Fujairah Anchorage

The Merchant Marine Express mentioned the crowded anchorage off the Port of Fujarah in his post "We're on our way home"

The anchorage was teaming with vessels from across the globe. We estimated there were in excess of two hundred-plus ships

I was anchored in Fujairah, last trip, there were a lot of anchored ships there. This photo is the radar, it's on twelve mile scale. The yellow blips are ships. The Port of Fujairah is on the left side of the scope. The red box is one of the designated anchorages. At the west end of the anchorage the ships were anchored about 0.7 miles apart. The east end of the anchorage is less crowded but the depths at that end is over 100 meters.


Radar display Fujairah (photo by K.C.)
By radar it looks impossible to weave you way though, visually it is not nearly as bad.

Fujairah Anchorage (photo by K.C.) K.C

Are Car Ships Ugly?

Cepheus Leader - Leader Class PCTC (photo from NYK Logistics Calendar)
Many mariners claim car ships are ugly. (and here, part 2) Below is a bunker ship alongside in Gibraltar - Form follows function, it is designed to deliver bunkers in the port of Gibraltar. I wouldn't say it's ugly but it's no beauty.

Bunker ship SPABunker Twenty coming alongside in Gibraltar (Photo by K.C.)

The bow of the SPA Bunker 20 is built from two flat pieces of steel , not too graceful. I don't think she ever hits over 8 kts.


At the site Ugly Ships, the post Livestock Carriers (part 2) Seabart says about livestock carriers:

I think theses (livestock) ships are as ugly, if not more, as the ugliest ships in the world: carcarriers.

Below is a livestock ship, this one had a second house added forward during its conversion.

Livestock ship - Photo by amateur_photo_bore
It is not a good looking ship. As ugly as a car ship? Ouch.

People often say carships look like a giant box, below is a "box boat".

Container ship - Photo from Wikipedia

If you moved the house forward and include the containers, the profile is very similar to a car ship. Above the water line both are box-like, cargo is easy to fit in a box. What is more box-like then a box? I never though containers ships were good looking.

Next, here is another common ship - the LNG carrier.

LNG Ship (photo from Wikipedia)
For liquid under high pressure a sphere is the ideal shape, not many people would say a LNG ship is good looking.

Here is another photo of a Leader Class Car Ship.


Leader Class PCTC upbound Westerschelde River (photo by K.C.)
No nonsense, it was built to cross oceans, it's capacity is 6500 standard (RT43 Type) size cars, the stern ramp is rated at 150 tons, the ramps inside can handle two way traffic, if you want to move Roll on / Roll off cargo, this is the way to do it.

The shape changes drastically at the waterline,

A Leader Class out of the waster (Photo by K.C.)
Above the waterline, it's about cargo capacity, below, it's about water resistance.

I think the reason people think car ships are ugly is that when people look at a conventional ship they don't really look at it, it doesn't attract notice. Most people would never give the ship below a second look.

Container ship Alongside (Hirokura Co., Ltd. Photo)
A car ship on the other hand, towers above us, the visual impact of the steel sides commands attention and its non-traditional looks demands that we form an opinion.

Leader Class PCTC Alongside (photo by K.C.)
But is it ugly? Compared to most of the merchant fleet today, I say, have another look.




K.C.

Crew of Bulker Ariana Threatened

Lloyd's List is reporting that pirates are threatning to kill the crew of the Bulker Ariana when the ship runs out of fuel.

Back in September the Kiev Ukraine News blog reported on the grim conditons on board, the cook suffered a misscarriage with no medical assistance, there is no fresh water, the food consists of rotten rice.

The Austrailan World News reports that another captured ship the MV KOTA WAJAR has supplied fuel to the Ariana.

K.C.

GPS - Possible Brownout?

Is GPS in danger of "browning out"?

James Fallows, - From Bad news, good news on the air-traffic beat

"further evidence that the worldwide GPS system, which is run by the US government and on which everything from airline navigation to iPhone mapping apps relies, is at risk of "browning out."

The original source is Avionics Magazine - Fixing GPS.

K.C.

"War & Women" - Leadership and Sailing

A writer starting a post: "Patrolling Iraq's Route Lincoln, the major east-west highway between Baghdad and Ramadi, is no picnic." (War and Women - Lady Killer) based on first hand experience has my attention. The author, Alexander Martin, has a post about sailing and leadership:

I have taken liberty of cutting and pasting excerpts from the post The Culture of Excellence:

Leadership is about listening. I learned that racing sail boats as a Midshipman. Sailing puts you outside of your comfort zone and forces you to make decisions under pressure, and act quickly and decisively. Sailing requires intellect and teamwork and heart.

During a race the skipper is like the platoon commander, section leader, or flight lead.

In my time as a sailor, I’ve noticed two methods of calling tactics. Some skippers observe all that goes on around him – the shifting winds, the opposition, his own crew – and makes a call: tack, jibe, come into the wind, fall off...

Other skippers observe these same conditions, and ask... “Portside, how’s the trim?” “Mastman, how’s the tension?” “Helmsman, what do you see?” He gets input for what each professional at that position is feeling – and demands this participation from each level – and then calls his tactics based on his determinations and the observations of his crew.

I prefer to lead a platoon by the second method.

Commander’s intent is critical in small unit leadership because it expresses what you must accomplish, but does not dictate how it must be accomplished.

The small unit commander must deliver a crystal clear task, purpose and end-state with all orders he gives. “Here’s what you are to do, here’s why I need you to do it, and here’s what I need it all to look like when you’re finished.” Notice the small unit commander must avoid dictating HOW the mission is to be accomplished; he must leave that aspect, as much as his senior commander and the situation permit, to his subordinate leaders.

The blog is War and Women. I learned about it from Modern Day Pirate Tales.

K.C.

Ship Yard Photos - What is it?

Sandblasting the hull at ASRY (photo by KC)
If Hell is as hot as ASRY shipyard in Bahrain is in August I sure hope I don't go there when I die, to hell I mean, or to ASRY either come to think of it. I may even reform just to be on the safe side.


Below is a photo of a piece from the ship being overhauled. The gear teeth transmit 2000 horse power. The rod sticking out to the left is hydraulic controlled from the wheelhouse.


What is it?(photo by KC)

Below is a good clue, this is the business end, where the rubber hits the road so to speak.

Blades (photo by KC)
If you still scratching your head, here is a photo showing the location of the equipment in question during normal operations.

From the bottom of graving dock (photo by KC)

From this angle 2000 horsepower doesn't seem like so much.

Again from the bottom of graving dock, further aft(photo by KC)
It's the bow thruster of course. All three of the ship's generators have to be online to run it, even then the lights blink when we first energize it.

It is controllable pitch, the blades rotate continuously when it is online for mooring operations. The amount and direction of thrust is controlled hydraulically from the bridge.

If winds and current are light and the ship is already pointed the right direction, no spinning around required, sometimes we depart port with only one tug. Even with two tugs it is still nice to have. I use it for anchoring if there is more then a little wind. Better to have it, and not need it, then need it, and not have it, as they say.

K.C.