Government. She departed on 7 July as a member of Convoy EBC 34, which arrived at the Seine Bay, France on 9 July. On 16 July, "Norjerv" was sunk to reinforce Gooseberry 4 at Juno Beach, Calvados, France.
Post-war.
"Norjerv" was raised in 1949 and sold for scrap. On 3 June 1949, she broke in two whilst being towed by the tugs and to Strangford Lough, County Down, Northern Ireland for scrapping. Both halves of the ship sank.


SS Georgetown Victory

SS "Georgetown Victory" was a Victory ship built for the War Shipping Administration late in World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding program. She was a type VC2-S-AP2/WSAT cargo ship with the United States Maritime Commission (MCV) -"Victory"; hull number 653, shipyard number 1597 and built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in Baltimore, Maryland, she was laid down on 8 March 1945. "Georgetown Victory", named after Georgetown University, was launched from the Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyard at Baltimore on April 28, 1945 and completed on 22 May 1945.
"Georgetown Victory" was one of many new 10,500-ton class ships to be known as Victory ships, designed to replace the earlier Liberty Ships. Liberty ships were designed to be used solely for World War II, whereas Victory ships were designed to last longer and to serve the US Navy after the war. Victory ships differed from Liberty ships in that they were faster, longer, wider, taller, and had a thinner stack set farther toward the superstructure. In addition, they had a long raised forecastle.
Troopship conversion.
"Georgetown Victory" was converted from a cargo ship to a troopship able to transport up to 1,500 troops. Her cargo holds were converted to bunk beds and hammocks stacked three high for hot bunking. In the cargo hold Mess halls and exercise areas were also added.
World War II.
Entering service near the end of the war, the "Georgetown Victory" and 97 other Victory troopships, were given the task of transporting the troops home as part of Operation Magic Carpet. She was operated by the American Export Lines.
 "Georgetown Victory" returned the 326th Glider Infantry Regiment home to the USA at New York Harbor on 27 August 1945, some of the Regiment also came home on the "SS Cranston Victory". October 19, 1945 she arrived in Pennsylvania with 2002 troops, aboard was the 433rd Signal Battalion Heavy Construction; Headquarters and Base Service Squadrons of the 467th, 372d, 488th Air Service Groups; 1928th Ordnance Ammunition Company; 3629th, 3691st, 3633d Quartermaster Truck Companies; 5th Antiaircraft Artillery Group, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery.
Post World War II Service.
She arrived at Port Dickson on the west coast of Malaysia on the 19 December 1945. During the same month she took 1,400 troops home form Morotai in Indonesia to Australia On 20 January 1946 "Georgetown Victory" departed Labuan in East Malaysia and delivered troops to Rabaul in Papua New Guinea on 28 January 1946.
"Georgetown Victory" arrived in Brisbane in February of 1946.
On 27 Nov. 27 1945 in Saigon the Merchant Marine seamen of the ship SS Taos Victory, SS Georgetown Victory, SS Winchester Victory and SS Kingsport Victory held a joint meeting aboard the Taos Victory. The meeting was about if American Merchant Seamen should support French Indochina Colonial actions. To quote:
""THAT WHEREAS, we. as loyal American Merchant Seamen fought and sacrificed for the democratic principles and ideals as outlined at the Teheran, Yalta and San Francisco conferences, to which our country was a signatory; and whereas our Government continues to charter American owned and operated, ships flying the American flag to a foreign government, in this instance, the British Government. At which government, in turn, is permitting the French Government to transport French Colonial Combat Troops to Indochina for the purpose of suppressing the attempts of the native population to establish a free and democratic government of its own choosing, a right that has been guaranteed them at all the Three conferences. "AND WHEREAS, the fact that these troops are equipped with American weapons, clothing and food, that are being transported on American ships by American seamen, make it appear in the eyes of the native populations that our Government is carrying out the imperialist policies of the French and British And then this one: "AND WHEREAS, we, as American Merchant Seamen, as far back as 1936. attempted by strikes and protest to bring before the American public the then dangerous policy that our government was following in allowing certain selfish and greedy vested interests to sell and ship guns, cotton, oil and scrap iron to Japan. Our protests and strikes against this policy were condemned by this powerful and reactionary group."
Ship Wreck.
She departed Sydney with 1400 troops steaming to Glasgow in the United Kingdom. She stopped for water and fuel at Fremantle in Australia, Colombo in Sri Lanka and Aden in Yemen via the Suez Canal. On April 30, 1946, just before midnight, "Georgetown Victory" ran aground hard, at near top speed, 100 yards south of Killard Point, in County Down, Northern Ireland, north of Ballyhornan. All of the 1400 Royal Navy and Royal Marines aboard were rescued by life boats and breeches buoy to a tug started at about 5.00am. The wreck was close to shore so some men waded ashore through heavy fuel oil and were cared for in nearby homes. The Irish Cloughey and Newcastle lifeboats were launched on the afternoon of 1 May to help. Winter storms later broke the wreck into two parts. Later, all remaining portable gear not already taken by looters was removed and the ship abandoned. The ship sections were salvaged in 1951 and consigned to the ship-breakers at Troon in Scotland. Parts of the ship are still at , where she ran aground, now a dive site.


CSCL Zeebrugge

CSCL Zeebrugge is a (fully cellular) container ship owned by Seaspan Corp. The ship was constructed by Samsung Heavy Industries at Geoje. Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Ltd Geoje constructed the ship in yard 1566 and completed the "CSCL Zeebrugge" in March 2007. It is registered out of Hong Kong. Since its completion the CSCL "Zeebrugge" has been operated by Seaspan Ship Management. Its sister ship is the "CSCL Long Beach". It can carry 9,178 boxes and is 336.67m long.
Hull and engine.
The ship's gross tonnage is 108,069. The engine aboard the "CSCL Zeebrugge" is a single oil engine driving 1 FP propeller. This engine is capable of producing a total power of 68,520 kW(93,160 hp). The engine is a 2 stroke 12 cylinder engine. The vessel has a teu capacity of 9,580 and 700 reefers and is propelled by a 93,120 BHP MAN B&W engine, which gives the vessel a maximum speed of 24.7 kts.
MAN-B&W 12K98MC-C engine 2 stroke 12 cylinder
1 FP propeller


HMS Eastbourne (F73)

HMS "Eastbourne" was a "Whitby"-class or Type 12 anti-submarine frigate of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom.
Design.
The "Whitby"s were designed as specialist anti-submarine warships, intended to counter fast modern diesel-electric submarines. As such, the design was required to reach a speed of at least , maintaining high speed in rough weather conditions and have a range of at . To meet these requirements, the Type 12s had a new hull form and, unlike the contemporary Type 41 anti-aircraft and Type 61 air direction frigates, were powered by steam turbines.
"Eastbourne" was long overall and at the waterline, with a beam of and a draught of forward and at the propellers. The ships were powered by the new Y-100 machinery in which the ship's boilers and steam turbines were designed as a closely integrated set of machinery to increase efficiency. Two Babcock & Wilcox water-tube boilers fed steam at and to two sets of geared steam turbines which drove two propeller shafts, fitted with large ( diameter) slow-turning propellers. The machinery was rated at , giving a speed of . Crew was about 189 when operated as a leader and 152 as an ordinary ship.
A twin 4.5-inch (113 mm) Mark 6 gun mount was fitted forward, with 350 rounds of ammunition carried, with close-in armament of a stabilised STAAG (Stabilised Tachymetric Anti-Aircraft Gun) twin Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun mount aft. The design anti-submarine armament consisted of twelve 21-inch torpedo-tubes (eight fixed and two twin rotating mounts) for Mark 20E Bidder homing anti-submarine torpedoes, backed up by two Limbo anti-submarine mortars fitted aft. The Bidder homing torpedoes proved unsuccessful however, being too slow to catch modern submarines, and the torpedo tubes were soon removed.
The ship was fitted with a Type 293Q surface/air search radar on the foremast, with a Type 277 height-finding radar on a short mast forward of the foremast. A Mark 6M fire control system (including a Type 275 radar) for the 4.5 inch guns was mounted above the ship's bridge, while a Type 974 navigation radar was also fitted. The ship's sonar fit consisted of Type 174 search, Type 170 fire control sonar for Limbo and a Type 162 sonar for classifying targets on the sea floor.
Construction.
"Eastbourne" was laid down at Vickers Armstrongs Newcastle upon Tyne shipyard on 13 January 1951 and was launched on 29 December 1955. The ship was being fitted out when on 20 February 1956 a fire broke out on board, killing three men, while a dockyard ship manager, Richard Joicey, was awarded the George Medal for rescuing four trapped workers. Construction continued at Vickers Armstrongs' Barrow-in-Furness shipyard, and "Eastbourne" was completed on 9 January 1958.
Operational service.
On commissioning "Eastbourne" joined the 3rd Training Squadron, based at Londonderry Port, Northern Ireland. In August that year, she was loaned to the Fishery Protection Squadron. "Eastbourne" carried the flag of Commodore, Fishery Protection Squadron (CFPS) in the First Cod War, off Iceland. The First Cod War started on 1 September 1958, when Iceland unilaterally extended its territorial waters from to in order to protect Icelandic fishing grounds. "Eastbourne", along with the frigates and and the minesweeper , was deployed off Iceland on 1 September to protect British trawlers, with "Eastbourne" preventing several trawlers from being arrested by Icelandic gunboats and capturing two Icelandic boarding parties in the early days of the confrontation. In June 1959, "Eastbourne" joined the 4th Frigate Squadron, serving in Home waters and the Mediterranean. In 1966 she was the leader of the Dartmouth Training Squadron.
In 1972, "Eastbourne" replaced as the 'afloat' training ship for the artificer apprentices at HMS "Caledonia". During their 14 weeks aboard ship, the apprentices were trained in general engineering and were examined for their auxiliary machinery certificates. She also took part in the Royal Navy's Fleet Review in celebration of HM the Queen's Silver Jubilee.
Harbour training ship.
In 1976 "Eastbourne" was dispatched to Iceland to assist in the third Cod War and on 22 May she was damaged in a collision with the ICGV "Baldur". During the subsequent repairs in Rosyth in 1977, a hull inspection found that "Eastbourne" was no longer fit for sea, though her machinery was still in good condition. Her propellers were removed, and 'brake wheels' were fitted as a replacement. This enabled her to be steamed at full power with no forward movement. This enabled the apprentices to assist in operation of her machinery at full power, with the added benefit of churning the dockyard basin water up to improve its aeration. Officers under training from Royal Naval Engineering College Manadon were also able to be trained onboard before their first sea draft.
In the 1980s, "Eastbourne" remained moored at Rosyth Dockyard alongside as harbour training ship for the marine engineering artificer apprentices of "Caledonia". Once "Caledonia" was scheduled to close, both "Eastbourne" and "Duncan" were de-stored and paid off for disposal in March 1984. Training of the marine engineering artificer apprentices was transferred to HMS "Sultan".


SS Cansumset

Cansumset was a steam cargo ship built in 1918-1919 by Pacific Coast Shipbuilding Company of Bay Point for the United States Shipping Board as part of the wartime shipbuilding program of the Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC) to restore the nation's Merchant Marine. The vessel was largely employed on the Pacific Coast of the United States to Europe route until 1921 when it was laid up and eventually broken up for scrap in 1930. Due to frequent breakdowns during her short career the freighter was known as the "Hoodoo" ship of the USSB.
Design and construction.
After the United States entry into World War I, a large shipbuilding program was undertaken to restore and enhance shipping capabilities both of the United States and their Allies. As part of this program, EFC placed orders with nation's shipyards for a large number of vessels of standard designs. Design 1015 cargo ship was a standard cargo freighter of approximately 9,400 tons deadweight designed by Moore Shipbuilding Co. and adopted by USSB.
"Cansumset" was part of the order for 10 vessels placed by USSB with Pacific Coast Shipbuilding Co. on 16 November 1917 and was laid down on 25 May 1918 at the shipbuilder's yard and launched on 30 March 1919 (yard number 2), with Miss Beatrice Hannay, daughter of E.W. Hannay, superintendent of hull construction, being the sponsor. Just as with many other vessels being built for the Shipping Board, her name was picked by Mrs. Woodrow Wilson who often chose Native American words for naming purposes.
The ship was shelter-deck type, had two main decks and was built on the Isherwood principle of longitudinal framing providing extra strength to the body of the vessel. The freighter had four main holds and also possessed all the modern machinery for quick loading and unloading of cargo from five large hatches, including ten winches and a large number of derricks. She was also equipped with wireless apparatus, had submarine signal system installed and had electrical lights installed along the decks.
As built, the ship was long (between perpendiculars) and abeam, a depth of . "Cansumset" was originally assessed at and and had deadweight of approximately 9,646. The vessel had a steel hull with double bottom throughout with exception of her machine compartment, and a single turbine rated at 2,800 shp, double-reduction geared to a single screw propeller that moved the ship at up to . The steam for the engine was supplied by three single-ended Scotch marine boilers fitted for both coal and oil fuel.
Operational history.
Following delivery of the steamer and her acceptance by the USSB, she was allocated to Williams, Dimond & Co. to be used on The Pacific Coast to Europe routes. While in the Bay Area, the freighter loaded approximately 7,000 tons of merchandise consisting mostly of canned and dried fruit and vegetables in addition to 200,000 pounds of jute, 440,000 pounds of tallow and 170,000 gallons of wine and brandy and departed San Francisco on 28 August 1919 via Los Angeles where she took on additional 1,700 tons of canned goods. The freighter had to stay in Panama Canal Zone for about two weeks to undergo repairs and did not depart from Cristóbal until September 23. After unloading her cargo she departed Liverpool at the end of November and proceeded to Norfolk where she arrived on December 12 and was chartered for one trip by the U.S. Navy to transport coal to Pearl Harbor. "Cansumset" departed Norfolk on December 30 laden with 7,943 tons of coal and reached Hawaii on 29 January 1920.
Upon unloading the freighter sailed out for Puget Sound to load for another European trip but developed engine troubles and had to change her course for San Francisco. The ship eventually became nearly disabled about 250 miles from Cape Blanco but managed to limp into port on her own for repairs on 19 February 1920. After finalizing repairs, the ship departed San Francisco for Portland on March 11 loaded with European cargo transferred from her sister ship SS "Eelbeck". Two days later she ran into a fifty mile an hour gale almost in exact same position off Cape Blanco as last time. The vessel's engines again became disabled around 01:00 on March 13 and she drifted helplessly towards the shore for seven hours while her engineers were hard at work trying to fix the problems, while another steamer, SS "President", was standing by ready to render assistance. "Cansumset" then proceeded to Portland and Seattle where she discharged her cargo and took on board approximately 1,700,000 feet of lumber destined for Balboa, Liverpool and Le Havre and about 700 tons of general merchandise. She then continued on to San Francisco, where she loaded 200,000 more feet of lumber for Havana and 300 more tons of miscellaneous cargo. After departing San Francisco, the vessel again started experiencing problems with her engines on April 1 while near Santa Cruz Island, and had to be put into San Pedro. She spent nearly three weeks there undergoing repairs to her turbines and eventually departed for her destinations on April 24. However, when about 1,900 miles south of San Pedro her turbines again broke down and she had to be towed by another USSB steamer SS "Eastern Glade" reaching Balboa on May 12 where she unloaded the bulk of her cargo of lumber.
"Cansumset" then spent more than a month undergoing repairs at Balboa which included complete replacement of her turbine with a brand new one sent from New York. She eventually sailed out in mid-June reaching Havana without any problems on June 21. However, because of a strike by Cuban workers the ship remained tied up in port for the next two months and her European cargo had to be transshipped via other vessels. She finally loaded up a cargo of sugar and sailed for New York reaching it on August 23. Once there, Williams, Dimond & Co. formally returned the vessel to the USSB as a failure due to their belief the ship would not be able to cover a great distance without experiencing yet another breakdown. In August 1920 USSB reallocated "Cansumset" to the Luckenbach Line to serve on the East Coast to Rotterdam route, however, these sailing never materialized and the freighter soon was sent to New London to be laid up on October 7.
From New London "Cansumset" was subsequently relocated with thirty five other ships to a resting ground off Prall's Island. In March 1921 an investigation by journalists exposed gross incompetence on the part of EFC in handling these laid up vessels. Due to close proximity of Grasselli Chemical Works the waters around the island were heavily polluted with acids resulting in fast corrosion of hulls and propellers of the ships. Ships were huddled together constantly hitting and grinding against each other resulting in damage to their hulls and superstructures. "Cansumset" was reported to be in dangerous condition and appeared to be strained amidships.
The vessel was eventually sold for breaking together with fifty nine other vessels in late 1930 to the Union Shipbuilding Company of Baltimore for 16,160.


Bottsand-class oil recovery ship

The "Bottsand"-class oil recovery ships (Type 738) of the German Navy are intended for seawater pollution control. The twin hull ships feature a bow which can be opened by 65 degrees. This creates an area of more than to collect oil-polluted seawater. The water is pumped into the ship's tank, where it will be cleaned and the oil separated. Per hour one ship can clean up to of ocean surface polluted with a oil slick.
The two ships in the class entered service in 1984 and 1987. The ships are auxiliary ships of the navy. They are used to contain oil spills from German ships in the sea. They are manned by civilians and not naval personnel.


SS F. Southall Farrar

SS "F. Southall Farrar" was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after F. Southall Farrar, an agriculturist and 4-H leader from Virginia.
Construction.
"F. Southall Farrar" was laid down on 22 May 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2365, by J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia; she was sponsored by Mrs. James A. Jones Jr., daughter-in-law of James Addison Jones, and launched on 4 July 1944.
History.
She was allocated to the Union Sulphur & Oil Co. Inc., on 20 July 1944. On 28 June 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet in Beaumont, Texas. On 30 December 1965, she was sold, to Sampson Iron & Supply Co., for $51,505, to be scrapped. She was removed from the fleet on 17 January 1966.


Edgar-class ship of the line

The "Edgar"-class ships of the line were a class of three 60-gun fourth rates, designed for the Royal Navy by Sir Thomas Slade.


SS Brown Victory

Brown Victory was a Maritime Commission type VC2-S-AP2 Victory ship built during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding program. The ship was built by Oregon Shipbuilding Company Portland as Maritime Commission hull 171, yard number 1225. Her keel was laid on 25 February 1945. She was named for Brown University and christened on 2 May 1945. The ship was completed and delivered to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) with operation under WSA agreement by the Alaska Packers Company on 27 March 1945. That agreement remained in effect until 2 July 1946.
Victory ships were designed to replace the earlier Liberty Ships. Liberty ships were designed to be used just for WW2. Victory ships were designed to last longer and serve the US Navy after the war. The Victory ship differed from a Liberty ship in that they were: faster, longer and wider, taller, a thinner stack set farther toward the superstructure and had a long raised forecastle.
World War II.
"Brown Victory" served in the Pacific War during World War II. "Brown Victory" took supplies to the Battle of Okinawa operations that lasted from 1 April until 22 June 1945.
Kamikaze attack.
On 28 May 1945, at Iejima, near Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands a kamikaze plane hit "Brown Victory". and under tow by "Tekesta" shot down the kamikaze plane, but the plane hit "Brown Victory" on its way down in the attack. Two of the 27 United States Navy Armed Guards were killed instantly in the attack. In the attack 18 crew members were injured. One of the merchant crew and one of the Armed Guards died of their wounds later. The Navy tug "Tekesta" came to the aid of "Brown Victory", helping the crew put out the fire and gave medical aid to the wounded. "Brown Victory" was damaged, but managed to survive the attack and was able to take her cargo to Saipan before steaming home to Oregon for repairs.
Honors.
"Brown Victory" was awarded Battle Stars for the assault and occupation of Okinawa from 19 May 1945 to 6 June 1945. She used her deck guns to defend herself and other ships from attacks.
Post War - "Mormacpine".
"Brown Victory" operation was changed to a bareboat charter to American Export Lines on 2 July 1946, then to bareboat charter to Moore-McCormack Lines, Inc., of New York, New York, on 21 November. On 17 April 1947, Moore-McCormack, purchased the ship with the name changed to Mormacpine.
"Mormacpine" made a few trips to help with the Korean War between 17 September and 2 August 1953.
While departing San Pedro on 27 September 1959, in foggy conditions, the bow of "Mormacpine" rammed the boat "Jane" off the coast of Cape Flattery. "Jane", a 49 foot wood fishing boat, was hit on her port side at about 3 or 4 knots and sank in about 3 minutes with the loss of two of her five crew members. It was ruled that the cause was twofold, "Mormacpine" was going too fast for the fog and "Jane" had no forward lookouts at the time of the crash. The fog limited visibility to 500 to 1,000 yards. "Jane" did not show up on "Mormacpine" radar due to her small size and wood hull. "Mormacpine" crew spotted "Jane" 1,000 yards off her starboard bow and put her engines into full reverse that slowed her to about 3 to 4 knots. No fines were made due to the accident.
On 28 March 1964, one of "Mormacpine"s holds caught fire. She was steaming from Salvador, Bahia, Brazil to New York City, New York with a load of sisal fibre and cocoa beans. A Coast Guard plane saw the fire from the air and depatched the Coast Guard cutter "Half Moon" to help. With no engines, she was towed to St. George's, Bermuda and arrived after midnight. None of the 47 crew members were harmed due to the fire. In St. George's harbor her cargo hold fire was put out.
In June 1970, the ship ceased operation and was scrapped at Kaoshung, Taiwan shortly after.


CLS4 Carpentaria

Commonwealth Lightship 4 (CLS4) "Carpentaria" is a lightship that was in service from 1917 to 1985 with the Commonwealth Lighthouse Service, built at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard and commissioned in 1917. The vessel is named after the Gulf of Carpentaria, where it spent most of its service life together with its sister ship CLS2 (also named "Carpentaria").
Design.
CLS4 "Carpentaria" is one of four identical lightships designed in 1915 by the Scottish firm D & C Stevenson of Edinburgh and built in 1916-17 at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard in Sydney, Australia; they were designated CLS1 to CLS4. The design is optimised for operating unmanned anchored at a stationary position on station offshore for prolonged periods of time, away from port.
"Carpentaria" has a riveted steel hull and no superstructure, with a single mast amidships mounting the beacon lantern atop. Being a stationary vessel, she has no installed propulsion engines her and has to be towed to change position or return to port. In 1950, CLS4 was equipped with a diesel engine to power an anchor windlass; it was protected by a steel deckhouse added at that moment.
"Carpentaria"s lantern was powered by acetylene gas, of which she carried a 6-month supply in 4 tanks; the gas flow was controlled by a valve which would regulate the flashes of the light according to the code assigned to the station. The gas would shut down during daylight; the beacon light could be seen from 10 nautical miles away. She also carried a bell activated by the rolling motion, so it could be heard on low visibility conditions.
History.
CLS4 "Carpentaria" was built at the Cockatoo Island Dockyard; launched in 1917, she was put in service that year, together with her sister ship CLS2, in the Gulf of Carpentaria. They would alternate between being on station and in port for maintenance.
Later in their career, "Carpentaria" was assigned as traffic separator in the Bass Strait, where they narrowly avoided being hit by container ships.
In 1985, both "Carpentaria" ships were decommissioned; later they were destined for preservation: CLS2 was given to the Queensland Maritime Museum in Brisbane, QLD, while CLS4 went to the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney, NSW.
As of late 2016, CLS4 "Carpentaria" is still part of the collection of the ANMM and is on display at the museum’s wharves in Darling Harbour.


Fantasy-class cruise ship

The "Fantasy" class is a cruise ship class operated by Carnival Cruise Lines. The first vessel of the class, "Carnival Fantasy", entered service in 1990. All eight vessels of the class were constructed by Kvaerner Masa-Yards, in Helsinki, Finland, at the Hietalahti shipyard.
Design.
This class utilizes a "modern ocean/cruise liner" design, with most of its cabins situated within the hull and only a handful of suites on the superstructure, similar to the s built in the late 1980s. The "Fantasy" class is the only class currently in service for Carnival initially built with only a few balcony cabins. "Carnival Elation" and "Carnival Paradise" differ from the other ships of the class in that they are equipped with Azipod azimuth thrusters for propulsion. They were also the last cruise ships built with the lifeboats only on the upper deck.
"Evolutions Of Fun" refit.
In late 2006, Carnival Cruise Lines announced their intention to refurbish the "Fantasy"-class fleet under the program name "Evolutions Of Fun". This was completed in 2010 and cost $250 million.


Vengeur-class ship of the line

The "Vengeur"-class ships of the line were a class of forty 74-gun third rates, designed for the Royal Navy as a joint effort between the Surveyors of the Navy at the time. The "Vengeur" Class, sometimes referred to as the Surveyors' class of third rates, amongst other names, was the most numerous class of ships of the line ever built for the Royal Navy - forty ships being completed to this design. Due to some dubious practices, primarily in the commercial dockyards used for construction, this class of ships earned itself the nickname of 'Forty Thieves.'
Between 1826 and 1832, ten of these ships were cut down by one deck ("raséed") to produce 50-gun "frigates". These were the "Barham", "Dublin", "Alfred", "Cornwall", "America", "Conquestador", "Rodney" (renamed "Greenwich"), "Vindictive", "Eagle" and "Gloucester". Planned similar conversions of the "Clarence" (renamed "Centurion") and "Cressy" around this time were cancelled, but the "Warspite" was additionally converted along the same lines in 1837–1840.
Around 1845 four of these ships were converted into 'blockships', the then-current term for floating batteries, equipped with a steam/screw propulsion system and re-armed with 60 guns. In this guise some of them saw action during the Crimean War. The four were the "Blenheim", "Ajax", "La Hogue" and "Edinburgh". About ten years later, a further batch of five ships was similarly converted - this included the "Russell", "Cornwallis" and "Pembroke" of this class (as well as the "Hawke" and "Hastings" of other designs).
Ships.
Further ships were ordered to this design, including HMS "Boscawen" on 6 January 1812 and HMS "Carnatic" on 30 September 1814, but none of these were completed to this design.
In fiction.
A fictitious member of this class of 74s, HMS "Worcester", features largely in "The Ionian Mission", one of the Aubrey-Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian.


MS Shota Rustaveli

MS "Shota Rustaveli was a cruise ship, built in 1968 by V.E.B. Mathias-Thesen Werft, Wismar, East Germany for the Soviet Union's Black Sea Shipping Company and named after the Georgian poet Shota Rustaveli. After the fall of the Soviet Union she was handed to Ukraine. In 2000, she was sold to Kaalbye Group and renamed MS "Assedo. In 2003, she was scrapped at Alang, India.


USNS Private Joe E. Mann (T-AK-253)

USNS "Private Joe E. Mann" (T-AK-253) was a acquired in 1950, from the U.S. Army, where she was known as the USAT "Private Joe E. Mann".
In 1960, the Navy converted the ship to a and renamed her USNS "Richfield" (T-AGM-4). "Richfield" served on the Pacific Missile Range, based out of California, and was placed out of service in 1968.
Victory ship constructed in California.
"Private Joe E. Mann" (AK–253) was laid down, under U.S. Maritime Commission contract, as "Owensboro Victory" (MCV hull 719) by the Permanente Metals Corporation, Yard #2, Richmond, California, 12 June 1945; launched 21 July 1945; sponsored by Mrs. Robert A. Nieman; and delivered to the Maritime Commission, thence to Coastwise Lines for operation, 27 August 1945.
Post-World War II commercial service.
A month and a half after delivery, "Owensboro Victory" departed San Francisco, California, carrying cargo and passengers to occupied Japan. In December, she sailed for the United States, via the Suez Canal, and arrived in Boston, Massachusetts, 7 February 1946.
Shifting to New York City, the following month, she made cargo runs to European ports until returned to the U.S. Maritime Commission in September, for transfer to the Army Transportation Service.
U.S. Army service.
Renamed USAT "Private Joe E. Mann", 31 October 1947, she served the Army until she was again returned to the Maritime Commission and simultaneously transferred to the Navy, 7 August 1950.
U.S. Navy service.
Designated "T-AK–253", the Victory ship was manned by a civil service crew and operated under Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) as a cargo ship until October 1958.
Conversion to a missile tracking ship.
Then fitted out as a missile range instrumentation ship, she was reassigned by MSTS to the Pacific Missile Range. "Private Joe E. Mann" served as a telemetry ship for the early Corona surveillance satellite missions (as early as Discoverer 8, November 1959) through the flight of Discoverer 13 (August 1960). Renamed and reclassified USNS "Richfield" (AGM–4) on 27 November 1960, she operated off the California coast, in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force.
Two other ships were reconfigured in to this new class, "Longview"-class missile range instrumentation ship, and .
Final inactivation.
"Richfield" continued her missile tracking until transferred to the Maritime Administration, 21 November 1968, when she was berthed with the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay, Benicia, California.
She was sold for scrapping, 16 March 1976, to Nicolai Joffe, and then withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet and delivered to Nicolai Joffe, 12 April 1976.


USS Renville (APA-227)

USS "Renville" (APA-227) was a that saw service with the US Navy in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
"Renville" was named after counties in Minnesota and North Dakota. She was laid down 19 August 1944 as MCV hull 673 by Kaiser Shipbuilding of Vancouver, Washington, launched 25 October 1944, and commissioned 15 November 1944, Capt. William W. Ball in command.
Operational service.
World War II.
Following shakedown out of San Diego, "Renville" sailed in January 1945 for Guadalcanal where, in March, she embarked 1,620 combat-ready troops for the invasion of Okinawa.
Invasion of Okinawa.
"Renville"'s assault boats transported the troops to the beach at Okinawa 1 April. Departing on the 5th, she steamed via Saipan and Pearl Harbor to San Francisco. During the remainder of the war, she transported troops and supplies between various Pacific Islands and the United States.
After hostilities.
In September, she carried 1,436 Allied prisoners of war from Japan to Manila. In 1946 she returned additional troops to the United States, and then operated along the Pacific coast.
Peacetime missions.
Operating in the western Pacific, "Renville" was ordered to Jakarta, Indonesia, in December 1947. "Renville" became Headquarters ship for the U.N. Truce Commission that negotiated settlement terms between Dutch military forces and Indonesian nationalists. Dutch and Indonesian representatives began meeting aboard "Renville" in the harbor at Jakarta on 8 December 1947. This resulted in the "Renville" agreement of 17 January 1948. After operating off the U.S. West Coast from May 1948 to January 1949, she voyaged to China later in January, and returned from Tsingtao, China 8 February. She arrived in San Diego, California 26 February 1949.
Korean War.
Decommissioned 30 June 1949 at Mare Island, California, "Renville" recommissioned 5 January 1952 for service in the Korean War. Departing San Francisco for the western Pacific 13 November 1952, she shuttled troops between Japan and Korean ports such as Pusan and Inchon. After June 1953, she steamed to San Diego.
Peacetime missions.
Sailing for the western Pacific in September 1954, she carried marines to Kobe, Japan, and conducted amphibious training in Korea, before returning to San Diego on 17 March 1955. Departing San Diego in August, she participated in a landing exercise at Iwo Jima in February 1956, and returned to San Diego in March. In January 1957, she joined a landing exercise at Camp Pendleton. On WestPac tour from February to September, she joined a major landing exercise on eastern Luzon in March and another in the Pohang-Dong area of Korea in June.
After duty at Eniwetok from January to June 1958, she operated in the western Pacific from October 1958 to March 1959. In May 1959 she joined a landing exercise at Camp Pendleton. On WestPac tour from October 1958 to April 1959, she was station ship at Hong Kong in January and February, and participated in a joint landing exercise at Taiwan in March. Again in the Far East from April to 5 December 1961, she sailed to Okinawa, Subic Bay, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Yokosuka.
Cuban Missile Crisis.
Following West Coast duties in early 1962, she headed for the Caribbean 27 October 1962 in response to the Cuban Missile Crisis, returning to San Diego 13 December. Deployed to WestPac from December 1962 to May 1963, she ended 1963 in West Coast operations.
Role in Hollywood film.
Sailing for WestPac in June 1964, she participated in the filming on Oahu, Hawaii, of Otto Preminger's movie "In Harm's Way" in July.
Vietnam War.
In response to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident in August, she ranged the coast of Vietnam from Da Nang to Saigon with 1,350 marines on alert status for 67 consecutive days. Replenished at Yokosuka, she performed similar duty off Vietnam in November, before returning to San Diego on 18 December.
After a landing exercise at Camp Pendleton, California, in March 1965, her WestPac tour of May to August took her to Hawaii, Okinawa, Da Nang, Qui Nhon, Sasebo, and Yokosuka. After local duty, she began her WestPac tour of March 1966 to October, carrying marines to Okinawa and Chu Lai, Vietnam, before serving as station ship at Da Nang in August and September.
Decommission.
In 1967 she prepared for deactivation. Transferred to the Maritime Administration (MARAD) 23 April 1968, she joined the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, California. She was redesignated an amphibious transport (LPA-227) on 1 January 1969. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 September 1976 and disposed of by MARAD on 19 February 1982. Her final disposition is unknown.
On the disposition of the USS Renville, APA-227.
A letter from Mr. Shawn Ireland, MARAD, Ship Disposal Program, dated 19 March 2007.
"I was able to locate some additional information regarding the subject vessel and the transaction (its disposal). The Trade-in Exchange Program was enacted by Congress to allow MARAD to add vessels to the National Defense Reserve Fleet that, according to their owners, had become economically obsolete, but were still operable and could suit the NDRF sea lift purpose. The trade-in vessels had to be constructed in the United States and must not have been documented under a foreign flag. This program allowed US Flag vessel owners to trade in there economically obsolete ships in exchange for older vessels in the NDRF that were scheduled for scrapping. The vessels removed from the NDRF had to be scrapped and could not be used for operations.
MARAD, Farrell Lines Inc., and C.W. Enterprises and Investments Inc. entered into agreements on February 19, 1982, which consisted of the following.
1. Farrell Lines would trade in the vessel AMBASSADOR and receive (4) obsolete NDRF vessels, the BEXAR (LPA-237), the RENVILLE (APA-227), the NAVARRO (LPA-215), and the BOLLINGER (LPA-234).
2. Contract MA-10708, between MARAD, Farrell Lines Inc., and C.W. Enterprises and Investments Inc., transferred title to the vessel to Farrell and then immediately to C.W. Enterprises for the sole purpose of
scrapping the vessels in either Taiwan or South Korea. The contract is explicit, in that the vessels must be scrapped.
C.W. Enterprise and Investments sounds like a broker, who in turn would sell the vessels for scrap to the highest bidder in either Taiwan or South Korea.
I am positive that the RENVILLE, along with the three other ships, were scrapped in Taiwan or South Korea."
Submitted by R.R. Bradshaw
Decorations.
"Renville" received one battle star for World War II service, two for the Korean War, and four for the Vietnam War.


MS Volendam

MS "Volendam" is a Rotterdam-class (R-class) cruise ship belonging to Holland America Line. It was built in 1999 as the third of four Rotterdam-class vessels which she has ten decks, with passenger cabins spread across six of them. The "Volendam"'s theming prominently features flowers, and the decor throughout the ship emphasizes floral patterns. She sails out of Australia, Asia, and conducts cruises of the Inside Passage, traversing British Columbia and Alaska.
Design and description.
As a Rotterdam-class (R-class) cruise ship, the "Volendam" has three sister ships in the fleet, "Zaandam", "Amsterdam" and "Rotterdam". She follows the Rotterdam, the lead ship of her class, as the second ship launched in 1999. "Volendam" is long, has a beam, and an draft. She has ten decks, and contains cabins for passengers (called state rooms) on six decks, with a ship's capacity of 1,432 guests.
The ship's theme is flowers, and she features floral designs throughout. The atrium contains a sculpture spanning three decks which was created by Luciano Vistosi. "Volendam" was christened by former professional tennis player Chris Evert on 12 November 1999, who became the ship's godmother.
She was refurbished in both 2006 and 2011, when she entered drydock for a refit in Singapore.
Ports of call.
She first entered the Australian market in 2009. "Volendam" cancelled a visit to Batemans Bay during a trip circumnavigating Australia in 2010, only giving 48 hours' notice due to "operational issues" which was interpreted by local media as a failure by the town's council to meet the requirements set out by Holland America regarding the town's wharf some twelve months prior to the expected arrival of the ship. During 2011 she was chartered to visit match relevant destinations during the 2011 Rugby World Cup, which was hosted in New Zealand.
In 2016, "Volendam" sails out of Australia/New Zealand and South Pacific, and during the Northern Hemisphere summer sails out of Vancouver, Canada, conducting cruises of the Inside Passage to Alaska. She hosted an Inside Passage cruise in September 2012 to celebrate a hundred years of the "Vancouver Sun". In 2013 when "Volendam" returned to Australian waters, she visited Kangaroo Island for the first time, after a new landing pontoon was installed on the island to allow for it to become a cruise ship destination. After she left Australia for Asia, she visited a variety of Asian countries including Japan, China, South Korea and Vietnam.
On 9 March 2016 she witnessed a total solar eclipse in the Makassar Straight while sailing through Indonesia as part of an extended tour of Asia, hosting a number of astronomy groups and eclipse followers.
Incidents.
On 6 December 2019, visitors on the ship was scanned at the ports of Scarborough and Charlotteville with the opening of 2019/2020 cruise season in November.
Coronavirus quarantine.
On 20 March 2020 the ship sail trip was shorten and arrived at Port Everglades in Florida, where they docked the passengers except the crew members during the Coronavirus pandemic, The ship was left stranded at the sea in weeks and is currently at the coast of the Bahamas, where their captain told them that they will be remained on a board for another month.
In popular culture.
In the 2005 film "Into the Blue", "Volendam" makes a brief cameo when she was docked in the Prince George Wharf port of Nassau, Bahamas.


Hanjin Sooho-class container ship

The "Hanjin Sooho" class is a series of 9 container ships built for the now defunct Hanjin Shipping. The ships were built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea. The ships have a maximum theoretical capacity of around 13,102 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU).
Following the bankruptcy of Hanjin Shipping, the ships were auctioned off and are now operated by Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping Company.


SS Christopher C. Andrews


SS Tobruk

Tobruk was a cargo ship which was built in 1941 as Empire Builder by William Gray & Sons Ltd for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). On completion she was handed over to the Polish government-in-exile (along with four others; "Narwik", "Bałtyk", "Białystok" and "Borysław", which in 1950 was renamed to "Bytom") and renamed "Tobruk". She was a member of a number of convoys during the Second World War. She was sold in 1951 to Polskie Linie Oceaniczne and served until 1967. She was scrapped in 1968.
Description.
"Empire Builder" was built by William Gray & Sons Ltd, West Hartlepool. She was yard number 1123. "Empire Builder" was launched on 19 November 1941 and completed in January 1942.
The ship was long, with a beam of and a depth of . She was propelled by a triple expansion steam engine which had cylinders of , and bore by stroke. The engine was built by Central Marine Engine Works, West Hartlepool. It could propel her at "Empire Builder" was listed on Lloyds Register as having a GRT of 7,090 and a NRT of 5,050. "Tobruk" was listed on Lloyds Register as having a GRT of 7,048 and a NRT of 4,977. Her DWT was 10,500.
Career.
"Empire Builder's" port of registry was West Hartlepool. On completion, she was handed over to the Polish Government and renamed "Tobruk". Her port of registry was changed to Gdynia. "Tobruk" was owned by the Polish government and operated under the management of Gdynia-America Shipping Lines Ltd.
Convoy PQ 13 departed Loch Ewe on 10 March 1942 and arrived at Murmansk, Soviet Union on 31 March having lost six ships to enemy action. A further two were sunk at Murmansk after the convoy's arrival. "Tobruk" was damaged by enemy bombing at Murmansk, repairs took about six months to complete. Crew members were joking later that the convoy departed on the 13th day of the month, the trip lasted 13 days, and Tobruk had the thirteenth position in the convoy.
Convoy QP 14 departed Murmansk on 13 September 1942 and arrived at Loch Ewe on 26 September, having lost four ships to enemy action. "Tobruk" was carrying a cargo of Apatite. She departed Murmansk on 8 September bound for Archangelsk, from where she joined the convoy.
Convoy SL 178 departed Freetown, Sierra Leone on 25 November 1944 and arrived at Liverpool on 15 December. "Tobruk" was on a voyage from Pepel to Barry, Glamorgan. She was carrying a cargo of iron ore and two passengers. On 9 December, a deceased seaman from "Tobruk" was buried at sea.
Postwar, "Tobruk" continued in Polish Government service until 1951 when she was sold to Polskie Linie Oceaniczne. In 1950 during a storm in the Bay of Biscay in order to prevent the ship from crashing into the local reefs the crew improvised a sail, saving the ship; this is the only known example of a modern bulk carrier using a sail. She served until 1967, and was scrapped at Gdynia in June 1968.
In popular culture.
The wartime history of the ship has been portrayed in a novel "S.S. Tobruk – w konwojach śmierci" (SS Tobruk – in the convoys of death) by Jana Kazimierza Sawickiego.


Zhonghai Emeishan

Zhonghai Emeishan (中海峨眉山) is the world's largest floating drydock. It is used for the repair and reconstruction of very large ships.
Built in only 416 days, it was launched in September 2008 in Yangzhou in a ceremony involving senior municipal officials, including the mayor. It was delivered to the Shanghai Changxing ship repair base in October 2008. Construction cost 580 million Yuan; it has a high level of automation.


HMS Mersey (P283)

HMS Mersey is a of the British Royal Navy. Named after the River Mersey, she is the fifth RN vessel to carry the name and the first to be named "Mersey" in 84 years. Various tenders were renamed "Mersey" during their service with Mersey Division Royal Naval Reserve (HMS "Eaglet") between the early 1950s and late 1970s.
She was built by Vosper Thornycroft in Southampton to serve as a fishery protection vessel within the United Kingdom's waters along with her two sister ships and . All three were commissioned into service in 2003 to replace the five older s. She was commissioned into the Royal Navy on 28 November 2003. At that time, "Mersey" was not expected to commence duties until February 2004.
"Mersey" was the last Royal Navy ship to be launched from Vosper Thornycroft at its Woolston shipyard; Jennie Reeve, wife of Rear-Admiral Jonathon Reeve, Chief of Fleet Support, was the ship's sponsor.
Operational history.
For the first thirteen years of operation, "Mersey" operated around the United Kingdom on Fishery Protection duties.
In October 2013, "Mersey" was dry docked in Falmouth.
In January 2016, "Mersey" became the second River-class OPV to be deployed to the Caribbean Sea following on from her sister "Severn" in 2015. In May 2016, "Mersey" was dry docked in Martinique as part of her mid-deployment maintenance period. By July, "Mersey" had been relieved by and was deployed on migrant patrols in the Aegean via a port call in Gibraltar. "Mersey" returned to Portsmouth on 10 February 2017 after 13 months away to resume her fishery protection duties.
On 3 January 2019, Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson confirmed that HMS "Mersey" has been deployed to assist UK & French authorities with illegal migrant crossings in the English Channel.
Future.
On 24 April 2017, in a written answer to a question raised by Sir Nicholas Soames, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Defence Harriet Baldwin stated that "Mersey" would be decommissioned in 2019.
In March 2018, Baldwin's successor Guto Bebb revealed that £12.7M had been allocated from the EU Exit Preparedness Fund to preserve the three Batch 1 ships, should they be needed to control and enforce UK waters and fisheries following the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union.
On 22 November 2018, Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson, announced that three Batch 1 River-class ships would be retained in service and forward operated from their affiliated ports.


Equator (schooner)

Equator was a two-masted pygmy trading schooner that in 1889 carried passengers Robert Louis Stevenson and Fanny Vandegrift Stevenson on a voyage through the islands of Micronesia. They visited Butaritari, Mariki, Apaiang and Abemama in the Gilbert Islands (also known as the Kingsmills), now Kiribati. Photographs of Stevenson's voyage exist.
Originally built in San Francisco in 1888 as a copra trader, "Equator" was converted to steam in 1897 and eventually abandoned in the harbor at Everett, Washington in 1957. The vessel was Everett's first artifact placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. The remains of the hull are protected by a shed near the Port of Everett's Marina Park. Several attempts to rebuild the ship have failed, and restoration is considered unlikely. Built in Benicia, California, she is the last surviving hull of that time period known to exist. In her career she worked under sail, steam, gasoline, and diesel power. She worked copra, fish, tug and support for the Geodetic Survey. Because of her shoal draft she could get close on shore where other vessels couldn't go.