Ships Monthly July 2022

92

E PAG PER

BUM ISSUE

AIRCRAFT CARRIERS A century of naval aviation from Argus to Prince of Wales

28 PAGE SPECIAL FEATURE JULY 2022 www.shipsmonthly.com

A CENTURY OF

AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

David Hobbs looks back over a century of aircraft carrier development, starting with HMS Argus in 1918, up to HMS Prince of Wales of the 21st century.

All images are copyright David Hobbs

unless otherwise stated

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Page 3 welcome_NL.indd 3

USS Nimitz (CVN-68) is one of the US Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.

WELCOME TO A SPECIAL ISSUE

W

elcome to this special issue of Ships Monthly celebrating a century of naval air power. This is a bumper 92-page edition, which includes a 28-page exclusive feature on the history and development of the aircraft carrier.

We are fortunate that naval expert David Hobbs has produced a fascinating piece, which traces a century of carrier development from the end of World War I, when the first true carrier HMS Argus entered service, right up to the introduction of the new carriers HMS

Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, the largest ships ever built for the Royal Navy. During the 20th century the carrier became the most formidable naval weapon, exemplified by the US Navy’s nuclear-powered craft.

The cover price for this very special issue has been increased but it reverts to the regular £4.80 with next month’s issue.

I hope you enjoy the read!

Contributors this month David Hobbs

Geoff Lunn

David Hobbs served in the Royal Navy for 33 years. On leaving the Navy he was Curator of the Fleet Air Arm Museum for eight years and is now a naval historian.

Geoff Lunn has been fascinated by ships from a young age. He has written several books and numerous magazine articles of maritime interest.

Allan E. Jordan

Jim Shaw

Allan Jordan is a maritime historian and writer who specialises in the history of 20th century passenger ships, particularly the early cruise ships.

Jim Shaw is a retired engineer who has worked at various locations around the world and has always had a deep interest in ships and shipping.

Nicholas Leach Editor sm.ed@kelsey.co.uk

Ships Monthly on Facebook REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Krispen Atkinson • Gary Davies • William Mayes • Russell Plummer • Jim Shaw • Conrad Waters

SUBSCRIBE TO

SHIPS MONTHLY SEE PAGE 20 FOR LATEST OFFERS Also available digitally Kelsey Media takes your personal data very seriously. For more information of our privacy policy, please visit www. kelsey.co.uk/privacy-policy. If at any point you have any queries regarding Kelsey’s data policy you can email our Data Protection Officer at dpo@kelsey.co.uk www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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The Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales in Portsmouth in January. See pages 33 to 60 for a full history of aircraft carriers over the past century. MARITIME PHOTOGRAPHIC

CONTENTS COVER

REGULARS

6 WATERFRONT

Silja Line celebrates 65 years on the Baltic, world’s first emission-free pushtug, and new toll rates proposed for the Panama Canal.

farewell to various RN ships, and US Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships. Gary Davies

16 CARGO

Swire Shipping acquires Westwood, protestors prevent berthing on the Thames, and US shipbreaker gains EU vessel.

18 PRESERVATION

HMS Caroline to stay in Belfast, Swiss paddler returns to service, and training vessel preserved in the Netherlands. John Megoran

10 FERRY

P&O Ferries resume two-ship service at Dover, Berlin has rotor sail fitted, and Galicia bound set for Irish route. Russell Plummer COVER Carnival’s latest cruise ship Mardi Gras pictured off San Juan. For a full history of the famous cruise company see page 67. DANNY LEHMAN

ALSO AVAILABLE DIGITALLY WWW.POCKETMAGS.COM

12 CRUISE

Royal Caribbean fleet sets sail again, funnel fire on Carnival Freedom, and changes afoot for various Genting ships. William Mayes

14 NAVAL

Jacques Chevallier launched for the French,

29 SHIPS PICTORIAL

Photos of ships around the world, including on the Forth and the Thames, and at Calais, Portland and Southampton.

SUBSCRIBE TODAY • See page 20 for more info Contents_NL.indd 4

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WWW.SHIPSMONTHLY.COM

FEATURES 74 SOVIET SHIPS part 2 Ships of the Soviet Union’s merchant fleet between 1967 and 1991, when the Soviet Union was broken up. Malcolm Cranfield

NAVAL FOCUS

33

78 MARITIME MOSAIC

Photo feature showing some of the ferries that have visited Rosslare recently. Patric Healy

22 DECARBONISE DRIVE

New fuels to ‘decarbonise’ the shipping industry, such as wind, electrical and solar. Jim Shaw

26 HUMBER BULKERS

80 TILBURY TERMINAL

In 2020 Tilbury Landing Stage marked its 90th anniversary, and over the nine decades it has of hosted many famous ships. Geoff Lunn

Among the many and varied ships to visit the busy Humber estuary are bulkers. Talbot Clark

62 COOK STRAIT FERRIES

The Cook Strait between New Zealand’s North and South Islands is crossed by various ferries.

67 CARNIVAL 50 YEARS

A look back over half a century of Carnival Cruise Line, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in March 2022. Allan E. Jordan

86 CHARTROOM

Readers’ pages, including letters (p.86), the mystery ship (p.87), and reviews of some of the latest maritime publications and books (p.88).

28-PAGE SPECIAL

A CENTURY OF

AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

David Hobbs looks back over a century of aircraft carrier development, starting with HMS Argus in 1918, through the US Navy’s nuclear-powered ships, up to HMS Prince of Wales of the 21st century.

JULY 2022 • Volume 57 • No.7 Contents_NL.indd 5

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WATERFRONT Two more Silja Line celebrates 65 years on the Baltic Eco-Lifters NEWBUILDS

The 48,300gt cruise ferry Galaxy (2006), part of Silja Line’s current fleet, was involved in recent celebrations to mark the company’s 65th anniversary. JOHN PAGNI

Hamburg-based United Heavy Lift (UHL) has ordered an additional two F900 Eco-Lifter newbuilds from the China State Shipbuilding Corporation’s shipyard in Hudong, China after having taken delivery of 17 of the fuel-efficient ships since 2019. The latest vessels, to have a lifting capacity of 900 metric tons, are scheduled for delivery in 2023 and 2024 and will feature high- and low-pressure SCR catalysts to meet IMO Tier III requirements. JS

FERRY ANNIVERSARY

 The China State Shipbuilding Corp has been contracted to build two more F900 class heavylift vessels for Germany’s United Heavy Lift. UHL

For its 65th anniversary on 20 May, Silja Line had special ‘Silja 65’ menus, cocktails and other features for those passengers who were on board aboard its five Baltic vessels.

Back in 1957, the company had very different Finnish ownership to its status today which, since 2006, has been as a brand of Estonia’s Tallink.

The 1970s and 1980s saw more owners come and go along with experimentation on routes to Germany with Finnjet, St Petersburg and Tallinn as well as Baltic summer cruising. For many decades Silja Line has focussed on its original Finland-Sweden services connecting Helsinki and Turku with the Swedish capital of Stockholm via stopovers for duty free in Åland.

The route between the two capitals is operated by the venerable Silja Serenade and Silja Symphony (58,377gt) built 1990 and 1991 in Helsinki and Turku respectively. The Turku-ÅlandStockholm route also has two ships: the 2004-built Galaxy 48,915gt and sistership Baltic Princess, which was put together in Helsinki with half the hull being made in France.

Silent passage in the fjords Sovcomflot offloads tonnage COASTAL CRUISE Havila Kystruten’s newest ship, the 15,519gt Havila Castor, made history in the Geirangerfjord on 2 June by operating the first zero emission cruise through the world heritage fjord. Havila Kystruten’s ships are claimed to be the most environmentally friendly operating along the Norwegian coast.

With a battery pack of 6.1MWh, the world’s largest battery pack on a passenger ship, the ship can sail up to four hours on pure battery power.

In combination with LNG, CO2 emissions from Havila Castor and her sisterships are reduced by 30 per cent and NOX emissions by 90 per cent compared to similar vessels that use fossil fuel.

The tanker Lomonosov Prospect, pictured off Singapore, has recently been sold and renamed Adam. KRISPEN ATKINSON

INDUSTRY NEWS

 Havila Castor in Geirangerfjord on 2 June undertaking the first voyage in the famous fjord which was emission-free and silent.

Against a backdrop of restricted trading as a result of EU, US and British sanctions imposed on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s largest shipowner, Sovcomflot, has begun shedding tonnage in a bid to repay western finance providers ahead of sanctions on the institutions.

In early May, a number of ships were touted by shipbrokers: among

these were the 2004-built 47,000dwt product tanker Pamir and Elbrus, six LNG tankers currently on charter to Shell, and four 113,000dwt LNG-fuelled Aframax tankers.

The four sisters, built by Hyundai Samho and part of the so-called ‘green funnel fleet’, were among the first large cargo-carrying vessels powered by gas. They were chartered to Shell, and have been picked up by Evangelos Marinakis’ Capital Maritime & Trading. KA

6 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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news news

NEWBUILD

Being operated by Germany’s Berliner Hafen- und Lagerhausgesellschaft (BEHALA), the pushtug Elektra and her barge Ursus have begun testing operations, the tug’s large hydrogen tanks being carried at the stern, her fuel cells located behind the pilot house and her battery banks carried deep within the hull.

World’s first emission-free pushtug on trial TECHNOLOGY The world’s first emission-free pushtug, the 20m by 8.2m Elektra, has been begun long-term testing operations in Germany following completion by the Hermann Barthel GmbH shipyard at Derben. Driven by two Schottel type SRP 100 Rudderpropellers, the innovative vessel makes use of battery-electric

power combined with hydrogen and fuel cell technology.

With 750kg of gaseous hydrogen on board (stored at a pressure of 500 bar) and a battery capacity of 2,500 kilowatt hours, the tug has a range of about 400km when pushing a loaded barge at a speed of around ten kmh. Designed to operate on the waterways of Berlin in the direction of the Rhine/Ruhr,

Costa Venezia moves to the Med CRUISE NEWS As Asian countries continue strict enforcement measures in an attempt to contain the latest Covid wave, cruise companies have shifted some ships to Europe in order to get them back to work. One such is Costa Venezia, despite the fact that the ship was purpose-built and designed for the Chinese market.

Although the fourth in the Vista class vessels, she is, along with sister Costa Firenza, specifically planned to be based in Shanghai.

When the ship was handed over

by Fincantieri’s Monfalcone yard in March 2019, the first tryout cruise was from Trieste to Dubrovnik.

Her maiden voyage from 8 March to 29 April was a 53-day ‘world cruise’ transfer from Italy to Tokyo. However, China went into lockdown and the ship was idle. Now the 135,225gt ship will be based in Istanbul from 2022 to 2024 and Costa has announced eight- to 15-day cruises focusing on the Turkish coast and Greek islands plus Piraeus-Athens. JP

The 4,208-passenger Costa Venezia, which entered service in March 2019, is scheduled to remain in European waters until November. She was designed for the Chinese market. JOHN PAGNI

Hamburg and Stettin, the boat will replenish her green hydrogen tanks and have her batteries recharged at stations located in Berlin’s Westhafen and at Lüneburg.

The testing project, due for completion in 2024, is being funded

by Germany’s Ministry for Digital and Transport and is being supported by the National Organization for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology. JS

Despite its invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s Defence Ministry has taken delivery of the 81m by 16m oceanographic research ship Yevgeny Gorigledzhan from the Baltic Shipyard Yantar, part of Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation. The 4,000-tonne displacement Project 02670 vessel, designed by the Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau for the Defense Ministry’s Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research (GUGI), has an endurance range of 30 days and can accommodate a crew of 32 plus up to 25 ‘researchers’. JS

 The oceanographic research vessel Yevgeny Gorigledzhan has been delivered to Russia’s Defence Ministry after Baltic trials. YANTAR

The recently launched Hagland Pioneer is scheduled to be delivered to Hagland Shipping early next year following final outfitting. ROYAL BODEWES

Newbuilds for Hagland BULK CARRIERS Dutch shipyard Royal Bodewes has launched the IMO Tier III-compliant bulk carrier Hagland Pioneer for future delivery to Norwegian shipowner Hagland Shipping as a series of two ships being built at a coast of $32.9 million.

Ordered to replace existing tonnage in the Hagland fleet, the

new 5,000dwt battery-hybrid ships will reduce CO2 emission by more than 30 per cent and NOx emissions by 90-95 percent when compared to the company’s existing vessels. The Haugesundbased shipowner is also working with Norway’s NOAH to retrofit its existing ten-year-old bulker Hagland Captain to run on battery-hybrid power. JS www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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New Russian research ship

7

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WATERFRONT NEWS IN BRIEF MOROCCO OPENS After a two-year ban on passenger traffic from Spain due to the Covid pandemic and Moroccan political problems, sailings by Balaeria, FRS, InterShipping and Africa Morocco Link to North Africa resumed in May with only Armas-Trasmediterranea vessels missing. This was due in part to pressure to remove the wreck of abandoned ferry Assalama (1967/6,317gt), which sank after hitting a breakwater at the port of Tarfaya in 2008. RP BIG INCREASE Finland’s Tallink Group’s April figures for passengers and vehicles on routes between Finland and Estonia, Finland and Sweden plus Estonia-Sweden made huge leap from the Covid-affected totals in the same month in 2021. A 2022 total of 465,945 passengers compared to just 84,347 last year, an increase of 452 per cent, while vehicle totals went up 127 per cent from 2021’s 26,823 to 61,083. RP SUEZ CANAL RECORD Egypt’s Suez Canal recorded its highest monthly revenue to date during April when $629 million in ship transit fees were recorded as traffic continued to rebound from the impact of Covid.

A total of 1,929 ships passed through the 120-mile waterway during the month, carrying 114.5 million tonnes of cargo. JS NYK ORDERS THIRD Japan’s NYK group has ordered a third dual-fuel LPG/liquefied ammonia gas (NH3) carrier from Kawasaki Heavy Industries for delivery in 2024. Like the first two 230m by 37.2m vessels ordered (see SM, April 2021), the latest 86,700m3 capacity ship will be equipped with separate cargo tanks designed to carry LPG and ammonia at the same time, while the main engine will be capable of burning LPG as fuel with a notation that it may burn ammonia in the future. The new tanker will also have a shaft generator that can generate electricity by using the rotation of the shaft that connects the main engine to the propeller. JS

New toll rates proposed for the Panama Canal SHIPPING CANAL The Panama Canal Authority has proposed a comprehensive restructuring of its toll system which would reduce the current structure of 430 tariffs to fewer than 60 and focus more on vessel capacity by 2025. Ships would also pay different fees for using the older or newer locks.

Under the proposed toll structure, which would be gradually implemented from January 2023 to early 2025, an LPG carrier transporting 46,000 tons of propane through the canal’s new locks would pay $5.20 more per ton by 2025, while a tanker carrying 450,000 barrels of crude petroleum through the original locks would see an increase of $0.20 per barrel.

Car carriers, chemical tankers and bulk carriers would also see higher tariffs, as would passenger ships and container vessels. A 2,200-passenger cruise ship transiting the original set of locks

 New toll rates proposed by the Panama Canal Authority could result in an increase of $77 per person for cruise ship passengers. P. JASPERDO

would see a total increase of $77 per person, which would increase final ticket price by about four per cent per passenger.

Container ships would see increases of around eight per cent over current fees, which would mean that a vessel carrying 9,000

containers and loaded to 90 per cent capacity using the newer expanded locks would see a total increase of about $6 per container. The canal authority has been gathering public comment on the proposed changes with no changes expected to be made until January 2023. JS

Another pioneer from Allseas Euronav and NODULE MINER The Swiss-based Allseas Group is well known for its 1,000,000-tonne displacement Pioneering Spirit, the world’s largest ship, but it now has another pioneering vessel, the 61,042dwt Hidden Gem, the world’s largest subsea miner.

Converted out of the former Petrobras-owned ultra-deepwater drillship Vitoria 10000, the 228m by 42m Hidden Gem has been specifically equipped to collect polymetallic nodules from the

ocean floor. She will do this by lowering a 12m-long nodule collector vehicle to the sea bottom, which will harvest and feed the nodules to a 4.3km-long riser that will bring them up through the vessel’s existing moonpool.

They will then be transported ashore for processing, the resulting base metals to be used for battery manufacturing.

Allseas’ partner in the project, and the developer of some of the technology, is Vancouver-based The Metals Company (TMC). JS

Converted from a former deepwater drill ship, the 61,042dwt Hidden Gem has been specifically equipped to collect polymetallic nodules from the ocean floor. ALLSEAS

Frontline merge COMPANY NEWS During their AGM in May, Euronav’s shareholders voted against the admission of three representatives of the Saverys family’s CMB (Compagnie Maritime Belgie). The move had been an attempt by the Belgiumbased family to maintain control of the company, who are opposed to a planned merger of the company with John Frederiksen’s Frontline.

The vote allows for the merger, which was announced in April, to go ahead. The merged entity, which will continue as Frontline, will see a fleet of 69 VLCCs, 57 Suezmax tankers and 20 Aframax/ LR2 size tankers. KA

 The 2008-built tanker Cap Theodora at Istanbul. KRISPEN ATKINSON

8 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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news news

TUG INCIDENT

UAL BOCS Shipping sees fleets merged MULTIPURPOSE SHIPS UAL BOCS Shipping has been formed to utilise the multipurpose general cargo fleets of the Germanbased Bremen Overseas Chartering and Shipping (BOCS) and DutchUniversal Africa Lines (UAL).

Based at Capelle a/d IJssel, the operation will continue UAL’s existing Mediterranean service, bringing in extra tonnage from the German operator. The joint venture will control 19 geared multipurpose vessels of between 8,000 and 33,000dwt.

BOCS was founded in 1990,

operating between Northern Europe and West Africa, with offices in Bremen, Hamburg, Douala, Libreville and Abidjan, while UAL was formed in 1973, concentrates on serving the oil and gas industry, in trades from Europe and US Gulf coast to West Africa. KA

Trapezium-shaped hull for new hydrogen tanker

The Canadian city of Thunder Bay, Ontario is seeking proposals from local companies to raise the 117-year-old tugboat James Whalen from the Kaministiquia River after the historic vessel took on water and sank in late April.

Built in 1905 by the Bertram Engine Works at Toronto, Ontario, the 108ft by 24ft vessel has been on display at the city since 1992, but the vessel took on water and was partially submerged last winter. A submersible pump was then installed but was removed before this winter’s freeze-up to avoid damage.

Unfortunately, it was not reinstalled because of consistently cold temperatures in the area which had kept the sump in the tug frozen. Rapidly warming temperatures then resulted in a quick thaw, during which the boat took on a significant amount of water and resubmerged. JS

 LH2 Europe’s green hydrogen tanker will make use of a trapezium-shaped hull supporting three cryogenic storage tanks while being powered by hydrogen fuel cells. C-JOB

NEW TECHNOLOGY Among a number of designs being drawn up for liquid hydrogen tankers is one by Netherlands-based C-Job Naval Architects that would feature a trapezium-shaped hull supporting three cryogenic storage tanks of 12,500m3 capacity each.

The 141.75m by 34.9m vessel

would be employed by Amsterdambased LH2 Europe to move liquid hydrogen from Scotland to Germany and would be powered by hydrogen fuel cells capable of utilising a small potion of the hydrogen being transported. The trapezium-shaped hull design was selected as it creates enough deck space to hold the tanks without the need for ballast.

Kitty Hawk arrives for recycling NAVAL NEWS The decommissioned US Navy aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk, formerly CVA-63, docked at the Port of Brownsville, Texas on 31 May after a 16,000-mile trip from Bremerton, Washington, around the tip of South America, prior to her recycling. She had left Puget Sound Naval Shipyard under tow on 15 January

International Shipbreaking Ltd, part of the EMR Group, held a public arrival ceremony at the Cameron County Amphitheatre at Isla Blanca Park on South Padre Island, Texas, to honour the vessel and the tens of thousands of veterans who served on the ship throughout her 48 years of service. Kitty Hawk is International Shipbreaking’s fourth US Navy supercarrier recycling project.

While LNG tankers use ballast water to compensate for the loss of weight after cargo delivery to ensure enough draught, liquid hydrogen is 20 times lighter than LNG thus ballast is not needed.

The 14-knot vessel, to have zero greenhouse gas emissions during operation, is projected to be in service by 2027. JS

 The 117-year-old Canadian tugboat James Whalen rests partially submerged at Thunder Bay, Ontario after she suffered an ingress of water during the spring thaw. A. AULD

Kitty Hawk, which commissioned in 1961, arrives at Brownsville, Texas ready to be recycled by International Shipbreaking, which won the US Navy’s contract to handle the 60,000-ton vessel.

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Historic tug sinks in Canada

The 2011-built UAL Africa on the Scheldte in September 2016. KRISPEN ATKINSON

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FERRY

Russell Plummer

NEWS IN BRIEF SINGLE NAME Since 25 April CLdN has become the common brand name for all companies in the Belgian group, with individual names CLdN RoRo, CLdN Cargo and C-Ro Ports dropped after work to integrate ro-ro ships, ports and door-to-door activities. CLdN is concentrating on door-to-door and quay-to-quay transport using their own vessels, trailers, containers and infrastructure.

LUNDY SAILINGS Passenger ferry Oldenburg, operated by the Lundy Company, made a first 2022 visit to the island on 29 March and will return up to four times a week from Bideford or Ilfracombe until the autumn.

The 267-passenger vessel was built for German domestic work in 1958 and has been serving the Bristol Channel since 1975.

Sailing information is available online: www.lundyisland.co.uk.

WORK BEGINS The first steel for the tenth Stena E-Flexer vessel was cut on 16 May and, when completed at the China Merchants Jinling Yard in Weihai, the dual-fuel LNG/batterypowered vessel will be chartered for five years to Canadian operator Marine Atlantic.

EXTRA VESSEL Optima Seaways (1999/25,206gt) has been brought in as third unit on DFDS’s increasingly busy FranceIreland route linking Dunkirk with Rosslare and made a first sailing westbound on 11 May.

Two-ship Dover-Calais service resumes

Spirit of Britain approaching Calais. Her first freight-only sailing to Calais departed at 2300 on 26 April. MARITIME PHOTOGRAPHIC

P&O FERRIES After being at a standstill following the dismissal of 800 seagoing staff in mid-March, P&O Ferries’ hopes of resuming Dover-Calais services through the Easter period came to nothing, and it was 26 April before Spirit of Britain (2011/47,592gt) began offering freight-only crossings with a 2300 departure.

Passengers and cars were carried from 3 May and Spirit of Britain was joined by Pride of Kent

(1992/30,635gt), which successfully came through Maritime and Coastguard Agency tests at the fourth attempt. Each vessel made a total of four daily round trips but there was no news of when P&O’s two remaining large Dover ferries, Spirit of France (2012/47,592gt) and Pride of Kent (1992/30,635gt), would be coming back on stream.

DFDS Seaways and Irish Ferries vessels continued to sail on normal schedules, but the port and areas in Dover became highly congested at

various times, and Operation Brock continued, with waiting trucks held on sections of the M20 Motorway.

Restrictions were removed after the end of the Platinum Bank Holiday period on 5 June.

P&O’s Irish Sea North Channel service from Cairnryan to Larne resumed in early April when European Causeway (2000/20,646gt) received MCA clearance and was joined by sister ship European Highlander (2002/21,128gt) on 23 April.

Berlin has rotor sail fitted SCANDLINES Aiming to be operating a fleet that is emissions-free by 2040, Scandlines has fitted another vessel with a Norsepower Rotor Sail.

Following the successful conversion of Rostock-Gedser route’s Copenhagen (2016/22,319gt) in 2020, work has now been completed to Rotor-fit sistership Berlin, which was also delivered

from the P&S Werfen yard in Germany during 2016.

Scandlines has invested more than €300 million converting conventional ferries to run as hybrid ships since 2013. Work started to upgrade the 1,300-passenger/450car Berlin, which, like Copenhagen, is powered by three CaterpillarMAK diesel engines, via installation of the 30m-high Rotor Sail. This is the latest version of the Flettner

 Scandlines vessel Copenhagen with the Rotor Tower fitted in 2020.

Rotor, with technology based on the Magnus effect. Rotor use enables Scandlines to cut back on diesel power and this reduces the associated exhaust emissions.

FERRIES IN THE NEWS . . . FERRIES IN THE NEWS . . . FERRIES IN THE NEWS . . . FERRIES IN THE NEWS . . .

CHINA DELIVERY CIMC Raffles handed over the world’s largest ice-rated multi-fuel con-ro vessel Botnia Enabler to operator Wallenius Sol on 13 May. Sister vessel Baltic Enabler is due to follow later in the year from the Longkow Yard near Yantai, China.

NEW PIER Uber at Thames Clippers has moved further east, opening a 24th pier on London’s historic main waterway at Barking Riverside, where a former industrial site has been developed into a community of 10,000 homes. Services reach North Greenwich in 20 minutes and Canary Wharf in 40 minutes, while passengers are taken to Tower Pier in 51 minutes. Now operating a total of 16 boats, Thames Clippers started operations in 1999 and have been working with Uber since 2020.

REGULA Veteran TS Laevad ferry Regula (1971/3,774gt) is in for a busy summer after the Estonian Transport Administration approved the 800-passenger vessel making more than 500 extra sailings on the Virtsu-Kuivastu route from June to the end of August.

STAFF PROBLEMS Red Funnel’s Southampton-West Cowes Red Jet passenger services were affected by lack of qualified personnel during April. The fast craft Red Jet 7 (2018/363gt) missed the 1215 sailing to the Isle of Wight on 6 April before afternoon/evening circuits by Red Jet 4 (2003/342gt) were also cancelled. Then only a single craft service could be provided on 12 and 13 April. The Raptor class vessels were unaffected.

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RUDNIKI SHIPPING

Brittany Ferries’ first Stena E-Flexer vessel, Galicia, will move to the Rosslare-Bilbao route. MARITIME PHOTOGRAPHIC

Galicia bound for service on Irish route BRITTANY FERRIES In April it was announced that Galicia (2020/41,671gt), Brittany Ferries’ first E-Flexer, will be moved to the Ireland-Spain route linking Rosslare with Bilbao in November while retaining her French crew and before the third vessel from the China-built series arrives to replace her when joining sistership Salamanca, introduced back in late March, on services from

Portsmouth to Spain and France.

Announcing the 1,015-passenger Galicia’s route change during a visit to Rosslare, Brittany Ferries president Jean-Marc Roue said: ‘There is no doubt that Rosslare-Bilbao has been successful and we are pleased with the way Irish hauliers have embraced it. Galicia will continue to provide a strong freight offering. Our research has also indicated a demand from Irish people wanting to visit Spain and Galicia will certainly make for a far

more enjoyable experience for them.’

The Bilbao service was started by ro-pax vessel Connemara (2007/27,414gt) in February 2020, primarily handling freight, but demand from passengers wanting to take their cars to Spain, as well as visitors from Northern Spain heading for Ireland, soon developed.

Brittany Ferries have also signed a long-term agreement with Titan LNG for supply of fuel to the pair of hybrid E-Flexer vessels.

Tallink Group subsidiary Tallinn Swedish Line has sold Sea Wind (1972/15,879gt) to Gdansk-based Polish operator Rudniki Shipping, with the vessel, originally built at Helsingør, Denmark and much altered since, handed over on 26 April. She was renamed A Wind and registered at Palu, Indonesia.

Originally Rederi Svea’s Svealand, she was bought by Johnson Line of Sweden in 1981 and extensively altered by HDW in Kiel, with new MAK diesel engines and lengthening from 118m to 154m.

She was renamed Sea Wind in 1983, and was recently used on the Baltic’s Muuga-Vuosaari cargo route.

 Sea Wind, with half a century of service, has gone to Rudniki.

Dublin-Cherbourg route switch IRISH FERRIES The largest fleet vessel in the Irish Ferries fleet, W.B. Yeats (2018/51,388gt), had to go to the Harland and Wolff Yard in Belfast for a week from 2 May to have a new upper bow door fitted after suffering damage during a Dublin-Cherbourg crossing when she was hit by severe weather. The chartered Greek ferry Blue Star 1 (2000/29,415gt) was moved from the Rosslare-Pembroke Dock run to deputise, starting on 3 May.

This brought first commercial visits to France for the 1,890-passenger/640-car Attica Group-owned vessel, built by Van der Giessen de-Noord at Krimpen, near Rotterdam. During her absence, the Pembroke service was suspended temporarily, with some traffic switched to Stena Line’s Rosslare-Fishguard link.

Previously, absences of W.B. Yeats had been covered by Epsilon (2011/26,375gt), but this time the Visentini-built vessel remained on the Holyhead-Dublin route.

Blue Star 1 on her regular Pembroke-Rosslare route. NICHOLAS LEACH

A 15-strong team using two heavylift cranes fitting the bow section of Hull 802. CALMAC

Ferguson Marine milestone HULL 802 A major milestone in the muchdelayed completion of the pair of dual-fuel vessels for service with Caledonian MacBrayne was achieved at the Ferguson Marine yard shipyard in Port Glasgow in April when the second ship, still known only as Hull 802, was fitted with its largest steel hull unit, a 100-tonne bow section.

The major operation involved a 15-strong team and two heavylift

cranes before the hull work was completed to make way for installation of the ferry’s aluminium superstructure during the summer. The operation involved around 150 people in total.

Both vessels are now scheduled for completion during 2023, with Glen Sannox for the Arran service expected between March and May. Hull 802, intended for Western Isles operations, is due to follow between October and December. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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Veteran on the move

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CRUISE

William Mayes

Troon visitor AURORA EXPEDITIONS The small 2019-built cruise ship Greg Mortimer, which is usually employed on Arctic itineraries, has been undertaking a Wild Scotland cruise, which departed Edinburgh and ended at Aberdeen, and included stops at the small Ayrshire port of Troon, which only handles smaller cruise ships. Greg Mortimer is the first passenger ship to feature the Ulstein X-Bow design, which is intended to make for a more comfortable ride. She accommodates 132 passengers per voyage in 76 cabins.

 Greg Mortimer departs the small Scottish port of Troon on 27 May, heading for Iona. JAMES PRENTICE

Welcome back as full fleet sets sail

Rhapsody of the Seas completes Royal Caribbean’s return to service

ROYAL CARIBBEAN When Quantum of the Seas came back into service in December 2020, it seemed likely that a full resumption of Royal Caribbean cruising would take a few months, but it has actually taken rather longer.

More than two years after the initial wind-down and almost 18 months since the first ships returned to service, the last ship

Change afoot for Genting ships RESORTS WORLD The former owner of the recently failed Genting Hong Kong, the Lim family, has extended its resorts business into cruising just months after the collapse of the previous business. The new Resorts World Cruises has managed to charter one of the ships of the earlier business, Genting Dream, laid down in 2015, from the consortium of banks to which the ship was sold prior to the liquidation.

RWC is also believed to be interested in acquiring Global Dream, the 200,000gt,

9,000-passenger vessel that was under construction for Dream Cruises in Germany.

Another former Genting Hong Kong ship, which had previously been operated by Star Cruises, appears to have been sold to the German-based religious organisation OM Ships. The Taipan (1991/3,370gt) was the smallest ship in the Star fleet, and is now destined for a new life as a floating bookshop under the name Doulos Hope. Conversion work on the ship will be undertaken in an as-yet-unnamed Asian yard and is expected to take up to 18 months.

 The Taipan will become Doulos Hope for OM Ships. WILLIAM MAYES

to come back was Rhapsody of the Seas, on 23 May. She began revenue-earning service from Civitavecchia, but will be based at a number of Mediterranean ports during the summer, including more than two months at Haifa, from where she will sail a variety of cruises to Greece and Cyprus.

Another Royal Caribbean ship, the new Wonder of the Seas, made her maiden call at Civitavecchia on

12 May. She is the fifth, and largest, ship in the Oasis of the Seas series and is currently the world’s largest ever passenger ship, with a gross tonnage of 236,857.

The final ship in the series, Utopia of the Seas, is expected to be slightly larger. Larger still will be new Icon of the Seas, due out in 2023. Royal Caribbean has confirmed that this class will be larger than the Oasis class.

Funnel fire on Freedom CARNIVAL While Carnival Freedom was docking at Grand Turk on the morning of 26 May, adjacent to the company’s latest ship, Mardi Gras, a fire broke out in her funnel. Although it was quickly extinguished, there was damage to the structure. It has been reported that passengers were mustered, but later stood down, and were then allowed to go ashore. Images of the fire were carried on social media, with thousands of views of the burning funnel and the attempts being made to extinguish it.

The 2007-built ship, which was carrying around 2,500 passengers at the time, was on a five-day cruise from Port Canaveral, and the following three cruises were immediately cancelled once it was decided to send the ship to the Grand Bahama Shipyard for repairs.

The 27 May departure from Miami of Carnival Conquest was cancelled to allow that ship to sail to Grand Turk, where she arrived the following day to collect Freedom’s passengers and return

 A funnel fire destroyed the starboard wing of Carnival Freedom’s ‘whale tail’ funnel at Grand Turk Island in May. M. GILMORE

them to Port Canaveral. As a result, the following cruise on Conquest was shortened by a day.

Carnival Miracle will be dry docked in late October, leading to the cancellation of a number of cruises, although Carnival Radiance will be substituted for some cruises.

Since the gradual restart of cruising in 2021, Carnival Cruise Line had carried more than two million passengers up to mid-May.

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Odyssey finally starts her Med season ROYAL CARIBBEAN The last of the Quantum class vessels, Odyssey of the Seas, was in Piraeus late May after a 14-day repositioning cruise which involved crossing the Atlantic before she commenced her first European summer season, with itineraries based out of Civitavecchia.

The 167,704gt ship, in her distinctive hull, can carry 4,180-4,905

passengers. She was built by Meyer Werft in Papenburg, but her delivery was twice delayed by fires and the pandemic. Her delivery finally took place in March 2021, and she was formally delivered – virtually because of the pandemic – on 31 March.

Her maiden voyage the following July saw her cruising from Fort Lauderdale to the Caribbean.

Her 2021 European season was cancelled due to Covid-19.

According to RCCL, the first nine-day cruise was from Rome and took in four Greek islands, as well as Kusadasi in Turkey. From 25 May to 5 June the itinerary included calls at Haifa and Ashdod, in Israel, as well as at the Greeks islands of Rodos, Santorini, Mykonos and Crete. After this she will make repeat cruises of six to 12 days in duration, calling at the same ports in the eastern Mediterranean. JP

World Europa’s new standards Dorset caller MSC CRUISES As she enters the final stages of construction, MSC World Europa is claimed to be the greenest and most efficient vessel in MSC Cruises’ fleet. She is due to be delivered in October, and MSC Cruises recently detailed the ship’s environmental credentials, including the use of solid oxide fuel

cells, a selective catalytic reduction system and enhanced shore-to-ship power capability. She will also be the largest LNG-powered cruise ship in the world when launched.

The ship will have a 150kW SOFC demonstrator to generate auxiliary power and significantly reduce CO2 emissions. This will be a testbed to accelerate the development of fuel cell technology for cruise ships.

The new MSC World Europa will be the world’s first contemporary cruise vessel to feature brand-new solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology.

out of refit

 Queen Victoria at Portland on 30 May. PAUL DALLAWAY

CUNARD Cunard’s Queen Victoria (2007/ 90,049gt) called at the Port of Portland from Belfast following her refit at the end of May. She had been used in the Caribbean as an accommodation ship for passengers who needed to isolate from other vessels within the Carnival Group due to Covid. It was unusual to see a Cunard vessel alongside at Portland, but she had no passengers on board. Queen Victoria was scheduled to resume passenger services in June. PD

HAVILA The Russian-financed ship Havila Capella (pictured) is still laid up, with further voyage cancellations due to the inability to insure the ship, despite the company having been given a dispensation to operate the ship for six months. The financing for the sistership, Havila Castor, was rearranged with the shipyard, so that ship has not been affected.

VIKING The new Viking expedition ship, Viking Octantis, has become the largest passenger ship to transit the Welland Canal, as she began her inaugural Great Lakes cruise season. The 378-passenger ship will be joined by her sister, Viking Polaris, in the Great Lakes in 2023. Meanwhile, Viking Mars, the latest in a long line of 48,000gt ships, was named by Lady Carnarvon on 18 May. SEABOURN It has been reported that Carnival Corporation is in talks with Saudi wealth fund PIF over the sale of Seabourn to the fund, which currently holds about five per cent of Carnival Corp’s stock.

PEACEBOAT The future of Zenith (1992/47,255gt) has become uncertain following the decision by Peaceboat Organisation to cancel the ship’s itineraries. She was due to have started sailing in August, having been acquired from Royal Caribbean out of the Pullmantur fleet in 2019. She has since been laid up, latterly at Lavrion in Greece. Her sistership, Horizon, also remains laid, near Piraeus.

MIRAY CRUISES Turkish operator Miray Cruises began its 2022 season on 15 May with Gemini (1992/19,093gt), previously operated by Cunard and Star Cruises, based in Cesme. The season will run until late October.

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NEWS IN BRIEF

Odyssey of the Seas is the first RCCL ship to have her name displayed on both sides of the front half of the ship, in a logo measuring 87m in length. JOHN PAGNI

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NAVAL

Gary Davies

NEWS IN BRIEF ROYAL NAVY Babcock has won a ten-year contract to provide dry dock maintenance for the Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers. The £30 million arrangement covers both planned and contingency docking at their facility in Rosyth, where both ships were assembled. The first planned activity will take place next year, with HMS Prince of Wales due a six-week work package.

Babcock previously carried out the first dry-docking of HMS Queen Elizabeth in 2019.

ROYAL NAVY The Delivery Phase 3 part of the Dreadnought submarine programme is under way, with new contracts, awarded to BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce, worth more than £2 billion. The latest investment will initially fund the first of four planned submarines through build to sea trials, scheduled for the early 2030s. A £160 million contract has also been awarded to Raytheon UK for crew training at Faslane, where the SSBNs will be based.

INDIAN NAVY Mazagon Docks has launched two warships at a joint ceremony at Mumbai, the fourth Project 15B destroyer, Surat (Visakhapatnam class), and Udaygiri, the third Project 17A frigate (Nilgiri class). The latter shares the name of a Leander class frigate which served for three decades between 1976 and 2007. The state-owned shipyard has used block construction methods for the first time, with construction at two different geographical locations prior to final assembly.

ROK NAVY South Korea has launched four Chamsuri-II class patrol boats at a ceremony at the HJ Shipbuilding shipyard.

The Patrol boat Killer Medium Rocket (PKMR-B) is a 230-tonne patrol ship designed for coastal protection. The boats are equipped with a stern-mounted LIG Nex1 130mm guided rocket launcher and a 76mm gun. Three GE Marine’s LM500 marine gas turbines, powering water-jets, provide a top speed of 40 knots.

Jacques Chevallier, named after the naval engineer and father of French nuclear propulsion. NAVAL GROUP

That’s alright, Jacques!

Naval Group will be responsible for the integration of the combat system and other military equipment. Delivery is scheduled for the first half of 2023, with all four replenishment ships due in service by 2029.

Known in French as Bâtiments Ravitailleurs de Force, the FrancoItalian ships have a freight volume of 13,000m3 for fuel, ammunition,

spare parts and food. The French version is set to replace the Durance class, providing logistical support to French and foreign warships deployed as part of the naval air group or naval task groups. With a full load displacement of 31,000 tonnes, they are second in size only to the Marine Nationale’s aircraft carrier, nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle.

Danes boost firepower

Building bridges

FRENCH NAVY Jacques Chevallier (A725), the first of four new replenishment ships for the French Navy, has been launched at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire. Built from 20 blocks, the naval tanker was assembled in a record 50 days, due to the yard’s expertise in building large civilian vessels.

DANISH NAVY A Danish warship has fired an SM-2 Block IIIA missile for the first time.

The test was conducted by HDMS Niels Juel to prove integration of the missile with ship systems and the Mk 41 vertical launcher system at the Andøya Space Defense range in northern Norway.

The Royal Danish Navy plans to buy around 50 missiles to equip its three Iver Huitfeldt class frigates, with the system being acquired to improve Denmark’s area air

defence and NATO tasking. HDMS Niels Juel subsequently took part in exercise Mjølner 2022, during which HDMS Absalon and the Belgian Navy’s Leopold I both fired Harpoon missiles for the first time.

The SM-2 Block IIIA missile, also known as RIM 66, is a mediumrange interceptor, primarily intended to counter anti-ship missiles and aircraft out to a range of 90 nautical miles. During the flight phase, the missile is constantly updated with target data from the ship.

HDMS Niels Juel fires a Standard Missile 2. ROYAL DANISH NAVY

ROYAL NAVY The Royal Navy has signed new cooperative initiatives to extend working relationships with the Royal Danish Navy and the US Coast Guard. The Type 31 Implementing Agreement has been set up to support the introduction of the new Inspiration class frigates, which are based on the Danish Iver Huitfeldt class. The navies will work together to develop a joint support policy, training exercises and operational tasking.

The keel of the first of class, HMS Venturer is due to be afloat by the end of 2023. The RN and USCG have also pledged to expand their collaboration. The two services already work closely on anti-narcotics operations in the Caribbean and Middle East. This is set to expand to the Gulf of Guinea, Mediterranean, East Africa and the Indo-Asia Pacific regions with USCG Law Enforcement Detachments deploying on Royal Navy ships.

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ROYAL NAVY The nuclear-powered attack submarines Talent and Trenchant were formally decommissioned together at a joint ceremony at Devonport Naval Base on 20 May. Crews from

HMS Trenchant paying-off on 6 April 2021. ROYAL NAVY

each boat paraded in Plymouth for the final time in front of The Princess Royal, HMS Talent’s patron, and former commanding officers.

Both served for 32 years.

Trenchant’s operational service came to an end last year, while

Multi-mission patrol vessels SOUTH AFRICAN NAVY The South African Navy has taken delivery of SAS Sekhukhune (P1571), the first of three multimission inshore patrol vessels (MMIPVs), at the naval dockyard in Simon’s Town, Cape Town.

The locally-built MMIPV is based on Damen’s Stan Patrol 6211 and is the first vessel with an axe bow design to operate in South Africa. The straight-edged bow is intended to improve seakeeping in the region’s notoriously rough

waters and also reduce fuel consumption and emissions.

The 62m warships are powered by four Caterpillar engines for a maximum speed of 26 knots and a range of 4,000 nautical miles.

Their primary role will be to counter piracy, illegal fishing and smuggling operations. Their main armament is a Reutech 20mm Super Rogue remotely controlled gun. They are also equipped with a pair of RHIBs. Other roles will include mine countermeasures, using off-board systems, and diving support.

SAS Sekhukhune is the first of three Warrior class vessels. DAMEN

Talent completed her final patrol earlier this year. Their departure leaves HMS Triumph as the last of the seven Trafalgar class SSNs built left in service. She is likely to remain active until around 2024/25, once HMS Anson joins the fleet.

The RN has also bid farewell to HMS Shoreham after 20 years service, including her namesake town, before paying-off for disposal at Rosyth. The minehunter departed her Clyde base for the final time on 9 May for a series of UK port calls.

Forging a new frontier USS Sioux City has deployed to Europe en route to the Persian Gulf. US NAVY

US NAVY Two of the US Navy’s oft-maligned Littoral Combat Ships are making news for more positive reasons. USS Sioux (LCS 11) has lived up to her motto of ‘forging a new frontier’ by becoming the first LCS to deploy to European waters. The Freedomvariant has joined the Naples-based US Sixth Fleet, with a pair of MH-60S Seahawk helicopters.

With its high speed and ability to operate in both near-shore and open-ocean environments, the ship is expected to significantly

enhance security operations in the Mediterranean. Such a deployment had been scheduled for a number of years but was postponed by a class-wide engineering defect, a solution for which is now being implemented.

Meanwhile, an Independencevariant LCS has successfully launched missiles at a land-based target for the first time. USS Montgomery (LCS 8) fired three AGM-114L Longbow Hellfire missiles, as part of a proof of concept of the surface-to-surface mission module. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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Farewell to fleet members

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CARGO NEWS IN BRIEF EUROSEAS BUYS BOXSHIPS Euroseas of Greece has purchased the twin Seaspan-owned container ships Seaspan Manila, built in 2007, and Seaspan Melbourne, built in 2005, for $37 million.

Both 4,250TEU ships come with charter agreements that run into 2025 and will bring the Euroseas fleet up to 18 vessels, with another seven on order. JS FORMER STX YARD WINS ORDERS The former STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Jinhae shipyard in South Korea has been reformed as K Shipbuilding under the ownership of KH Investment and United Asset Management Company and has won orders to build 24 ships, all for delivery during 2024 and 2025. These include six 50,000dwt and four 115,000dwt tankers for Sinokor and another four 50,000dwt tankers for Dong-A Tanker, both compatriot South Korean firms. In addition, another six 50,000dwt tankers have been ordered by Greek and Hong Kong owners, while Athens-based Navios Partners has ordered four 115,000dwt capacity LR2 tankers. JS MITSUI OSK ORDERS FOUR MORE Japan’s Mitsui OSK Lines has ordered a further four LNG-fuelled pure car and truck carriers (PCTC) from domestic shipbuilders Nihon Shipyard and Shin Kurushima Dockyard which are already building four ships for the company. The eight vessels, all of 7,000-car capacity, are to be delivered in 2024 and 2025. JS MSC AND MAERSK ARE LARGEST According to statistics compiled by shipping analyst Alphaliner, MSC is now the top container carrier, with a total capacity of 4,352,617 TEU on 665 ships and a further 102 vessels of 1,338,468 TEU total capacity on order, while Maersk is in second place with a capacity of 4,242,430 TEU on 729 ships, with another 29 vessels of 319,100 TEU combined capacity on order. In third, fourth and fifth place are CMA CGM, COSCO Group, and Hapag-Lloyd respectively. JS

Swire acquires Westwood The 32,551gt Westwood Columbia, a 2002 product of Poland’s Stocznia Gdynia shipyard, is one of several Westwood ships being acquired by Singapore’s Swire Shipping. C. BRAD

BULK CARRIER Singapore-based Swire Shipping has purchased Westwood Shipping Lines from Japan’s Sumitomo Warehouse, which had earlier acquired the company from American lumber giant Weyerhaeuser in 2011.

Westwood has been operating seven con-bulk ships between the

North American west coast and Japan, China and South Korea, handling mainly forest products westbound and oversized freight, general cargo and containers eastbound. Swire, which dropped its China Navigation name earlier this year, currently operates a fleet of 26 multi-purpose vessels transporting both project cargo and containers.

In recent years it has been

expanding its services to the North American pacific coast, including a new service from Vietnam.

With the Westwood purchase it will take over ownership of four 45,000dwt open-hatch gantry crane-equipped ships built between 2002 and 2004, as well as charter agreements pertaining to three smaller vessels, one of 25,000dwt and two of 34,000dwt. JS

US shipbreaker gains EU vessel Asian owner

orders in Europe CEMENT CARRIER

 The Norwegian-owned tanker Wolverine has been sent to the International Shipbreaking yard at Brownsville for recycling, in accordance with EU regulations.

SHIPBREAKING In a rare undertaking, a USbased shipbreaker is recycling a EU-flagged ship, the Norwegianowned Wolverine, in accordance with EU Ship Recycling Regulations.

The demolition of the 158m by 23m vessel comes about after the International Shipbreaking

yard (IS) at Brownsville, Texas had invested $30 million in new equipment and processes to meet EU requirements.

The 11,360gt ship had been completed by the Aker Tulcea shipyard in Romania as Nina during 2006 and sailed under the names Vaagen and Northern Wolverine prior to her retirement. JS

Dutch builder Royal Bodewes has been contracted to build a 7,750dwt cement carrier for Taiwan’s U-Ming Marine, with the 115m by 15.8m vessel to be handed over by the first quarter of 2024. The design of the new ship will be based on a previously delivered cement carrier built by Bodewes, but it will be equipped with a loading and unloading system specifically designed for bulk cement distribution along the coast of Taiwan and its various offshore islands. JS

 In one of the few contracts placed by an Asian owner with a European yard, Royal Bodewes will build a cement carrier for U-Ming. ROYAL BODEWES

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BULKER Bangkok-based Thoresen Thai has returned its bulk carrier Thor Nitnirund to service following repairs at Vietnam’s Nosco Shipyard after the ship suffered grounding damage.

Built by China’s COSCO Nantong Shipyard in 2016, and last operated as SBI Tethys by the Scorpio Group of Greece, the 61,190dwt vessel received more than 300 tons of steel renewal, along with propeller and shaft maintenance, pipes and valves renewal and an engine overhaul. JS

The 1998-built A2B Independent (5,056gt) in the Nieuwe Waterweg, Rotterdam on 28 March. KRISPEN ATKINSON

INDUSTRY NEWS Led by Henk Bakker, MD of Van Uden Group, the shares of De Vierhouten Groep in A2B-online were acquired on 20 April, in a management buyout of the shortsea specialist. A2B-online owns

seven container ships, six 508TEU capacity vessels built to Sietas’s Typ-151 design, and a single 658TEU Typ-160-A type from the same yard, all of which were built between 1995 and 1998.

Formed in 2006, the company, which is headquartered in Moerdijk,

has gradually expanded to operate services from Moerdijk and the Botlek area of Rotterdam port, on routes across the North Sea, to the UK ports of Thamesport, Immingham, Teesport and Blyth.

Their ships are all relatively small feeder vessels. KA

 The 61,190dwt bulk carrier Thor Nitnirund (ex-SBI Tethys) at Vietnam’s Nosco Shipyard following steel replacement. NOSCO

First autonomous electric ship CONTAINER SHIP

 The 40,000dwt Greek-flagged tanker Andromeda berthing on the Thames on 17 May two days after she arrived. KRISPEN ATKINSON

Protestors prevent berthing TANKER On the night of 15 May, while she was inbound to Navigator Terminals, just downriver from the Dartford Bridge on the Essex bank of the Thames, the 40,000dwt, Greek-flagged Andromeda was forced to turn around and return to the anchorages in the Thames Estuary, after 12 activists occupied the jetty at West Thurrock.

They were protesting about the arrival of the shipment of diesel,

which had been loaded on the 2007-built tanker at the Russian port of Primorsk, between 9 and 10 May. In total 15 activists, including those in a boat used to approach the jetty, were detained. The Tsakos-owned product tanker finally berthed on 17 May, escorted up the Thames by the Kent Police launch Invicta.

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, a series of sanctions imposed by European countries have mostly prevented Russian ships from unloading cargoes. KA

Chinese shipping company Navigation Brilliance (BRINAV) has placed what it claims is the world’s first autonomous electric-powered container ship into commercial service between Qingdao Port in Shandong Province and Dongjiakou Port in the Yellow Sea following the 384ft by 57ft vessel’s completion by the Qingdao Shipyard.

Designed by Shanghai Bestway

in cooperation with Shanghai Jiahao Ship Design Institute and the Dalian Maritime University, the 8,000dwt Zhi Fei can be operated with a crew or by remote control or autonomously while carrying a cargo of approximately 300TEUs. Utilising a hybrid electric propulsion system integrating high-capacity battery packs and DC generator sets, the ship will serve as a technology demonstrator while carrying commercial cargoes. JS

 Although fitted with a navigation bridge, China’s electrically powered Zhi Fei can be operated by remote control or autonomously. BRINAV www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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PRESERVATION

John Megoran

GRANT AWARDS SCOTTISH FISHERIES MUSEUM Museums Galleries Scotland have announced that amongst 39 museums and galleries across Scotland which have been awarded over £1 million, with funding from the Scottish Government, four are for maritime museums and historic ships. The Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther, Fife has received £25,000, primarily to provide a new roof over their Herring Gallery.

GLENLEE The tall ship Glenlee, in Glasgow, was awarded £51,000 split between three improvement areas. The first is installation of awnings on areas of the deck to increase outdoor event spaces and reduce water ingress. The second is for a new heating and ventilation system which will be installed to improve airflow and ambiance below decks. And the third is for an RCD circuit breaker, which will be fitted to improve safety.

SHIELDHALL South of the border, Shieldhall has been awarded £200,000 from the Cultural Assets Fund, which enabled her annual drydocking to go ahead prior to her summer season. This represented 77 per cent of the estimated total project costs, with additional funding coming from the charity’s reserves and through member donations.

DUNDEE The two historic vessels currently based in Dundee, RRS Discovery (pictured below) and HMS Unicorn, have both been given grants. The former has received £54,000, and the latter £20,000, intended to help them operate more sustainably by introducing energy-efficiency measures.

The historic paddle steamer Rhône has returned to service and is scheduled to offer trips on Lake Geneva most days from mid-June to September.

Swiss paddler returns to service RHÔNE The Lake Geneva paddle steamer Rhône, operated by the Compagnie Générale de Navigation sur le Léman (CGN), returned to service in late February after a three-year rebuild estimated to have cost in excess of 12 million Swiss francs. She was withdrawn in 2019 and the work was undertaken in-house at CGN’s own shipyard

at Lausanne Ouchy and involved steelwork renewal of the hull and superstructure, as well as new decks and an upgrade to the cooking, sanitary and navigational equipment.

As with the rebuilds of all the Swiss paddle steamers, modern welding techniques, instead of traditional riveting, have been used to facilitate the work and keep it affordable while retaining the underlying character of an historic ship.

Royal visit to D-Day Landing Craft

Built in 1927 by Sulzer, Rhône was the last paddle steamer built by a Swiss company and is fitted with the final development of this sort of machinery. This includes a pressurised lubricating system which requires the connecting rods to be covered (now with plastic hoods) and an unusual valve system, which enables one main lever to control both ahead and astern, as well as the speed of the engine.

Back afloat HELEN II

HRH The Princess Royal visited LCT 7074 in April. First opened in late 2020, LCT 7074 has seen almost 40,000 visitors aboard since.

LCT 7074 HRH The Princess Royal visited the D-Day survivor LCT 7074 at the D-Day Story, Southsea on 21 April.

As patron of the National Museum of the Royal Navy, she inaugurated LCT 7074 and thanked the organisations and individuals who have worked on this prestigious award-winning heritage project.

LCT 7074 is the only surviving Landing Craft (Tank) to participate in Operation Neptune, the naval

dimension of Operation Overlord, in 1944. A six-year project to raise, conserve and interpret the 200ftlong vessel concluded with the opening of the ship to the public at the D-Day Story, Southsea.

The restoration has been a joint collaboration by the National Museum of the Royal Navy and Portsmouth City Council, with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the Notsew Orm Sands Trust.

In April the Morecambe Bay prawner Helen II (pictured) returned to the water after a major 12-year restoration project. Built

by Crossfields of Arnside in 1910, she worked from the Mersey until 1930, then fished off the Welsh coast for ten years, and from 1943 until 1999 from Fleetwood.

In 2010 she was donated to the Morecambe Bay Prawner Restoration Trust, now the James Roddick Trust, after which restoration began. On completion, Helen II will be used by youth and community groups of North Wales.

18 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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news news

Agreement has been reached with key partners The National Museum of the Royal Navy and The National Lottery Heritage Fund to keep HMS Caroline in Belfast until at least 2038. One of eight C class

light cruisers built around 1914, and the last survivor of the Battle of Jutland in 1916, HMS Caroline has been in Belfast since 1924 and for many years was the local base for the Ulster Division of the RNVR. She opened as a visitor attraction, with funding of £11.5

A decade-long project will ensure HMS Victory is protected for the next half century. She will be fully re-rigged, with an overall costing of £35 million for the project.

The ‘Great Repair’ gets started HMS VICTORY In May scaffolding was erected around the hull of HMS Victory to provide a temporary structure in preparation for the ‘Great Repair’, which offers a once-in-a-generation opportunity to see under the skin of a First-Rate ship of the line.

Platforms will surround the ship in phases, encasing it in a secure structure that in phase one will run from the mizzen mast to the fore mast. In phase two the bow will

be covered and in phase three the stern. This will allow shipwrights and conservators access to the extensive rotten hull planking to remove it. What remains will be left to dry out before repairs can start, and the whole ship will be replanked with new oak timber.

Full public access at three levels for viewing the works will be available throughout the process so that visitors will be able to ascend the scaffolding to see specialist shipwrights at work.

SKYLARK IX Work has begun on the conservation of Skylark IX, one of only a couple of Dunkirk Little Ships remaining in Scotland, which for several years remained sunk on the River Leven. Thanks to a small grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, initial conservation work focused on preserving her name board, with further funding now being sought to move her from her temporary home at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine to the museum’s Denny Tank at Dumbarton. The 30-tonne Skylark IX was built in Poole in 1934 to carry 115 passengers for Jake Bolson off Bournemouth.

HMS Caroline has been in Belfast for almost a century, and is set to remain in the Northern Irish capital until at least 2038.

HMS CAROLINE

Little Ship

million from the Heritage Lottery Fund, in 2016 to commemorate the centenary of the battle, but has remained closed since the start of the Covid pandemic. Following agreement between all parties, she is set to reopen in the late summer at the heart of the Titanic Quarter.

 Skylark IX saw service on Loch Lomond before sinking in 2010.

Training vessel preserved PRINSES BEATRIX The former Dutch training vessel Prinses Beatrix has been allocated her own berth in the Inland Shipping Museum in Dordrecht, having been handed over by her owner, Concordia Damen Shipyard, on extended loan to the Inland Shipping Society at a ceremony on 19 May. An exhibition will be set up aboard telling the story of the Dutch Royal Education Fund for Shipping between 1955 and 2003.

Prinses Beatrix was built in 1960 to provide practical training in modern navigational practice on Inland Waterways, notably on the Lower and Middle Rhine, and could accommodate 28 cadets, initially housed in a dormitory, but later reduced to 24 in twin berth cabins.

In preparation for her new role as a museum ship, Prinses Beatrix is being given an extensive overhaul, which will include restoring her hull colour to white.

Her two sisters, Prinses Irene and Prinses Christina, remain in service.

 The 53.5m Prinses Beatrix is to be preserved, with hopes that replacements for her original Bolnes diesel engine, replaced during her operational career, can be found and installed in the ship once again. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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09/06/2022 10:18

THE DRIVE TO DECARBONISE

 Two wind-powered ro-ro sailing ships being developed by French shipping line Neoline will carry rolling stock and other freight between the ports of St Nazaire, Halifax and Baltimore via the French islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, off the Canadian coast. NEOLINE 

While new fuels are being assessed to help ‘decarbonise’ the shipping industry, attention is also being focussed on using wind, electrical and solar power to power ships and help reduce fuel consumption, as Jim Shaw explains.

N

ew fuels, such as methanol, ammonia and hydrogen, are being examined to help ‘decarbonise’ the shipping industry, but increasing attention is also being paid to wind, electrical and solar power. Wind energy has been used in various degrees over the past several decades, including with fixed sails,

kites and rotors, but several companies are now developing fully wind-powered cargo vessels, while others are using wind as auxiliary propulsion.

NEOLINE

In France, Nantesheadquartered Neoline Armateur has chosen Loirebased Neopolia Mobility to build the first of two 136m by 24.2m sail-powered ro-ro ships that will have a capacity for 500

vehicles and 280 containers.

To be fitted with 4,200m2 of sail area carried on four masts, the vessels are expected to achieve an average speed of 11 knots under sail, although both will also have diesel/ electric powerplants to ensure schedules can be maintained.

French car builder Renault, handling equipment builder Manitou and tyre manufacturer Michelin, along with several other firms, have

22 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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TECHNOLOGY

 A 1,800TEU sailing container ship being developed by Zéphyr & Borée of France will make use of eight computer-controlled wing sails supplied by Paris-based Computed Wing Sails. Z&B

agreed to use the ships for cargo transport once they are placed in service across the North Atlantic, starting in 2024. Neoline is projecting the sail-powered ro-ros will cut CO2 emissions by some 90 per cent compared to traditional vessels of the same size when wind is providing primary propulsion.

ORCELLE WIND

Looking at a much larger sail-powered ro-ro vessel is the Norwegian and Swedish-

based shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen, which is developing a pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) capable of travelling at speeds of ten to 12 knots under sail. The 220m ‘Orcelle Wind’ is being designed to transport heavy machinery and breakbulk freight, as well as traditional rolling stock, while using five sails supplemented by conventional power.

The Scandinavian company plans to have a complete design for the ship ready for contracting with a shipyard sometime later this year, with the finished vessel expected to be in service by 2025. To have a carrying capacity of 7,000 vehicles, it will be used

by Wallenius Wilhelmsen as

a technical and operational ‘testbed’ for the further development of zero-emission marine technology.

TRADE WINGS

Sail power is also being examined in the container sector, and Bureau Veritas of France has granted an Approval in Principle (AiP) for the design of a 2,500TEU container ship that would make use of an LNG-electric propulsion system in conjunction with six retractable wing sails developed by Oceanwings.

Designed jointly by VPLP Design, Alwena Shipping, AYRO of France and the China State Shipbuilding Company’s design institute (SDARI), the 197m by 32m

 Wallenius Wilhelmsen’s 220m by 40m vehicle carrier ‘Orcelle Wind’ will feature five sails and a capacity to carry up to 7,000 vehicles at speeds of 10 to 12 knots when introduced in 2025. WW

‘Tradewings 2500’ would have a deadweight of 32,500 metric tons and utilise six Oceanwings sails supplied by VPLP. Used in combination with LNG-burning four-stroke generator sets powering podded drives, the combined hybrid propulsion system would decrease CO2 emissions by approximately 35 per cent on a normal 4,000-nautical-mile crossing of the Atlantic when compared to a conventional vessel. To minimise any impact on cargo operations while the

 The LNG-powered and sail-assisted container ship Trade Wings 2500, designed by French and Chinese firms, will feature an open-hatch configuration, six retractable sails and a forward-mounted superstructure. VPLP www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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SOLID SAIL

A

lso in France, shipbuilder Chantiers de l’Atlantique has received an AiP from Bureau Veritas for its Solid Sail concept, which the French builder feels is the best wind-assist system for large vessels, including cruise ships. Solid Sail is a 1,200m2 rigid sail made of composite panels, the rigidity of which induces less flapping and therefore increases service life compared to soft sail.

The shipbuilder has already built a prototype of the sail and installed it on the edge of the Loire estuary for testing purposes. The Solid Sail system includes an AeolDrive balestron rig, which can swivel 360 degrees, and a mast divided into three sections of 24m each that can be tilted 70 degrees for clearance purposes.

Although the system can be retrofitted to ships, the French builder has designed a cruise vessel

ship is in port, the wing sails would be installed on a vertical sliding mechanism to partially retract them into housings.

ZÉPHYR AND BORÉE

A second company looking at sails for a container ship is Zéphyr & Borée, which has received an Approval in Principle from Bureau Veritas for its design of a 1,800TEU container ship that would

called ‘Silenseas’ specifically for the sail. The vessel would measure 210m by 25m and accommodate 300 passengers in 150 cabins. The 23,000gt cruiser would be equipped with three 103m-tall masts carrying 4,350 ² of solid sail to provide a service speed of 17 knots.

 French shipbuilder Chantiers de l’Atlantique has designed the 300-passenger cruise ship ‘Silenseas’ around its Solid Sail system, which incorporates composite sail panels and 103m tall masts carrying 4,350m² of sail. CHANTIERS

incorporate eight computercontrolled asymmetrical wing sails supplied by Paris-based Computed Wing Sails (CWS).

The 607ft long vessel would be configured with five cargo holds, mostly open-top, and the eight computer-controlled sails would automatically adjust themselves to take best advantage of wind conditions.

Zéphyr & Borée has previously worked on the sailing cargo

ship Canopée, which was designed for the transportation of the Ariane 6 launcher in the European space programme.

Dutch-builder Neptune at Hardinxveld-Giessendam has been commissioned to build the 121m vessel for Jifmar Offshore Services of Aix-enProvence, France. It will be equipped with four articulated wing-sails, each with 363m2 of sail area, that are expected to

 Marfret is having containerised sailassist units developed by eConowind installed on its 7,395gt Marfret Niolon to test what may become a fleetwide adoption. MARFRET

reduce fuel consumption by about 25 per cent when the Wärtsilä diesel-powered ship is operating at its regular service speed of 16 knots.

ECONOWIND

In the Netherlands, eConowind has developed a containerised sail-assist package that has been utilised by several vessels and is now to be fitted to the 1991-built roro Marfret Niolon, operated

by Marseille-based Marfret.

The 7,395g vessel will carry two of the 40ft containerised units, each of which features two aluminium sails that are deployed and retracted using a hydraulic system controlled from the bridge.

Their operation requires a 400-460 V, 3-phase, 50-60Hz power source, but the sails are expected to provide fuel savings of between ten and 15 per cent. If these savings are realised by Marfret Niolon,  The world’s first modern sailing cargo ship is expected to be the 121m long Canopée, being completed

by Dutch-builder Neptune for Jifmar Offshore Services to transport the European space programme’s Ariane 6 launcher. ARIANE GROUP

24 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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TECHNOLOGY

DEPLOYABLE KITES FROM SEAWING K Line plans to have an automated Seawing kite system installed on its new 210,000dwt LNG-fuelled bulk carrier being built by Nihon Shipyard to reduce fuel usage while transporting iron ore and coal. K

D

the French company plans to expand use of the eConowind product to its entire fleet and will combine it with coupledreversible alternators to provide a hybrid wind/electric power package.

ROTOR SAILS

Rotors based on the Magnus effect are also being used by ship operators to aid in propulsion, and several vessels have been fitted with the devices. One of the largest is Pan Ocean’s new 324,268dwt ore carrier Sea Zhoushan, which will trade between Brazil and Asia.

Built by China’s New Times Shipbuilding, the 340m by 62m bulker has been equipped with five 24m tall by 4m wide tiltable rotors supplied by Finland’s Norsepower. When used in combination with weather routing, they are expected to provide an overall efficiency gain of up to eight per cent.

A smaller ship being fitted with Norsepower rotors is CLdN’s 2018-built roro Delphine, which is to receive two 35m by 5m tilting rotors this year, with the expectation that fuel and emission reductions of between seven and ten per cent will be achieved.

Another rotor supplier, London-based Anemoi Marine Technologies, which has been working with Germany’s Oldendorff Carriers on a windassisted propulsion solution

for its dry bulk carrier fleet, is to supply three of its rotors for installation on Tufton Investment Management’s 82,048dwt bulk carrier TR Lady. This follows an earlier installation of four Anemoi rotors on the smaller 63,223dwt bulk carrier Afros.  The 324,268dwt ore carrier Sea Zhoushan makes use of five tiltable rotor sails supplied by Finland’s Norsepower to provide an expected propulsion efficiency gain of around 8 per cent. PAN OCEAN

eployable kites are also being looked at for auxiliary power, and three 210,000dwt LNG-fuelled bulk carriers, being built by Japan’s Nihon Shipyard for compatriot shipowners NYK Line, K Line and Mitsui OSK Lines, will be fitted with an automated Seawing kite system developed by Airseas, an offshoot of the Toulouse-based Airbus organisation.

Japanese classification society ClassNK has granted an Approval in Principle to Seawing for use of the system, which consists of launching mast, trolleys, winches, storage pod and inflatable parafoil wing, all mounted on a ship’s forecastle.

The wing, which is connected to the ship by an umbilical control

cord and cable, is pulled out of the storage pod by the trolley system and inflated, then launched from the top of the mast. Once airborne, it is controlled from the bridge using a computer linked to an EcoRouting network, which optimises the ship’s navigation route according to incoming weather forecasts.

Seawing has already installed a 500m2 parafoil kite on the 2004-built ro-ro Ville de Bordeaux, which is used by Airbus to move large aircraft structures throughout Europe. The Japanese carriers plan to use the system to reduce fuel usage while their vessels transport iron ore and coal from Australia to Japan under long-term contract to Tokyo-headquartered JFE Steel Corporation.

www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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BULKERS ON THE HUMBER Among the many and varied ships to visit ports on the busy Humber estuary are bulkers, as tug engineer Talbot Clark’s photographs show.

B

ulk carriers are a common sight on the River Humber, and will call at one of several bulk terminals found along the estuary. Immingham is one of the biggest mineral ports in Europe, handling coal for several power stations on the nearby River Trent (although the coal-fired plant is generally being replaced by gas), and iron ore for the

Scunthorpe steelworks.

Drax power station uses wood pellets as its fuel, and these are also imported through Immingham. One of the Humber International Terminal berths is used solely for this cargo. This Terminal can handle up to 20 million tonnes of dry bulk cargoes per year, and vessels of up to 130,000 tonnes are able to discharge at the berths.

When Drax power station

began importation of wood pellets in 2013, three million tonnes per year was envisaged.

However, now around seven million tonnes of biomass pellets are imported into the UK every year, originally for Drax Power Station.

This has increased in recent

 The Cape-sized bulker Cape Britannia (2009/92,281gt), photographed in August 2013, was built in Japan to a Dunkirkmax design, a feature of which is that she has a double skin to the cargo holds. She is still trading, owned

by K-Line Bulk Shipping of London, and flies the Japanese flag.

26 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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BULK CARRIERS

 Pictured in January 2013, the 1997-built bulker Cape Mercury (85,772gt) was completed in China, and sailed under the flag of Singapore. Owned by Taiwanese U-Ming, she was broken up at Alang, India in 2016.

 The Woodchip carrier Trebol (1986/36318gt) photographed in April 2015 heading towards Humber International Terminal with her cargo of woodchips for the Drax power station. She was broken up in 2009.

 The 1998-built Berge Atlantic (91,962gt), built by Hyundai of South Korea, was owned by Norway’s Bergesen for most of her career. Her Burmeister and Wain main engine, of almost 20,000kW, gave her a service speed of 16 knots. Pictured in November 2011, she was broken up at Gadani Beach in 2017.  The Panamax-type bulk carrier Nordic Oshima (2014/41,071gt), sailing under the Marshall Islands flag, was built to Ice Class 1A standards. Built by Oshima Shipbuilding Co Ltd at Saikai, Japan, she is fitted with a revolutionary composite weight-saving design of hatch cover for her cargo holds.

There are six vessels of this type, all with a distinctive ‘shark’s teeth’ design above the bulbous bow.

She was photographed being guided to her berth by the 364gt tug Svitzer Kathleen (1991).  Amstel Osprey (2014/34,810gt) is now managed by Conti-Lines of Belgium, and since February 2021 has been named CL Ebisu. She has five holds served by four 30-tonne cranes. She was pictured on 2 February 2015 sailing lightship down the Humber, having just discharged her cargo. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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Cape Maria (2005/87,440gt), previously Cape Pioneer, was owned by Athens-based Empire Bulkers. The photograph, taken in May 2014, shows her outbound, with Svitzer Valiant attending on her starboard bow.

 The geared bulk carrier Thor Endeavour (1995/25,676gt) was owned by Thoresen Shipping Co, of Singapore.

Previously named Royal Sea and Sanko Resource (until May 2000), she was photographed in 2015 sailing lightship down the Humber, having discharged her cargo at the Bulk Terminal. She was scrapped in 2018.  Frontier Harvest (2011/93,228gt), pictured in February 2015 being attended by SMS tug Welshman. She is still trading, owned by NYK Ship management of Singapore, and sailing under the Japanese flag.

years following the opening of Northumberland’s Lynemouth power station, and the power station on Teesside, both of which use biomass for power generation.

There is also a biomass facility in Hull, which can import a million tonnes per year, which comes by sea from the United States and Canada.

The Immingham Bulk Terminal imports around 5.5 million tonnes annually of bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal and coke, all of which are delivered to British Steel’s Scunthorpe manufacturing plant. IBT is now back in the hands of British Steel, having spent four years under Associated British Ports ownership. The Immingham berth can take bulk vessels of around 200,000dwt and up to 303m in length.

28 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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09/06/2022 10:02

The 2011-built cruise ship AIDAsol (71,304gt) making her maiden call at Portsmouth in April. The south coast port has been welcoming an increasing number of cruise ships since the end of the pandemic. MARITIME PHOTOGRAPHIC

gallery?

Have you an outstanding photo that would grace our

e pages, which Send your image to Ships Monthly for inclusion in thes d. showcase the best in ship photography around the worl

The oil/chemical tanker Sten Aurora (2007/11,935gt) in the Forth on her way to Grangemouth. JAMES PRENTICE

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 The 2013-built cruise ship Norwegian Getaway (145,655gt) arriving at Portland on 6 May. The ship is to move to the Eastern Caribbean for July cruises. STEVE BELASCO

30 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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09/06/2022 10:03

 The German-owned, 2006-built container ship Hammonia Husum (26,836gt) on the Thames at Gravesend in April. FRASER GRAY

 The 2000-built ferry Isle of Inisheer (ex-Northern Merchant, Zurbaran, Ciudad De Mahon) heading for Calais from Dover on 8 May. DARREN HOLDAWAY

 The 2011-built bulk carrier Alrayan arriving at Southampton on 26 March, with Svitzer tugs Svitzer Harty and Svitzer Bargate, to load scrap. CHRIS BROOKS

www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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12/05/2022 09:43

A CENTURY OF

AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

David Hobbs looks back over a century of aircraft carrier development, starting with HMS Argus in 1918, up to HMS Prince of Wales of the 21st century.

All images are copyright David Hobbs unless otherwise stated

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

1 THE ORIGINS OF THE CARRIER

B

y 1918 the Royal Navy was so far ahead of other navies in developing methods of operating aircraft from ships that an American liaison officer sent to study its methods, Captain G.W. Steele USN, reported that so many ideas had been learned from the British that any discussion of the subject must use them as a starting point. Only a decade earlier, the first aircraft had been flimsy machines with their times of flight measured in minutes.

They could hardly stand up to the rigours of shipborne life and it had seemed that rigid airships might offer a more practical way forward.

Funding for the development of the first, His Majesty’s Rigid Airship Number 1, unofficially known as the ‘Mayfly’, was included in the 1909 naval estimates.

It was ordered from Vickers at Barrow-in-Furness, and the 4,360-ton cruiser Hermione was modified as an aviation depot ship to sustain its operations over the sea.

Her career ended when the airship was wrecked by

a crosswind as it was pulled from its shed, but the success of flights from wooden structures built over the forecastles of battleships in 1912 led the Admiralty to bring the cruiser Hermes out of reserve for the 1913 naval manoeuvres to act as a dedicated aircraft-carrying ship.

She had a wooden take-off deck forward, with a canvas hangar at its after end and a second canvas hangar on the quarterdeck. A derrick fitted to the foremast and the existing boat derrick on the main mast lifted seaplanes onto and off the water, with care taken to stop aircraft being damaged by swinging into the ship’s side.

One of the embarked aircraft was a Caudron seaplane fitted with wheels that flew off the deck on 28 July 1913. Another was a Short Folder, the first aeroplane ever built with wings that could be folded to facilitate stowage in a ship’s hangar. The Royal Navy’s 1913 manoeuvres were, by far, the most demanding and successful test of aircraft at sea before the outbreak of war in 1914.

Seaplanes were expected to be the ideal naval aircraft,

since the sea provided a natural runway. Experience, however, soon showed that their flimsy structures could not stand up to the impact of even small waves and, if they did get airborne, the floats were too heavy for the required performance to be achieved from the early engines, which had only limited power.

This was especially the case with fighters intended to intercept and destroy Zeppelins. Seaplane carriers were thought of more as mobile hangars than as the operating base for their aircraft.

By 1915 it was clear that aircraft would be more effective if they were fitted with wheels and flown off decks

 HMS Furious photographed in 1918, with a landing deck aft in addition to the take-off deck forward.

After the war she was further rebuilt to a flush flight deck design and rejoined the fleet in 1925. A small island was added to the starboard side during a refit in 1938/39.  The seaplane carrier Ark Royal (II) was constructed using the keel and frames of a mercantile hull already on the slipway at Blythe. She was designed by J.H. Narbeth, who became a specialist in aircraft carrier design, and gave valuable service in the Dardanelles and Salonika Campaigns throughout the Great War. She was renamed Pegasus in 1934 to free her original name for a new ship, but continued in use as a catapult trials ship and then as a fighter catapult ship in World War II. She was finally broken up in 1950.

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 HMS Furious was ordered from Armstrong Whitworth at Elswick in 1914 as a Battlecruiser and is pictured as completed in 1917, with a flying deck forward and an 18-inch gun aft.

fitted to ships operating as an integral part of a fleet at sea, but the means of doing this presented many challenges.

Fast merchant ships, including Riviera, Empress, Engadine and Ben-My-Chree, were taken up from trade for conversion into seaplane carriers, but they had to stop to launch or recover seaplanes, a procedure that limited their usefulness.

Campania, a former Cunard liner, was the largest.

She was fitted with a take-

off platform forward from which seaplanes on wheeled trolleys, or fighters with wheeled undercarriages, could take off. There was no means for them to land on the ship after their sorties, but she can be considered an evolutionary link between the early seaplane-carrying ships and Argus, the first true aircraft carrier.

Take-off platforms were eventually fitted to battleships and cruisers, as well as seaplane carriers, to increase the number of aircraft the Grand Fleet could take to sea, but all of them had to ditch after their sorties if they were unable to fly to a friendly shore, a

danger for pilots and a waste of assets, which led the Grand Fleet Aircraft Committee to demand more and better aircraft-carrying ships in 1917.

This led to Furious, under construction as a light battlecruiser, being completed with a 228ft long flying deck forward of her bridge structure, on which Squadron Commander Edwin Dunning DSC RNAS landed in a wheeled Sopwith Pup on 2 August 1917. His achievement demonstrated that both take-off and landing with wheeled aircraft were not only possible, but offered the best way forward.

Work to complete the

cruiser Vindictive with decks forward and aft of her bridge went forward quickly, and Furious was fitted with an after deck in 1918. Neither proved effective, however, because air disturbed by the central superstructure mixed with funnel smoke to create too much turbulence for pilots to control their aircraft safely as they attempted to land.  HMS Vindictive in 1918. Designed as a Hawkins class heavy cruiser and laid down under the name Cavendish, she was converted into an aircraft carrier while still being built. Renamed Vindictive in 1918, she was completed a few weeks before the end of World War I but saw no active service.

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

2 THE FIRST CARRIERS

A

rgus was the world’s first true aircraft carrier; she had a flush deck from bow to stern on which wheeled aircraft could take off and land.

Lifts allowed them to be struck down into the hangar or raised from it to be ranged on deck for take-off. Capable of only 20 knots, however, she was slower than other ships in the battle fleet. In October 1918, after flying trials, she began to operate Sopwith T.1 Cuckoo torpedo bombers, with which it was planned to attack the German fleet in its harbours at the first opportunity in November.

The armistice ended hostilities before any attack was undertaken but, had it been carried out, such an attack would have predated the attacks on Taranto and Pearl Harbor by more than two decades. During Argus’ trials, a wood and canvas ‘island’ was installed to identify the effect on flying of a structure intended to contain the ship’s bridge, briefing rooms and funnel uptakes. The ideal position was found to be on the starboard side amidships, and virtually every aircraft carrier built since then has followed this example.

Argus herself was considered to have too narrow a deck to be fitted with an island and retained a flush deck to the end of her career. Furious was modified to a flush deck design in 1925, but the new Hermes, the first ship to be built from the keel up to operate aircraft, and Eagle, converted from the incomplete hull of a battleship, were both built with islands.

In America, the US Navy wanted to follow the British lead, but Congress refused to fund a new ship. Instead, it approved the conversion of the collier Jupiter, AC 3, into an experimental carrier. Work started in 1920 and she was completed in March 1922 and renamed Langley (CV 1), to become the world’s second carrier. The basic hull and turbo-electric machinery were retained, together with the accommodation aft and the bridge right forward, under the flight deck.

Hinged smoke-stacks replaced the original funnel, and the former upper deck became the open-sided hangar deck, with a latticework steel structure supporting the rectangular flight deck. The

 Inside HMS Argus’ hangar in 1918 looking forward. The Aircraft are Sopwith T.1 torpedo bombers.

 HMS Argus with a wood and canvas island fitted for evaluation.

 HMS Hermes, as completed in 1924, was the world’s first ship to be designed as an aircraft carrier. Built by Armstrong Whitworth, she was laid down in January 1918 and commissioned on 18 February 1924.

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A Loening OL floatplane flying off the USS Langley. The Loening OL, also known as the Loening Amphibian, was an American two-seat amphibious biplane designed by Grover Loening.

 Hosho after the removal of her island and tripod mast in 1923. She was the first aircraft carrier to be completed for the Imperial Japanese Navy and the third in the world.

Hosho survived the war and was used as a troopship to repatriate Japanese forces until 1946. She was broken up in 1947.

foremost of her six original holds was modified into an aviation gasoline tank and the fourth became a magazine for air weapons in its bottom half and a machinery space for the single lift in the top.

The lift platform was raised into the centre of the flight deck and locked at this level during flying operations. The remaining four holds, two forward and two aft of the lift, were used to store dismantled aircraft, which were raised to hangar deck level by two threeton travelling cranes installed under the flight deck. Each had a swivelling arm, which allowed aircraft to be placed onto the lift after assembly and taken to the flight deck or removed from it to be struck down.

 USS Langley, the US Navy’s first aircraft carrier, with USS Somers in 1928.

THE EARLY AIRCRAFT CARRIERS COMPLETED

TONNAGE

LENGTH

HMS Argus

SHIP

16.9.1918

16,500

560ft

AIRCRAFT 20

USS Langley

20.3.1922

15,150

542ft

33+

IJNS Hosho

27.12.1922

9,630

551ft

21

HMS Hermes

18.2.1924

13,700

600ft

12

HMS Eagle

26.2.1924

27,500

667ft

24

HMS Furious

31.8.1925

27,165

786ft

30+

IJNS Akagi

25.3.1927

34,364

857ft

60

FNS Bearn

May 1927

28,400

599ft

40

USS Saratoga

16.11.1927

47,700

888ft

90

USS Lexington

14.12.1927

47,700

888ft

90

IJNS Kaga

31.3.1928

33,693

782ft

60

HMS Courageous

5.5.1928

27,560

786ft

48

HMS Glorious

10.3.1930

27,500

785ft

48

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

3 THE BIG CONVERSIONS

 The Japanese carrier Hosho, as completed in 1922, with a small island and tripod mast. Unusually, the island and mast were removed in 1923 to create more deck space for aircraft.

 HMS Hermes in the South China Sea.

L

imited post-war funding and the Washington Naval Treaty, signed in 1922, forced the RN to retain its small prototype carriers for too long. New ships could not be afforded until 1935, when the new Ark Royal was laid down.

Both the USA and Japan were initially better placed, since they had large incomplete battle-cruiser hulls under construction that Treaty rules allowed them to convert into aircraft carriers.

Thus Lexington and Saratoga gave the USN a big increase in the number of aircraft that could operate with its fleets when they were completed. Both were capable of 33 knots. At first the USN thought that they were actually too big, but their air groups quickly demonstrated the value of numbers, and they coped well with the larger aircraft that entered service after 1930.

Japan gained a similar advantage from Akagi and Kaga, the former converted from a battlecruiser and capable of 31 knots. Kaga was converted from a slightly smaller battleship as a replacement after Akagi’s sistership, Amagi, was damaged by an earthquake in 1923 when she was on the slipway. Kaga was capable of only 27.5 knots.

The sole French carrier of the period was Bearn, another battleship conversion, which was capable of 21.5 knots.

She could embark 40 aircraft, of which 15 were usually kept dismantled in a lower hangar as spares.

The British had no large hulls to convert, but decided to convert Furious into a fully flush-decked carrier without an island, to be followed by more comprehensive conversions of her half-sisters, the light battlecruisers Courageous and Glorious, both of which were given starboard side islands.

They were capable of 30 knots.

The American ships had a single hangar, which was partially open-sided and covered the width of the hull and much of its length, while the British, Japanese and French ships had two hangars, one over the other.

Unusually, Akagi had an island on the port side so that she and Kaga could operate close alongside each other, with one flying aircraft in a left-hand pattern and the other in a right-hand pattern.

The concept was not a success and was not repeated.

The different hangar arrangements reflected different navies’ ideas on how aircraft would be used. The USN envisaged using carriers

 HMS Argus in 1918. She served in the Royal Navy from 1918 to 1944.

At first she operated only a handful of aircraft.

The Imperial Japanese Navy, IJN, was also determined to follow the British lead and authorised the conversion of an oil tanker that was still on the slipway in frame into a prototype. British carrier drawings were made available in September 1921, when a mission under Commander

the Master of Sempill, with a number of former RNAS experts, arrived to brief the Japanese on naval aviation.

The ship was launched as Hosho (meaning ‘swooping dragon’) and towed to Yokosuka Dockyard, where she was completed as the world’s third aircraft carrier. She was smaller than either Argus or Langley, but faster.

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HMS Eagle off Gibraltar.

in fast task forces launching what were termed deck load strikes with the maximum number of aircraft against chosen targets.

The RN thought at first of aircraft flying off in small groups to search for an enemy fleet, shadow it and attack it with torpedo bombers, while preventing the enemy from doing the same thing with fighters. In this regime, aircraft would be kept in the

hangar and only brought up to the deck when needed.

Most USN aircraft remained on deck in a deck park.

Progress in the RN was slowed significantly by the political decision to create an independent air force and to insist upon a system of dual control for naval air operations between the Admiralty and Air Ministry; the former responsible for operational command at sea and the latter

for administration ashore, including the procurement of aircraft. The Keyes/ Trenchard Agreement of 1924 reintroduced pilot training for naval officers, tacitly admitting that the newly-named Fleet Air Arm was a distinct and different force, but dual control remained.

In the USA the naval administration retained a more rational approach, despite attempts to form a single, unified air service. The roles and capabilities of aircraft at sea within a balanced navy were identified by men of vision such as Admiral Moffett, Head of the Bureau of Aeronautics. USN carrier operations were further helped by a Presidential study under an eminent lawyer named

Morrow. Among other rulings, he decreed that only officers who had qualified as air crew could command carriers and naval air stations ashore. Thus senior officers up to 50 years old volunteered to fly and later played a key role in commanding the USN fast carrier task forces in World War II. By contrast, the RN had very few senior aviators during the same period, the majority of the top men in the RNAS having been forced to transfer to the RAF in April 1918 if they wished to continue a flying career. Commodore Joseph Reeves, USN, qualified as an observer, after which he was instructed in 1925 to develop ‘strategy and tactics of the air in its relation to the fleet’. He introduced deck parks, arrester wires, crash barriers and landing signals officers, sometimes against the advice of his pilots, but he doubled the number of aircraft Langley could carry and then doubled it again. He came to be admired by his men and improved sortie generation rates to give the carrier an operational capability and create a lead in carrier aviation which the USN has never lost.

Like the USN, the IJN never had to suffer the dead hand of dual administration and steadily built up a force of aircraft carriers that was larger than the British. It viewed the western nations with increasing hostility, openly describing the Washington Treaty limitations as a national humiliation. It was allowed a smaller total

 HMS Eagle steaming incomplete for flying trials.

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS Flycatchers over HMS Furious after her flush-deck conversion.

tonnage of aircraft carriers than Britain or America, but it evolved remarkable methods of maximising their effectiveness, which went largely unnoticed in the west.

These included naval air squadrons equipped with very long-range torpedo bombers based ashore, which were trained to locate and attack an enemy fleet, exactly the tactic used to sink the British battleships Prince of Wales and Repulse in December 1941.

The Japanese used cruisers which carried up to ten catapult-launched floatplanes to search for targets for the carrier air groups, allowing the latter to specialise in strike and fighter operations.

The USN also integrated long-range patrol aircraft with fleet operations but the RN was prevented from doing so because shore-based aircraft of RAF Coastal Command were not under naval operational control until well into World War II. This meant that the early British carriers were hampered both by their small size and the need to carry out their own reconnaissance and subsequent shadowing missions to track an enemy force. The number of aircraft available for strike missions was, therefore, severely limited, and RN carriers were at a disadvantage when compared with American and Japanese ships.

The German Navy gave

an example of a failed carrier force. Two were projected in 1935 and subsequently laid down, with the first launched in 1938 and named Graf Zeppelin. But she was never completed and the second, only referred to as ‘Ship B’, was abandoned in 1940 and scrapped on the slipway. Graf Zeppelin incorporated many innovative ideas for operating aircraft in rough weather, but not all of them were good.

Her completion was delayed at first by opposition from the Luftwaffe and then, after the outbreak of war, by the view taken by the German naval staff that carriers were too vulnerable after noting the sinking of the British Courageous and Glorious.

Work on Graf Zeppelin was resumed after the Battle of Midway in 1942, which emphasised the critical importance of carriers but by then it was too late. By 1945 the hull was 90 per cent complete when it was scuttled in the Baltic, but it was subsequently raised by the Soviet Navy, only to be sunk again as a target after technical examination. Had Graf Zeppelin and her air aircraft gone into service by 1941 and sailed with, or instead of, Bismarck, the war in the Atlantic might have taken a very different turn.

After the big carriers Lexington and Saratoga, the

USN experimented with the smaller Ranger in an attempt to get more carrier hulls within Washington Treaty limitations. She was not a success, and the USN built larger ships, first the Yorktown class and then the superb Essex class, arguably the best ships of their type before the modern era. The latter were built in large numbers within an impressively short timescale after the outbreak of war, and formed the backbone of the US Pacific Fleet in 1944-45 that took offensive operations to the Japanese mainland.

Despite the limitations of dual control, British naval aviation began to make progress in the 1930s after the appointment of Rear Admiral R.G.H. Henderson as Rear Admiral Aircraft Carriers, RAA, in 1931. He was not a pilot but had commanded the aircraft carrier Furious, and his drive and enthusiasm produced results. He believed emphatically that aircraft formed an important part of the fleet but, although he did not realise it, his biggest problem was that the RN did not appreciate how far its equipment and doctrine had lagged behind other naval air arms.

Because the Air Ministry insisted that carrier operations were difficult and might be impossible in the face of landbased air opposition, senior naval officers had presumed

 The first aircraft of a deckload strike taking off from USS Lexington (CV-2).

that every navy found them so, but Henderson began the drive to cut through this argument and regain full Admiralty control of its air arm.

The lack of a Reeves or Moffett was only realised in the late 1930s, when Sir

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AIRCRAFT CARRIERS IN 1940 COMPARED SHIP

COMPLETED

TONNAGE

LENGTH

AIRCRAFT

HMS ARK ROYAL III

16.11.1938

27,720

800 feet

60

HMS ILLUSTRIOUS

25.5.1940

28,210

740 feet

36

USS YORKTOWN

30.9.1937

GS GRAF ZEPPELIN

—

25,908

809 feet

96

28,539

861 feet

42 projected

IJNS HIRYU

5.7.1939

20,117

746 feet

71

IJNS ZUIHO

27.12.1940

14,427

674 feet

30

 The Japanese carrier Akagai with her distinctive portside island. She is steaming to the right in this picture.

Thomas Inskip KC, like Morrow an eminent lawyer, was appointed as Minister for Defence Co-ordination.

In a judgement made in July 1937, he instructed that the Admiralty should resume full control of the aircraft that flew from ships and of their shorebased support. They did so in May 1939 after the Admiralty had recruited or retrained

thousands of men as aircraft technicians, increased numbers of aircrew with short-service commissions, as well as the training of rating pilots and the training of RNVR reservists in the last months of peace.

Henderson knew that aircraft carriers were vulnerable to damage from shells, torpedoes and bombs, with an ever-present risk of fire

because of the large quantity of aviation fuel they carried.

After his appointment as RAA he became Third Sea Lord, the man responsible for new warship construction, and insisted on greater protection.

His new carriers, the Illustrious class, had armoured flight decks and hangar sides designed to prevent serious damage if they were hit by bombs or cruiser shellfire.

It would have been easier to build repeat versions of Ark Royal, the most modern RN design, but Henderson insisted on the substitution of armour for hangar space, halving the number of aircraft that could be carried, but making the ships better able to survive damage. None of his armoured carriers were lost despite suffering extensive damage from a variety of threats.

To compensate for their reduced aircraft complements, he ordered the doublehangared aircraft depot ship Unicorn, which was fully capable of operating aircraft but intended principally to supply the armoured carriers with replacement aircraft and provide extensive workshop facilities for deep maintenance or battle damage repair. She was not expected to form part of a task force, but to

operate with other depot ships and RFAs. Argus was reconstructed and retained for use as a training carrier.

At its inception, the Illustrious class represented the largest carrier construction programme in the world and, realistically, their relatively small air groups were the largest the RN could manage as it struggled to expand its Fleet Air Arm. The last three ships of the class were modified with double hangars to increase the size of their air groups, and the RN began to use USNstyle deck parks to increase embarked numbers still further.

The British aircraft industry had been geared, principally, to manufacturing aircraft for the RAF and it struggled to meet the Admiralty’s requirements. This was not the case in the USA or Japan, where large industrial concerns produced carrier-borne aircraft that were as good as, or better, than any of their land-based contemporaries. The newlycreated Ministry of Aircraft production delayed new aircraft designed for the Navy still further in 1940 by giving priority to the production of RAF fighters, but from 1942 thousands of USN aircraft became available through the Lend/Lease scheme. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

4 MAJOR ROLE IN WORLD WAR II

I

n September 1939 the RN had six aircraft carriers with a further six, Illustrious, Victorious, Formidable, Indomitable, Indefatigable and Implacable, under construction. Ark Royal, delivered in 1938, was the newest and best of those in service. There were early losses when Courageous was sunk

by U-29 in September 1939, and Glorious was sunk in a one-sided surface action with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau in June 1940. The loss of a valuable carrier to ferry a small number of fighters back to the UK can at best be considered as of questionable value and at worst a tragic waste.

She had very few of her own aircraft embarked, and none of them were airborne, when she was attacked. Set against these losses was the outstanding achievement of the attack by Fairey Swordfish from the new Illustrious against the Italian battle fleet in its base at Taranto on 11 November 1940, in which half the enemy battleships were sunk or crippled for the loss of only two aircraft.

Illustrious was the first carrier to be fitted with radar, and she pioneered aircraft direction techniques that guided her

The newly completed HMS Illustrious in 1940.

Fairey Fulmar fighters to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft that attempted to locate or attack the fleet.

In 1941 Swordfish strikes from Victorious and Ark Royal played a critical part in crippling the German battleship Bismarck so that she could be destroyed by the combined fire power of the Home Fleet. The German attack on the Soviet Union in July 1941 led to Home Fleet carriers being used to strike at enemy targets off the long Norwegian coastline in a series of operations that continued until May 1945 and to provide cover for the Arctic Convoys that carried war

materials through the Barents Sea to aid Russia.

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 stunned the American public and demonstrated to those who had still not appreciated it that aircraft carriers constituted a weapons system with strategic reach.

The USN had seven carriers in service, but none were at Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack. The Japanese carrier force, led by Admiral Nagumo, comprised Akagi, Hiryu, Kaga, Shokaku, Soryu and Zuikaku, and the IJN had three other carriers available, Hosho, Ryujo and Zuiho.

The IJN had also developed an impressive array of carrierborne aircraft, including the Mitsubishi A6M ‘Zero’ fighter, which out-performed every Allied fighter at first, together with the Aichi D3A ‘Val’ divebomber and Nakajima B5N ‘Kate’ torpedo-bomber.

The Japanese and American carrier fleets first clashed at the Battle of the Coral Sea, when the USN lost Lexington (CV-2), and the Japanese lost Shoho. A month later, however, on 4 June 1942, the USN won a strategic victory at the Battle

HMS Ark Royal (III) in 1939.

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 A Dauntless dive-bomber with its hook lowered returning to the USS Enterprise (CV-6)

 Fulmars, Martlets and Albacores on HMS Victorious.

 HMS Avenger with Sea Hurricanes on deck.

 HMS Ameer, a Ruler class CVE with Hellcats on deck.

of Midway. The IJN combined fleet had been covering an amphibious assault on Midway island in the Central Pacific.

Nagumo’s carrier aircraft had carried out one attack on the island and were being rearmed and refuelled for a second when, at 0820, a scouting

aircraft from a cruiser located an American carrier.

Nagumo immediately ordered his strike aircraft to be rearmed with torpedoes instead of bombs. In their hurry to do so, however, the armourers left the bombs on deck and they were still there when aircraft

 HMS Audacity the first excort carrier. She is seen here with Martlets ranged aft which give scale to her small flight deck.

from the American carriers Yorktown (CV 10), Enterprise (CV 6), and Hornet (CV 8) began their attacks. TBD Devastator torpedo bombers attacked first, but achieved no hits and suffered very heavy losses. However, they had drawn the defending Zero fighters down to sea level so they were not in a position to oppose the American SBD

Dauntless dive-bombers as they arrived overhead.

Bombs exploded on the flight decks of Akagi, Kaga and Soryu, causing fires and secondary explosions among the bombs left on deck, which led to the loss of all three.

Hiryu sank some hours later.

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

 HMS Hunter refuelling the cruiser Royalist by buoyant hose.

 USS Saratoga (CV-3) with a deck load strike ranged.

 The Japanese carrier Hiryu.

 The Japanese carrier Zuikaku.

The IJN had essentially lost the dominance it had achieved, and would never recover it, but the USN went from strength to strength as American industry produced ships and aircraft in overwhelming numbers and thousands of young men volunteered for the Navy and Marine Corps.

After Midway, the USN lost Wasp (CV-7) while she escorted marines to Guadalcanal in September 1942 and Hornet (CV-8), at the Battle of Santa Cruz in October. This left only Saratoga in the Pacific Fleet, but she was reinforced for much of 1943 by Victorious which was lent to the Americans by the RN until new American carriers were completed.

The Japanese Taiho was an armoured carrier, similar in concept to the Royal Navy’s Illustrious, but she was not completed until June 1944 and was sunk only three months later by an American submarine during the Battle of the Philippine Sea. Three further carriers were launched, but all were either sunk or badly damaged before they could take

part in any major engagement, continuing the decline in Japanese carrier power that had begun at Midway.

The largest was Shinano, which had been modified from the incomplete hull of a Yamato class battleship. She was torpedoed and sunk by an American submarine only a few days after her completion.

THE ESSEX CLASS

The US Congress authorised a huge programme of aircraft carrier construction in 1940 and this produced some of the best designs of their era. The first of these was Essex (CV-9), the name ship of a projected class of 32, which was commissioned in December 1942. Of these, 25 were laid down and 17 joined the USN before the war ended. A new class of lighter carriers based on cruiser hulls were built at the same time, beginning with Independence (CVL-22).

The need to provide air support for virtually every naval operation led both the RN and USN to seek ways of producing smaller and cheaper

 HMS Pretoria Castle was used as a trials carrier in 1945.

 HMS Ravager at Portland, Oregon in 1943 shortly after her completion.

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auxiliary carriers that could be built quickly in commercial yards. The first was the British Audacity, converted from a captured German merchant ship in 1941, with a rudimentary flight deck capable of operating fighters. She proved to be an outstanding success in convoy protection duties.

The Americans followed with Long Island (CVE-1), and then a series of evolving designs based at first on converted merchant ships, then warships built as such, but to a basic mercantile design, and lastly to designs that were constructed from the outset as warships.

After Audacity, the RN converted a further four mercantile hulls into escort carriers, but a total of 39 was lent to the RN by the USN under Lend/Lease arrangements. These were used not only for convoy escort work but also in strike operations and as aircraft replenishment ferries moving aircraft around the world. They were described at first as auxiliary carriers, but this description was replaced by the more descriptive name ‘escort carrier’, with the designation CVE. The USN built over 100 CVEs between 1941 and 1945, including those lent to the RN. Many of these were built using production-line techniques at new yards, which achieved remarkable build times of under a year. The British also built 19 merchant aircraft carriers, ships manned by the Merchant Navy and carrying regular cargoes of oil or grain, but fitted with a flight deck capable of operating RN Fairey Swordfish to protect the

convoys in which they sailed.

Japanese attempts to rebuild their shattered carrier fleet and oppose the American advance across the Pacific led to the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944, the largest naval battle in history. The Japanese attempted to combine landbased aircraft in the Marianas Islands with others from 1st Mobile Fleet’s nine aircraft carriers, a total of 473 aircraft, many of which were flown by inexperienced pilots.

Against this, the US Pacific Fleet’s fast carriers in Task Force 58 had 15 aircraft carriers and 956 aircraft, all flown by pilots who had already seen action. By 24 June the Japanese had lost most of their aircraft in combat, and USN fighter pilots later referred to this battle as the ‘Marianas Turkey Shoot’. Three Japanese carriers, Taiho, Hiyo and Shokaku, were sunk and others damaged. Crippled by these losses and the blockade that was cutting off its supplies of fuel and raw materials, the IJN never recovered.

Although the RN did not fight large fleet battles like those in the Pacific, its aircraft demonstrated their strategic importance. In June 1941, when German forces invaded the Soviet Union, Prime minister Winston Churchill ordered attacks on the Arctic ports of Petsamo and Kirkenes, through which the Germans were thought to be moving supplies to the Russian front.

The only force with the range to reach these targets was that of the Home Fleet’s carriers Victorious and Furious. They actually found few targets, because the intelligence was

 HMS Puncher, built as USS Willapa but transferred to the Royal Navy in 1944, spent the war in the Atlantic and Mediterranean. In ths photograph, the Wildcat has just landed, the three barriers are lowered flush with the deck, and a flight deck handling party are stood ready to guide the aircraft into Fly 1, the area of flight deck forward of the barriers, where its wings will be folded and it will be lashed to the deck.

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

 HMS Ravager’s hangar showing Fulmars, Hellcats, Barracudas and Avengers neatly stowed.

 HMS Colossus’ hangar ready to repatriate former prisoners of the Japanese in September 1945.

 HMS Victorious serving with the USN in 1943. Aircraft on deck are British but have US markings with stars.

 Stern view of the newly completed HMS Biter, showing how the flight deck structure was added to the original mercantile hull.

outdated, and suffered heavy losses, but clearly demonstrated that carriers were the ideal method of taking strike aircraft to a point of contact with the enemy at short notice.

They also proved to be the only means of getting RAF

The British Pacific Fleet, BPF, was created in late 1944 to fight alongside the Americans in offensive operations against the Japanese mainland, something no other British forces could achieve within the same timescale.

aircraft to the place where they were needed on many occasions, by ferrying them to a point where they could be flown ashore.

Examples of this include taskings in Norway in 1940, Malta from 1940 to 1942, and in the Far East from 1942 to 1944.

The maintenance carrier Pioneer in 1945. The structure right aft is an aircraft engine test facility.

At its core were the six fleet carriers of the Illustrious class, supported by the maintenance carrier Unicorn. Grumman Avengers and Hellcats, Chance Vought Corsairs and Fairey Fireflies from the BPF carried out the strategically significant air strike on the Palembang oil refineries in January 1945, which destroyed more than half of the Japanese aviation fuel supplies until the end of the war in August. Seafires flew combat air patrols over the task force.

Next, the BPF supported the American landings on Okinawa in April and May, and in July and August 1945 they attacked targets in mainland Japan itself; RN aircraft from the BPF were the only British aircraft to do so. The first four light fleet carriers of the Colossus class joined the BPF in mid-1945, but the war ended before they could see action.

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HMS Unicorn as completed in 1943. She was an aircraft repair ship and light aircraft carrier and was transferred to the Eastern Fleet in the Indian Ocean at the end of 1943. Unicorn supported the aircraft carriers of the fleet on their operations until the British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was formed in November 1944.

 The Japanese carrier Junyo in 1945. Laid down as the passenger liner Kashiwara Maru, she was purchased by the IJN in 1941 while still under construction and converted into an aircraft carrier.

 The MAC-Ship Amastra with two Swordfish aircraft, showing just how small her flight deck was. She was a tanker conversion completed in September 1943 and had a flight deck slightly longer than the grain-ship conversions but, unlike them, had no hangar. She could only operate three Swordfish, which had to be parked on deck in any weather when not flying.

 The Japanese light aircraft carrier Ryujo in 1936. Commissioned in 1931, she was sunk by American carrier aircraft at the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942.

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS

 BPF carriers Victorious with Implacable in Sydney during 1945. A third carrier is in the drydock at the top right of the picture.

 USS Chenango (CVE-28) was launched on 1 April 1939 as Esso New Orleans by the Sun Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, in Chester, Pennsylvania. She was recommissioned as ACV-28 on 19 September 1942 and went on to have several involvements in World War II.

 USS Bogue (CVE-9). Launched in January 1942, she had a capacity for up to 24 fighter and anti-submarine aircraft, normally a mixture of Grumman, Wildcat and Avengers, with composition dependent upon mission

Two ships of this class, Perseus and Pioneer, were completed as maintenance carriers to work alongside Unicorn but, unlike with her, aircraft could not take off or land on them, as structures were built on their former flight decks. They formed part of a vast logistics organisation that had to be created from scratch and which grew rapidly to include airfields in Australia, where aircraft were received from the UK and prepared,

replenishment CVEs to take them to the task forces at sea, aircraft maintenance carriers, and literally hundreds of tankers, store ships, depot ships and other auxiliaries.

AIRCRAFT EMBARKED

To give an idea of scale, at any one time four fleet carriers would be in action, with over 300 aircraft embarked. Unicorn alone prepared 626 aircraft for frontline use, together with 283 replacement aircraft engines.

HMS Glory with the BPF in 1946. She has Corsairs and Fireflies on deck.

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AIRCRAFT CARRIERS IN 1945 COMPARED SHIP

COMPLETED

AIRCRAFT

28.8.1944

32,624

766ft

HMS Colossus

16.12.1944

18,329

695ft

42

56,800

897ft

108 projected

HMS Malta

 USS Bataan (CVL-29) with Avengers on her deck. These ships were the US equivalent of the British light fleet carriers.

TONNAGE LENGTH

HMS Implacable

-

81

USS Midway

10.9.1945

60,858

968ft

137

USS Essex

31.12.1942

35,438

872ft

91

USS Independence

1.1.1943

14,986

622ft

30

USS Casablanca

8.7.1943

11,074

512ft

28

27.11.1944

21,739

557ft

33

USS Commencement Bay

USS Essex (CV-9) showing just how many aircraft she could embark in 1944.

Ferry CVEs were each capable of ferrying 90 aircraft at a time from the UK or USA to Australia. The BPF was a Commonwealth force with men and ships from Australia, Canada and New Zealand making up a significant proportion of its task forces. The fleet became the role model on which the post-war RN was based, both in terms of operations and the proven ability to work with other navies at short notice, skills that remain relevant in the 21st century.

The BPF was renamed the British Far East Fleet in 1948, in line with a new government plan to identify Royal Navy units more closely with those of the Army and RAF, a loss of identity that many believed to be ill-considered for a fleet that had achieved so much in such a short time after five years of global war. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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5 THE POST-1945 ERA

T

he largest carriers of the wartime era were the three ships of the Midway class, originally described by the USN as ‘battle carriers’ (designated CVB), and which were designed to operate up to 137 aircraft. USS Midway (CVB 41) was laid down in October 1943 and was completed in September 1945 after less than two years, just too late to see wartime service.

Her design and construction in such a short time were remarkable achievements.

The nine ships of the Independence class, the American equivalent of the British light fleet carriers, were built on cruiser hulls and also achieved remarkably short build times, some of the later ones being completed in as little as 14 months.

The last escort carriers to be built, the 19 ships of the Commencement Bay class, were designed from the outset as warships; several were completed in only 11 months

and went on to see service in a variety of roles post-war.

By 1945 the RN had seven fleet aircraft carriers on order, four of them the Malta class, which was broadly equivalent to the USN Midways, and a further 20 light fleet carriers.

Five of the fleet carriers were cancelled; one of them, originally to have been named Eagle, was nearly ready to be launched, but was scrapped on the slipway instead.

Of the two completed, one was the ship that had been laid down as Audacious but was renamed Eagle when her sistership was cancelled, and Ark Royal (IV). These new ships allowed previous restrictions on the size and weight of carrier-borne aircraft to be relaxed for new generations of naval aircraft.

The light fleet carriers made extensive use of mercantile construction techniques to allow faster build times and the potential to use shipyards that did not normally build large warships. They evolved into three classes and proved to

Commissioned eight days after the end of World War II, USS Midway (CVB-41) was the largest ship in the world until 1955.

She operated for 47 years, during which time she saw action in the Vietnam War and served as the Persian Gulf flagship in 1991’s Operation Desert Storm.

 HMS Terrible, one of six Majestic class light fleet carriers, at Devonport. She was the only carrier ever built in a Royal Dockyard. After her launch in September 1944 she became HMAS Sydney and had a long career with the Australian navy.

 A Sea Vampire undercarriageless fighter landing on Warrior’s rubber deck in 1949. Known officially as the flexible deck, it comprised rubber tubes made out of hosepipes filled with compressed air and covered by a rubber membrane sprayed with water to make it slippery. A single USN Mark 4 arrester wire was fitted over it with its actuating pistons fore and aft alongside the rubber deck.

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 A Wyvern being catapulted from HMS Eagle in rough weather.

 A Gannet landing on HMAS Melbourne. Melbourne was laid down for the Royal Navy as the lead ship of the Majestic class in April 1943, and was launched as HMS Majestic (R77) in February 1945. She was transferred to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in 1947, and operated by the RAN from 1955 to 1982.

be one of the most successful British warship designs of all time, with ships exported to Australia, Canada, India, the Netherlands, France, Brazil and Argentina. The ships operated by the Commonwealth navies became the focus of their

new air arms as they evolved from the late 1940s. Those of Australia and Canada were closely based on the RN Fleet Air Arm and received extensive help, including training and the long-term loan of both carriers and aircraft.

 HM Ships Eagle, Albion, Bulwark and Centaur during Home Fleet exercises in the 1950s.

 The 1953 Coronation Review, with the maintenance carrier HMS Perseus in the foreground. She had been modified for use as a ferry carrier, but is seen with temporary seating erected on her flight deck to allow Admiralty staff and their guests to view the proceedings. Beyond her are HMAS Sydney, HMCS Magnificent, HMS Theseus, HMS Illustrious, HMS Indefatigable, HMS Implacable, HMS Indomitable, HMS Eagle and the battleship HMS Vanguard.

 HMS Eagle as completed with a straight deck. She has Sea Hornets, Attackers, Avengers and Skyraiders on deck. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS  The US Navy aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN-65) in the Atlantic on 14 June 2004. Enterprise, with assigned Carrier Wing 1 (CVW-1), was deployed to the Atlantic Ocean from 3 June to 23 July 2004. During this deployment, she was one of seven aircraft carriers involved in exercise Summer Pulse 2004, a simultaneous deployment of seven aircraft carrier strike groups (CSGs) in five theatres with other US, allied and coalition military forces. US NAVY

JET-POWERED FIGHTERS

The world’s first carrier landing by a jet fighter was carried out in December 1945, when a de Havilland Vampire, piloted by RN test pilot ‘Winkle’ Brown, landed on Ocean. Jets’ higher landing speeds required stronger arrester wires and a longer deck run. The slow acceleration of the early jets made overshooting in the event of a baulked landing a major issue, and it was clear that every take-off would need to be assisted by a catapult.

However, hydraulic catapults had reached the end of their development potential and carriers needed bigger

 De Havilland Sea Vixen landing on HMS Ark Royal (IV).

decks, much greater aircraft fuel stowage, and a landing control system to replace ‘batsmen’, whose signals could not be generated and interpreted fast enough to cope with jets’ high approach speeds. The Admiralty put considerable effort into resolving all these problems; some solutions worked brilliantly, others did not.

The ‘rubber deck’ was an example of the latter, in which fighters with no undercarriage were intended to operate from a mattress fitted over a conventional steel flight deck. After trials at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, a ‘rubber deck’ was evaluated at sea on Warrior using modified Sea Vampires. Again, ‘Winkle’ Brown was the test pilot, but while he demonstrated that the design worked in principle, in practice the aircraft could only be removed from the mattress by crane, a process so

 HMS Triumph after conversion to a heavy repair ship refuelling from RFA Blue Rover, with HMS Minerva outboard, in 1972.

 The Colossus class light fleet aircraft carrier HMS Theseus completing her final Korean operation in April 1951. She was commissioned on 9 February 1946 and broken up in 1962.

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AIRCRAFT CARRIERS POST-1945 COMPARED SHIP

 HMAS Sydney refuelling at sea off Korea in 1951. The other ships are RFA Wave Premier, USS Hannah and HMS Alert.

COMPLETED

TONNAGE

LENGTH

AIRCRAFT

HMS Eagle (as built)

1.10.1951

46,542

804ft

80

HMS Centaur

1.09.1953

24,892

737ft

42

HMS Victorious (rebuilt)

14.1.1958

35,500

778ft

36

HMS Hermes

25.11.1959

27,800

774ft

30

HMS Ark Royal (rebuilt)

24.2.1970

50,786

845ft

38

HMS Invincible

11.6.1980

19,500

678ft

20

HMS Queen Elizabeth

7.12.2017

66,600

932ft

40

USS Forrestal

11.12.1954

61,637

1,039ft

90

USS Enterprise

25.11.1961

76,911

1,123ft

99

USS Nimitz

3.5.1975

82,906

1,092ft

89

USS Gerald R Ford

22.7.2017

100,000

1,092ft

90

FNS Foch

15.7.1963

22,352

869ft

40

FNS Charles de Gaulle

18.5.2001

42,500

857ft

40

INS Cavour

27.3.2008

27,100

773ft

20

RNS Kuznetsov

20.1.1991

58,500

999ft

40

INS Vikramaditya

16.11.2013

45,500

928ft

20

2022

37,500

853ft

20

PLANS Liaoning

25.9.2012

60,900

885ft

40

JMSDFS Izumo

25.3.2015

27,000

813ft

28

INS Vikrant II

slow that it was never going to be operationally viable.

Rubber mats would also have had to be available at every airfield where undercarriage-less fighters from carriers might need to land. However, attempts to rotate the mattress to ease the problem of dragging aircraft clear once they had landed led directly to the invention of the brilliantly simple angled deck, which was subsequently fitted to every carrier in every navy.

The need for pilots to fly an accurate glide slope to put the tail hook exactly into the target arrester wire was resolved by another British invention, the mirror landing aid, which was also widely adopted by the world’s carrier navies. The requirement for a more powerful catapult was met with the steam catapult using ‘slotted-cylinder’ technology and steam from the ship’s boilers.

All these significant

inventions were conceived and designed by officers who were serving, or had served, in the RN, and all three are still in use with the USN in 2022, although the RN itself has moved to the operation of vertical-landing aircraft, which require neither catapults or arrester wires.

The large number of carrier hulls laid down by the British at the end of World War II proved to be a mixed blessing.

 The Majestic class aircraft carrier HMCS Bonaventure, with Trackers on deck, was built by Harland & Wolff in Belfast and completed in the early 1950s.  The Indian carrier Vikrant I (R11) pictured shortly after completion in 1961.

The ship was laid down as HMS Hercules for the Royal Navy during World War II, but building was put on hold when the war ended. India purchased the incomplete carrier in 1957, and completed construction. She was scrapped in 2014.

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 HMS Ark Royal (IV) in 1958, still with a side lift as built, but the port forward 4.5-inch gun mountings have been removed.

The light fleets were cheap to operate and Glory, Ocean, Theseus, Triumph and the RAN’s Sydney gave sterling service during the Korean War, with air groups operating Seafire, Sea Fury and Firefly fighters. For three years, these ships operated off the Korean coast one at a time, supported once more by Unicorn, in support of UN forces ashore.

British carriers operated mainly off the west coast and the larger number of USN carriers off the east.

By 1953 the RN already had third-generation aircraft, such as the Scimitar and Sea Vixen, moving slowly towards operational service and thought that the light fleets had little development potential. Other navies still

found them useful and the last, the Brazilian Minas Gerais, formerly Vengeance, was discarded in 2001.

The last light fleet carrier was Hermes, completed in 1959 after 15 years in the builder’s yard, to a design that was recast several times but eventually included all three new British inventions. She was able to operate all the latest aircraft, including the outstanding Buccaneer low-level strike aircraft, albeit only in small numbers. Sold to India in 1987, she was not taken out of service until 2017, by which time she had become the longest-serving aircraft carrier in the world.

The fleet carrier Victorious was modernised to a similar standard between 1950 and 1958, emerging as arguably

 HMS Centaur with Sea Venoms, Skyraiders and Sea Hawks on deck. Launched in April 1947 and commissioned in September 1953, she was the first of the four Centaur class light fleet carriers to serve the Royal Navy.

 HM Ships Victorious, Ark Royal and Hermes exercising together in the Mediterranean in December 1960.

 Whirlwind and Wessex helicopters on the 22,000-ton Centaur class light fleet carrier HMS Albion after her conversion to a commando carrier.

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the world’s most capable carrier, albeit only able to operate a smaller air group than the big American carriers.

She had been taken apart down to hangar deck level and only the refurbished turbines, keel and the hull’s outer plating remained from the original ship. Everything else was new and, with the wisdom of hindsight, the Admiralty found that it would have been cheaper to build a new ship, partly because new equipment had to be ‘shoe-horned’ into the original hull shape. Plans to modernise her sisterships were cancelled.

The USN designed a class of carriers even bigger than the Midways and capable of operating large bombers armed with nuclear weapons.

They were designated as attack carriers, CVA, and the first, United States (CVA 58),

was laid down in April 1949 but, controversially, cancelled nine days later, when the US Government decided to concentrate on land-based bombers as nuclear delivery systems. The decision was shortlived, however, and the USN later won the argument to build a series of strike carriers capable of deploying both conventional and nuclear weapons.

Forrestal (CVA 59), the first of a class of four carriers, was laid down in July 1952 and completed in October 1955, a build time matching her wartime predecessors despite her being over 1,000ft in length. Four improved Forrestals joined the fleet from 1961, gradually replacing the Essex class ships, which had been modernised with the three British inventions which had made jet operations from them possible.

 The Hawker Siddeley P.1127 vertical take-off aircraft undergoing trials on HMS Bulwark in 1966.

 HMS Hermes leaving Sydney in 1968. She had just visited the city after taking part in Exercise Coral Sands, the largest peacetime exercise ever carried out in the Pacific up to that time.

Next came Enterprise (CVAN-65), the first nuclearpowered aircraft carrier and, at the time of her completion in November 1961, the largest mobile object ever built, and at 1,123ft (342m) in length, she remains the longest naval vessel ever built. She had a crew of some 4,600 and was in service from 1961 to 2012.

In the brief Suez Campaign of November 1956, two thirds of the British ground attack missions against Egyptian forces were flown by Sea Hawks, Sea Venoms and Wyverns from the carriers Eagle, Albion and Bulwark.

Royal Marines from Ocean and Theseus carried out the first

helicopter-borne amphibious assault in history. Two French carriers, Arromanches and La Fayette, also took part, with Corsairs, Avengers and helicopters embarked.

Numerically, land-based air forces had operated twice as many aircraft, but only flew half the effective number of sorties because of the time they had to spend in transit from their remote bases.

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 HMS Victorious, sailing for the Far East in 1966, was the third Illustrious class aircraft carrier after Illustrious and Formidable. She was in service from 1941 to 1968. The author served on her as a Midshipman at the time.

Confrontation with Indonesia between 1963 and 1966, and the Beira Patrol and withdrawal from Aden in 1967, as well as the better-known South Atlantic War in 1982.

The British 1957 Defence Review recognised the need for the operational fleet to be built around aircraft carriers and allowed work on the outstanding Buccaneer low-level strike aircraft to continue although, inexplicably, Defence Secretary Duncan Sandys cancelled the SR-177

supersonic fighter, which was a joint RN/RAF project.

Work started on a new carrier design that evolved into CVA-01, to have been named Queen Elizabeth, but the older carriers were reduced to the modernised Victorious, Eagle, Hermes, Ark Royal and the partially reconstructed Centaur.

Two other carriers, Bulwark and Albion, were converted into helicopter-operating commando carriers to build on the success demonstrated at Suez. CVA-01 was intended to be the first ship of three that would eventually replace all the earlier carriers, but the programme was cancelled in 1966, allegedly on cost grounds. The arguments against it were largely ill-informed and the cancellation was not only a major blow to the RN but a virtual death sentence for the British shipbuilding industry on the Upper Clyde, which could have used the orders to modernise and survive.

Besides being a key strategic element of American deployable power during the Cold War, USN carriers played a prominent role throughout the Vietnam War. Twenty-one carriers, ranging from Enterprise to modernised Essex class ships such as

 USS Forrestal (CVA-59), with Furies and Demons on deck during a visit to Southampton.

 Ark Royal (IV) after modernisation with Phantoms, Buccaneers and Gannets on deck. She is operating in rough weather, and spray over the deck is making things difficult for the tractor team moving the Phantom. Aircraft Handlers require skill and practice to move aircraft safely under all conditions.

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Ark Royal (R09) alongside a pier at Norfolk Navy base, Virginia in 1976, with USS Nimitz (CVN-68) on the right. The author was serving as a pilot in 849 NAS in Ark Royal at the time and was fascinated to be given an extensive tour of the new US carrier.

Ticonderoga (CV 14), saw action, many of them carrying out multiple deployments.

Britain ran down its carrier force after the decision to cancel CVA-01, with Ark Royal (IV) paid off in

1978. There was, however, no other way of operating aircraft with the fleet, even with attention focused on the North Atlantic, and the RN was able to procure a class of three Invincible class light

 The future USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) under her own power for the first time on 8 April 2017. The first-of-class ship was the first new US aircraft carrier design in 40 years and spent several days conducting builder’s sea trials. Construction began on 11 August 2005, and when she entered service she was the world’s largest aircraft carrier, and the largest warship ever constructed in terms of displacement. US NAVY/ COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS RIDGE LEONI

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HMS VIctorious in Singapore Dockyard in 1964. Note how the angled deck overhangs the dock edge and limits crane movement.

carriers intended to operate Sea Harrier STOVL fighters and Sea King helicopters.

They were fitted with a new innovation, the ‘ski-jump’, to improve Sea Harrier take-off performance, and Hermes was similarly refitted to operate a slightly larger air group.

Hermes and Invincible were  USS America (LHA-6) is an amphibious assault ship and the lead ship of the America class. She was commissioned in October 2014.

Aircraft on deck include F-35B Lightning II joint strike fighters and MV-22B Ospreys. US NAVY

the cornerstone of the British task force that liberated the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic War of 1982, and it is fair to say that, without their embarked aircraft and the ability to sustain them in action indefinitely, the campaign would not have been possible. The Fleet Air Arm deployed 171 aircraft in 14 naval air squadrons, four of which were formed at short notice. Sea Harriers from the two carriers flew 2,000 operational sorties and destroyed 32 enemy aircraft for no losses in air combat.

The only country apart from the USA to have built a nuclear-powered carrier is France. The French carrier Charles de Gaulle is the only ship of its class, but there are plans to replace her with a larger nuclear-powered carrier in the mid-2030s. She was launched on 7 May 1994 and undertook her maiden voyage on 18 May 2001.

Since 1975 the USN has completed ten nuclearpowered carriers, with Nimitz (CVN 68) being the first of class. Each has a projected hull life of 50 years. A further class of four ships, with Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) as the lead, is being constructed, initially to augment and ultimately replace the early Nimitz class ships. They are similar in size, but represent the first major internal hull redesign since Forrestal and have innovative technologies, including electromagnetic catapults, advanced arresting gear and advanced, digitally controlled weapons lifts. Their development has not been smooth, however, and when Ford enters operational service later in 2022 she will be some years later than planned.

At 65,000 tons and 928ft in length, the British aircraft carriers Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales are the largest warships ever built for the RN. They evolved, after a protracted period of development, to be capable of operating the F-35B, STOVL variant, of the Lightning

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AIRCRAFT CARRIERS SERVING NAVIES WORLDWIDE Aircraft carriers are operated by a number of the world’s navies today.

USA • The US Navy has the largest fleet of carriers, all of them nuclear-powered, but is seeking ways to expand their numbers with a potential class of conventionally powered light carriers, similar in concept to the Independence class developed in World War II. CHINA • Has two carriers in service and a third is expected to be operational by 2025.

RUSSIA • Has a single carrier, but this was damaged while undergoing modernisation.

INDIA • Has two carriers, with the new Vikrant II undergoing trials in 2022. She is the first built in India but a third, larger, carrier is projected.

Indian, Chinese and Russian carriers use STOBAR technology, with fighters such as the Indian Mig29 or Chinese Shenyang J-15 using a ‘ski-jump’

The Indian carrier INS Vikramaditya was built in Russia and commissioned in November 2013.

She is a modified Kiev class aircraft carrier

for take-off and arrester wires for landing.

ITALY • Has two ships capable of operating both F-35Bs and helicopters: the carrier Cavour (in service 2009) and the LPH Trieste.

JAPAN • Is procuring F-35Bs to operate from its two big-deck destroyers of the Izumo class, Izumo and Kaga, commissioned in 2015 and 2017 respectively, which are currently the largest surface combatants of the JMSDF.

SOUTH KOREA • Intends to operate F-35Bs from an improved Dokdo class helicopter carrier designated CVX. SPAIN • Operates the light aircraft carrier Juan Carlos I (L61), which has a ski-jump flight deck.

AUSTRALIA • The RAN has two LPH of the same class but at present only operates helicopters from them.

TURKEY • The new light aircraft carrier TCG Anadolu, which is both a landing helicopter dock and an aircraft carrier, began sea trials in February 2022.

HELICOPTER CARRIERS • Although they are not designated as aircraft carriers, many navies operate big-deck helicopter carriers, referred to as LPH or landing platforms, helicopter.

USN ships in this category also operate F-35Bs and legacy Harriers.

French carrier Charles de Gaulle with Rafales and Super Etendards on deck, in company with HMS Montrose.

 USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) refuelling from USNS Tippecanoe, with the Japanese destroyer Haruna outboard. US NAVY

 HM Ships Hermes and Eagle leaving Gibraltar in 1970. They were among the world’s most effective strike carriers at the time but within months ill-considered government policies led to Hermes’ conversion into an LPH and Eagle being prematurely withdrawn from service. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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A CENTURY OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS II joint strike fighter, and can also operate Merlin, Wildcat, Chinook and Apache helicopters, together with significant assault groups of Royal Marines.

In 2021 Queen Elizabeth led a group deployment to the Pacific, designated CSG21, with the F-35Bs of the British joint RN/RAF 617 Squadron and the US Marine Corps’ VMFA-211 embarked, together with RN airborne surveillance and control, antisubmarine and commando Merlin helicopters.

The operation of two nations’ aircraft from a single carrier was a considerable achievement that set a benchmark for inter-Allied carrier-borne aircraft operations in future.

CSG-21 demonstrated the strategic value of a carrier task group in upholding the rule of international law. It interacted with 44 different countries and took part in 18 named exercises in the Pacific, Mediterranean and Atlantic theatres.

Although not designated as aircraft carriers, many navies now operate big-deck helicopter carriers, referred to as LPH, or landing platforms, helicopter. The increasing number of LPH capable of operating F-35Bs in the world’s navies is leading towards a crossover category of versatile ships with big flight decks capable of undertaking a variety of roles, from strike warfare to amphibious assault and sea control.

The Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabeth exemplifies this capability, and it is worth noting that three similar ships could be built for the cost of a single USN Ford class nuclearpowered carrier. Each would be capable of operating an air group two-thirds the size of Ford, but with a much smaller ship’s company, thus reducing running costs significantly.

investing in unmanned aircraft technology for operations from carriers, and these have such obvious advantages that they are likely to form significant parts of air groups by 2030.

As long as aircraft, of whatever kind, are needed to carry out operations over and from the seas, which cover 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface, there will be a need for aircraft carriers ranging in size from the Japanese Izumo to the massive, and very expensive, Gerald R. Ford. Their history thus far has been fascinating and their development over the next two decades is likely to be just as interesting.

 USS Nimitz (CVN 68), with embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11, leaves San Diego for a Western Pacific Deployment in 2009. US NAVY

HMS Queen Elizabeth on Remembrance Day 2019. CROWN COPYRIGHT

INTO THE FUTURE

Future trends are notoriously difficult to predict, but the number of light carriers is likely to continue to increase.

Both the USA and UK are

 HMS Prince of Wales shortly after completion in 2019. She is not fitted with catapults and arrestor wires, and is instead designed to operate V/STOL aircraft. CROWN COPYRIGHT

60 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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CROSSING THE COO The Cook Strait between New Zealand’s North and South Islands is crossed by ferries run by two different operators, whose ships often face severe weather conditions to provide a link between the two islands. Two new ships are under construction for this vital route, which has been served by a variety of ferries since the 1960s.

MAIN PORTS USED BY THE FERRIES LINKING NEW ZEALAND’S NORTH AND SOUTH ISLANDS Tasman Sea

Cook Strait

Picton Wellington SOUTH ISLAND Lyttelton

NORTH ISLAND

T

wo companies run regular ferry services between Wellington, on New Zealand’s North Island, and Picton in the Marlborough Sounds on the South Island: Interislander, with three ships, and Strait Shipping, under the Bluebridge brand, with two ships. Both companies run services several times a day.

Roughly half of the crossing is in the Strait, and the remainder within the Sounds.

The journey covers 43 miles and usually takes about three

and a half hours. The seas across the Strait are often rough, with heavy swells from strong winds, especially from the south. New Zealand’s position, directly in the line of the ‘roaring forties’, means that the Strait funnels westerly winds and deflects them into northerlies. As a result, ferry sailings are often disrupted, and Cook Strait is probably one of the most dangerous and unpredictable stretches of water in the world.

INTERISLANDER

Interislander operates three roll-on roll-off ferries: Aratere,

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FERRY SERVICES

THE COOK STRAIT Kaiarahi and Kaitaki.

Aratere is primarily a rail ferry, carrying 27 rail wagons on the lower vehicle deck, and taking road vehicles on the upper vehicle deck. Kaitaki and Kaiarahi do not have rail capacity, taking road vehicles across two decks.

The company, which has been the dominant player in Cook Strait ferry services for more than half a century, has two new, larger ferries on order, which are due to enter service in 2025 and 2026.

Before 1962, the North Island and South Island rail networks were not connected, and the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) struggled to compete with ships for inter-island transport. In the days before containerisation, rail freight between the islands had to be railed in a wagon to Wellington, unloaded and transferred onto a ship

to Picton or Lyttelton, then loaded into another wagon before being railed the rest of the way. The Union Steam Ship Company (USSC) ran an overnight ferry between Lyttelton and Wellington using steamers.

The decision to start a rail ferry was made in 1958 by the Cook Strait Transport Enquiry Committee, and the Cook Strait Inter-Island Rail and Road Service started on 11 August 1962 with the rollon roll-off ferry Aramoana.

The service greatly increased efficiency, since freight could stay in the same wagon for the whole journey and Aramoana, taking three hours and 20 minutes to cross Cook Strait, reduced the time taken for travel between the two islands.

The service expanded with the addition of the 4,160gt Aranui in 1966, the freightonly Arahanga in 1972

 Interislander ferry Kaitaki was built in 1995 for Irish Ferries as Isle of Innisfree for service on the Rosslare to Pembroke Dock route. She has operated for Interislander since 2005, initially on charter. Interisland operates three ships, all with Maori names, which translate as ‘quick path’ (Aratere), ‘leader’ (Kaiarahi) and ‘Challenger’ (Kaitaki). DARREN HOLDAWAY  Interislander ferry Kaiarahi alongside at Picton getting ready for an evening departure to Wellington. Built as Dawn Merchant for Cenargo in 1998, she subsequently sailed in European water as Europax Appia, Pau Casals, Ave Luebeck, T-Rex and Norman Trader. In November 2013 she was chartered by Interislander for the Wellington-Picton route. PATRICK HEALY

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The 1998-built Kaiarahi, formerly Dawn Merchant and Norman Trader, arriving at Picton on a summer evening. She has been operated by Interislander since 2015. PATRICK HEALY

and the 9,035gt Aratika in 1974. The Union Company responded by converting their vessel Maori to take ro-ro road traffic and ordering a new ro-ro ship, Wahine. However, on 10 April 1968 Wahine foundered at the entrance to Wellington Harbour during a storm, resulting in 53 deaths.

By the time replacement ship Rangatira entered service in 1972, competition from the Cook Strait ferries and air travel meant the Wellington-Lyttelton service was uneconomic. The Union Company withdrew in 1974, and the service closed in September 1976.

Since then, there have been various ferries in service, including a number of fast craft, and the management structures have been changed a number of times. When the New

 The 1977-built Kent (ex-Admiral Nigeria, Duke of Anglia, Maersk Anglia) was acquired by Strait Shipping in 2001. VICTOR H. YOUNG

 The 13,621gt Arahura, pictured at Pencarrow Head, Wellington, was built for the New Zealand Railways Corp by Aalborg Vaerft, Denmark in the early 1980s and entered service in December 1983. She was replaced in 2015 and was beached at Alang, India for scrapping on 3 November 2015.

The 1998-built Aratere making her morning departure from Picton on the South Island. PATRICK HEALY

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FERRY SERVICES  Aratere makes an early afternoon arrival in Wellington. She has both rail and vehicle decks, which can be loaded simultaneously through the stern via a double linkspan. VICTOR H. YOUNG

Zealand Railways Corporation was restructured in 1982, the service was renamed SeaRail.

In 1989 it was renamed the Interisland Line, and the service became known as The Interislander. In 1993 New Zealand Rail Ltd was privatised and in 1995 became Tranz Rail. In 1999 Tranz Rail leased Aratere, and then disposed of Arahanga and Aratika.

The three vessels in the current fleet have had varied histories. Kaitaki was built in 1995 for Irish Ferries as Isle of Innisfree for service on the Rosslare to Pembroke Dock route. In 2002 she was chartered to P&O Ferries and became Pride of Cherbourg sailing out of Portsmouth. In 2004 P&O sub-chartered her to Stena Line for use on the Karlskrona to Gdynia route, and she served as Stena Challenger. She has operated for Interislander since 2005, initially on charter until 2017, when Kiwi Rail, operator of the Interislander ferries, purchased her from Irish Ferries.

The roll-on roll-off ferry Aratere carries both rail and vehicles freight. She was built in 1998 for Tranz Rail to replace the ageing Aratika on the Wellington to Picton route and was lengthened in 2011 with the addition of a new 30m mid-section. She

operates three crossings from Wellington to Picton each day.

Kaiarahi was built as Dawn Merchant for Cenargo International in 1998.

Subsequently she sailed in European water as Europax Appia, Pau Casals, Ave Luebeck, T-Rex and Norman Trader.

In May 2013 Stena Line announced that they were going to purchase Norman Trader for their Gdynia to Karlskrona route, on which she entered service on 8 July 2013, having been renamed Stena Alegra.

This was a short-lived deployment and, in November 2013, she was chartered to Interislander for the Cook Strait. When the charter

ended, she left New Zealand waters, but returned as Kaiarahi in 2015. She suffered a major gearbox failure in August 2021 and has been out of service since, while a decision is made about her future.

BLUEBRIDGE

Although Bluebridge Cook Strait Ferries has been operating

since 2002, with two return crossings a day between Wellington and Picton, it has its origins a decade earlier, when a freight-only service was set up by Jim Barker in 1992 as Strait Shipping. The company’s first ship, the 726gt Straitsman, transported livestock and launched Strait Shipping’s service between Wellington, Picton and Nelson.

Strait Shipping established the Bluebridge brand in 2002, when a passenger service was added as the company expanded to meet growing demands.

The company’s second ship, Suilven, was acquired to meet the demands of the freight market. The 3,638gt Suilven, built in 1974 for Caledonian Macbrayne’s StornowayUllapool route, entered service with Strait Shipping in 1995 and ran between Wellington and Picton for seven years before moving to the Wellington to Nelson service in late 2002. She sailed three round trips a week for

INTERISLANDER CURRENT FLEET SERVICE

NAME

BUILT

GT

1999-

Aratere

1998

17,816

NOTES Originally 12,596gt; lengthened and refitted in Singapore 2011

2015-

Kaiarahi

1998

22,152

Originally Dawn Merchant; chartered 2014 as Stena Alegra; renamed Kaiarahi 2015

2005-

Kaitaki

1994

22,365

Isle of Innisfree; chartered in 2005 as Challenger; renamed Kaitaki 2007; purchased in 2017

 The 2005-built Straitsman (13,906gt) tackling some heavy swells, conditions typical of the Cook Strait. She has capacity for 400 passengers and 1,248 lane metres. VICTOR H. YOUNG www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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BLUEBRIDGE SHIPS

 The 1985-built Santa Regina was operated by Bluebridge for 13 years. She left the fleet in 2015 and, renamed KMP Nusa Putera, is currently operating a ferry service to the Port of Merak in Indonesia. VICTOR H. YOUNG

freight, and carried a small number of passengers.

Next came Kent, which could carry 30 trucks compared to 13 on Suilven.

Kent was purchased from Ireland in 2001 and was originally utilised on the Cook Strait run, doing a weekly service from Wellington to Nelson. In January 2007 she began a coastal service, moving containers and general freight between the ports of Wellington, Nelson and Napier, and later Lyttelton.

In December 2002 Santa Regina was acquired to launch Strait Shipping’s passenger service under the Bluebridge banner. Monte Stello was introduced in 2006 to increase capacity as passenger market expanded, being sold in 2010, having been replaced by a newer Straitsman, which is one of the company’s two current ships; the other is Straight Feronia (since 2015).

Built in 2005, the Dutchbuilt Straitsman, formerly Dueodde, was renamed in recognition of Strait Shipping’s

first vessel. The 125m Straitsman has a range of ecofriendly features, and takes 40 trucks, 120 other vehicles and up to 350 passengers.

Built in 1997 by Visentini in Italy, the 186m Strait Feronia is the largest ferry crossing Cook Strait. She can carry up to 370 passengers, and offers 2,150 lane metres. Before arriving in New Zealand, she was refurbished, with her passenger areas improved and the café and bars upgraded.

She was more than ten years old when she came to New Zealand, having been launched on 7 December 1996 as Mersey Viking for Norse Irish Ferries.

She was subsequently renamed Dublin Viking, becoming Dublin Seaways in August 2010 following the DFDS acquisition of Norfolkline. When DFDS Seaways closed the BirkenheadDublin route in 2011, the ship was sold to Stena Line and renamed Stena Feronia. After spells on charter in Morocco and covering on the Irish sea, she was sold to Strait Shipping to become Strait Feronia.

NZ SERVICE

NAME

BUILT

GT

1992-2004

Straitsman

1972

1,481

NOTES

1995-2004

Suilven

1974

3,638

Acquired from CalMac; sold to Bligh Water Shipping, of Fiji, April 2004.

2001-2010

Kent

1977

6,862

2002-2015

Santa Regina

1985

14,588

Built for Mediterranean service; now operating in Indonesia

2006-2010

Monte Stello

1979

11,630

2010-

Straitsman

2005

13,906

Formerly Dueodde

2015-

Strait Feronia

1997

21,856

Ex-Mersey Viking, Dublin Viking, Dublin Seaways, Stena Feronia

THE FUTURE

Interislander have announced plans to replace all three vessels on the route with two new hybrid ferries capable of carrying both rail and vehicle freight. The new ships will be almost 40m longer and 5m wider than the current vessels, and be able to carry twice as many passengers as the current three ships, as well as 300 per cent more rail wagons and almost double the number of road vehicles.

 The Visentini-built Strait Feronia was launched on 7 December 1996 as Mersey Viking for Irish Sea service. PATRICK HEALY

More efficient engines and the use of battery power will significantly reduce emissions, and the design will make provision for the possible use of new fuels in the future.

Significant work will also be carried out on new terminals, linkspans and marshalling yard infrastructure in both Picton and Wellington. A NZ$551 million contract for the ferries was awarded to Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in 2021, with the first due in September 2025.

 Rendering of Interislander’s new design; the vessel will measure 185m by 20.5m. OSK SHIPTECH

66 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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CRUISE LINE

CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE

CRUISING FOR HALF A CENTURY

I

n March 2022 Carnival Cruise Line celebrated its 50th anniversary.

The youngest of the three largest North American cruise corporations, Carnival calls itself the ‘world’s most popular cruise line’, but its origins are relatively simple. Few people would have predicted the company’s growth, considering its less than auspicious beginnings.

Unlike its two competitors, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean International, which began by building the first of the new purpose-built cruise ships with a vision for the developing industry, Carnival started operating on a shoestring budget, repurposing former liners ill-suited for the modern image of cruising.

Carnival Cruise Line celebrated its 50th anniversary in March 2022. Allan E. Jordan looks back over half a century of the Line’s growth as it became one of the industry’s major players.

Yet, through marketing that transformed cruising into a mass market industry, the line grew. By 2020, more than five million passengers a year were sailing with Carnival.

LINER ORIGINS

Entrepreneur Ted Arison entered the cruise industry due to a chance meeting with an engineer working aboard an Israeli ferry operating in

the Bahamas cruise market in the mid-1960s. Intrigued by the business, Arison took over the marketing for the ships, launching his first ‘fun ship’ cruises from the then fledgling Port of Miami to Nassau in the Bahamas, and with plans to launch cruises to Jamaica.

While that first operation was short-lived, it led to a partnership with Norwegian shipowner Knut Kloster

which started Norwegian Cruise Line in the 1960s, before ending in a falling-out between the partners.

Anxious to remain in the cruise industry, Arison turned to the secondhand ship market. He wanted Cunard Line’s Carmania and Franconia, which had been popular 1960s cruise ships before being retired in October 1971. Unable to reach terms with Cunard, Arison instead agreed to buy Empress of Canada, which Canadian Pacific had withdrawn from service in November 1971.

A relatively new vessel, having been introduced in 1961, Empress of Canada was a traditional liner but was wellknown in the cruise trade from New York. At 27,284gt, she

Carnival marks its 50th anniversary with a celebration off the Bahamas involving a get-together of a number of their cruise ships.

www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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would not only become the largest cruise ship sailing from the Port of Miami, but also offered additional amenities, ranging from a full-size movie theatre and two-storey grand ballroom to indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

In a hastily organised marketing programme, Arison’s new firm, which he named Carnival Cruise Lines, announced the maiden voyage of the ship, rechristened Mardi Gras, in just a matter of weeks.

The brochure boasted: ‘The Golden Era of Caribbean Cruising. The biggest, fastest, most beautiful ship from Miami’. Prices began at just $175 per person for seven-day cruises to San Juan, St Thomas

Carnival’s first three ships: Festivale, Mardi Gras and Carnivale.

FIRST CRUISE FOR MARDI GRAS Mardi Gras departed on her first cruise on 11 March 1972 from Dodge Island, Miami but, heading out of the channel, she became stuck on a sandbar. Tugs tried to pull her free, but they could not move the ship. They lightened Mardi Gras by pumping out some of her fuel and eventually got her on her way, but when she reached San Juan, she needed to refuel. To meet the local supplier’s demand for a cash payment, Arison reportedly emptied the cash registers on his new ship.

and Montego Bay, Jamaica.

He called his new operation ‘The Golden Fleet’, and hastily refurbished the traditional liner with 1970s-style mirrored wallpaper and bright colours, attempting to disguise some of her traditional origins. Plans for a big letter ‘C’ on the funnel were not carried out and instead they simply recoloured the CP Ships logo with red, white and blue paint in a rush to get the ship into service.

By 1974, there were reports that the company was nearly bankrupt when Arison agreed to buy out his business partner for $1, while also assuming $5 million of debt.

Looking for a new formula for the company’s budget cruise operation, they copied a competitor. Commodore Cruise Line was calling Boheme, another pioneering Miami cruise ship, the ‘happy ship’, so, returning to a theme Arison had tried in

the 1960s for his earlier cruises, his company started marketing his new ship as the ‘fun ship’, and it worked. Half a century later, while Carnival Cruise Line has evolved from its ‘party ship’ image to a more family-inclusive product, the company still promotes itself as the ‘fun ships’.

GROWTH BEGINS

Carnival acquired its second ship in 1975. Unlike its

competitors, the company again turned to a retired liner, purchasing the former Empress of Britain, built in 1956 for Canadian Pacific. At 25,516gt, she was similar in size to Mardi Gras and had the same amenities. She had operated mostly as an Atlantic liner for eight years, before being sold to Greek Line. Renamed Queen Anna Maria, she was also used as an Atlantic liner

 Mardi Gras (ex-Empress of Canada) was Carnival’s first ship. She was later Star of Texas, then Lucky Star and finally Apollon. JIM SHAW

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CRUISE LINE

 Festivale at Miami in 1982.

Built in 1961 as Transvaal Castle, she was renamed S.A. Vaal in 1966 and was acquired

by Carnival in 1977. She later became IslandBreeze and The Big Red Boat III. STEPHEN BERRY  Carnivale was built in 1956 as the liner Empress of Britain for Canadian Pacific Steamships. She served Carnival from 1975 to 1993 and later became The Topaz.

and later on short cruises from New York to Bermuda and the Bahamas. Greek Line ceased operations in 1975, laying up its ships in Piraeus.

Rechristened Carnivale, she was refitted in 1970s styles.

Using old steamships, Carnival started employing Italian officers, mostly from Italian Line, establishing another

tradition that continued for many years, and which is still reflected aboard the company’s cruise ships. Other elements also continued for many years, such as having one of the decks on each of their ships named Empress Deck, a holdover from Canadian Pacific days.

Carnivale entered service in 1976, also cruising from Miami to the Eastern Caribbean. The success of their new ‘fun ship’ marketing programmes, along with the rapid growth of the cruise industry, helped to reverse the company’s losses.

A year after introducing Carnivale, the line made its next acquisition, this time

turning to Union-Castle Line and Safmarine, which had announced that they would end their UK to South Africa liner service in October 1977. Carnival Cruise Lines acquired S.A. Vaal, which had been introduced in 1962 as Transvaal Castle.

At 32,600gt, she was larger than the company’s other cruise ships, and, while she had been built as a one-class ship, she required more extensive reconstruction to enter the cruise market. Carnival sent the ship to Kobe, Japan, where Kawasaki Heavy Industries undertook a $30 million reconstruction, which saw new cabins and lounges added. Despite a thorough modernisation, her traditional liner origins were still evident, especially in the cabins, many of which had washbasins alongside the bed.

Renamed Festivale, she was now a 38,175gt cruise ship with accommodation for 1,400 passengers, making her one of the largest ships then operating in the Caribbean.

She sailed alongside Mardi Gras and Carnivale, and the company offered weekly cruises to Miami, with calls at ports in both the Eastern and Western Caribbean.

Carnival Cruise Line, however, was at a turning point. Founder Ted Arison was focusing on the growth of the business and was anxious to add yet more capacity.

Even before Festivale entered service, they reportedly considered buying her former

 The 1981-built Tropicale at Skagway. She entered service in 1982, and was a pioneering cruise ship in the modernisation of the cruise industry. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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 Fantasy sailing from Miami.

Built in 1990, she later became Carnival Fantasy and went for scrapping in 2020.

 Holiday docked in St Thomas.

A ground-breaking ship, she served Carnival for almost 25 years. She was scrapped in 2021.

running mate, Windsor Castle.

While many in the industry believed it was unlikely that further passenger ships would be built, in part due to a steep increase in construction costs, Carnival decided in 1980 to become one of the first cruise lines to order new ships.

Working with Technical Marine Planning of the UK, designs were developed for a 30,000gt ship able to accommodate 1,400 passengers. She had a modern look, including a squared-off transom stern, and elements of the Carnival style were beginning to emerge, including the first use of the now famous winged funnel. The ship still had traditional designs, such as enclosed promenades and

the dining room on a lower passenger deck, but she also had larger outdoor spaces and was more economical to operate. Introduced in 1982 as Tropicale, she signalled the future of the company and, indeed, the cruise industry.

Just three years after introducing Tropicale, Carnival brought out the first of three new ships, which it marketed as ‘superliners.’ The first, Holiday, was also built at Aalborg Verft in Denmark, which had built Tropicale. At 46,000gt, she was a larger version of the earlier ship, but also completed the transition from traditional passenger ship to modern cruise ship. Her cabins were larger than those typical of previous ships, she

eliminated promenades, and raised her dining rooms to the superstructure level so that they could have large windows overlooking the ocean.

Holiday was followed by two slightly larger versions of the same design built by Kockums in Sweden. Named Jubilee and Celebration, the sisterships included the same features as Holiday and entered service in 1986 and 1987 respectively.

Other elements of the Carnival style were also emerging, with the playful and colourful themed decor in the public rooms. The look of the ships, and the onboard service and style, was meant to reflect the ‘fun ship’ theme.

Carnival marketed itself as affordable cruising, and

Carnival Sunrise (ex-Carnival Triumph) was the second ship of the class to be rebuilt in 2019.

made efforts to broaden the industry by promoting it as an alternative vacation for average Americans. By the time Celebration debuted in 1987, Carnival boasted that it was carrying more passengers than any other cruise line.

After raising $400 million in an initial stock offering in 1987, Carnival’s growth began to accelerate. A new parent corporation was launched that would acquire over time some of the bestknown brands in the business, including Holland America, Costa, Seabourn and Cunard, before merging with P&OPrincess, which also included the German AIDA brand.

MEGA SHIPS

Propelling the growth of cruising in the US, Carnival Cruise Lines announced in the late 1980s an order for a new 70,000gt cruise ship from the famed Wärtsilä in Finland, which had built many of the first generation of modern cruise ships. The new ship would be among the largest passenger ships in service, rivalling Royal Caribbean’s new Sovereign of the Seas and NCL’s pioneering Norway. Yet, while the competitors were using their large ships for the highly profitable seven-day Eastern Caribbean cruises from Miami, Carnival made the bold decision to place their new ship on the three- and four-day cruises from Miami to the Bahamas.

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CRUISE LINE CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE: FORMER SHIPS SHIP

BUILT

CARNIVAL

SIZE (FT)

MARDI GRAS

1962

1972-1993

650 x 86 x 29

27,284 1961-72: Empress of Canada; 1972-93: Mardi Gras; later Olympic, Star of Texas, Lucky Star and Apollon; scrapped 2003

CARNIVALE

1957

1975-1993

640 x 85 x 29

25,516 Ex-Empress of Britain, Queen Anna Maria; later Fiesta Maria, Olympic, Topaz; scrapped 2008

FESTIVALE

1961

1977-1996

760 x 90 x 32

38,175 Ex-Transvaal Castle, S.A.Vaal; later Island Breeze, Big Red Boat III; scrapped 2003

TROPICALE

1982

1982-2001

671 x 86 x 23

36,674 Later Costa Tropicale, Pacific Star, Ocean Dream; scrapped 2021

HOLIDAY

1985

1985-2009

728 x 93 x 25

46,051 Later Grand Holiday, Magellan; scrapped 2021

JUBILEE

1986

1986-2004

733 x 93 x 25

47,262 Later Pacific Sun, Henna; scrapped 2017

CELEBRATION

1987

1987-2008

733 x 93 x 25

47,262 Scrapped 2021

FANTASY

1990

1990-2020

855 x 103 x 25

70,367 Scrapped 2020

SENSATION

1993

1993-2022

855 x 103 x 25

70,367 Scrapped 2022

FASCINATION

1994

1994-2020

855 x 103 x 25

70,367 Later Century Harmony; scrapped 2022

IMAGINATION

1995

1995-2020

855 x 103 x 25

70,367 Scrapped 2020

INSPIRATION

1996

1996-2020

855 x 103 x 25

70,367 Scrapped 2020

The 1988-built Carnival Elation was rebuilt with balconies, new cabins and a water slide during her 2017 refit.

Named Fantasy, she debuted at the beginning of 1990 and carrying 2,000 passengers, was the largest cruise ship operating short cruises. Fantasy was followed by a sistership, Ecstasy, in 1991, constituting the beginning of what would become the industry’s largest class of sisterships.

Carnival built a total of eight ships to the same design and, although eclipsed by larger ships, they remained in service for 30 years. Four of the class were retired in 2020 during the industry’s pause due to the pandemic, with two more retiring this year. The last two, Carnival Elation and Carnival Paradise, which were the line’s first azipod propelled ships, continue to be part of the fleet.

The introduction of the new ships also provided Carnival with the ability to expand its operations. They added San Juan as their first homeport

after Miami, and later positioned ships in central Florida at Port Canaveral, as well as starting cruises from California to Mexico and summer cruises to Alaska.

In the years before the pandemic, Carnival operated

GT

CAREER HISTORY

more than 1,800 cruises a year, with roughly half being short cruises from ports including New York, Baltimore and Charleston on the East Coast beyond Florida; Mobile, New Orleans and Galveston on the Gulf Coast; and from the Pacific coast. Roughly half of the US population is within a day’s drive of one of Carnival’s 18 North American homeports.

Carnival also established a few milestones in the growth of cruise ships. In 1996 they launched a new class with Carnival Destiny. The line’s first cruise ship built by Italy’s Fincantieri, she became the first passenger ship to exceed 100,000gt. The 892ft-long ship accommodated more than 3,300 passengers and had a crew of 1,000.

She was joined by two sisterships in the late 1990s, and also become the first design Carnival Cruise Line shared with Costa. In 2013 they began an extensive overhaul of the class, with Carnival Destiny rebuilt as Carnival Sunshine and her sisterships’ rebuilding followed. In 2022 the parent company plans to transfer Costa Magica, which shares the same basic design as Carnival Destiny, to become a fourth member of the class.

The designs of Carnival’s ships were evolutionary, and shared many of the same elements dating back to the 1980s, only on a larger scale.

In the early 2000s Fincantieri developed a longer version of the Destiny hull, which became the basis for the

The 70,367gt Carnival Paradise, built in 1998 as Paradise, with her red and blue livery.

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Carnival’s new ship Mardi Gras passing Carnival Horizon, which represent two of the newest generations of ships.

Carnival Pride off Grand Cayman. She was launched on 29 March 2001 and completed and delivered to Carnival on 12 December 2001.

Conquest class. Carnival built five sisters in the class, each of 110,000gt, while Costa also used the design as the basis for its fleet expansion.

While most of Carnival’s designs had the same origins and were built at Fincantieri, in the early 2000s, the company also introduced a Kvaerner Masa design for a smaller, more versatile 88,500gt ship, known as the Spirit class. Four sisterships were built and all remain part of the fleet. In recent years, one, Carnival Spirit, was used to introduce the company’s Australian cruises.

 The 2004-built Carnival Miracle in Tracy Arm, Alaska first operated out of Fort Lauderdale.

 Carnival Horizon began yearround cruises from Miami in September 2018.

The next decade saw Carnival move to a yet larger platform, first with the Dream class and then the Vista class, both developed with Fincantieri.

They were the cruise line’s first ships over 1,000ft in length and 130,000gt. The ships also introduced more modern and refined decor and updated features, as well bringing new offerings to the company’s ships, such as a sky ride for passengers to race above the top decks. It was also the inspiration for the first roller coaster at sea, seen on Carnival’s newest ships.

MARKING 50 YEARS

Heralding its 50th anniversary, Carnival began the introduction of a new generation of cruise ships, sharing the Excel platform with AIDA, Costa and P&O Cruises, for the first cruise ships powered by liquified natural

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CRUISE LINE CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE: CURRENT SHIPS SHIP

BUILT

SIZE (FT)

GT

PASS.

Carnival Ecstasy

1991

Carnival Elation

1998

855 x 103 x 25

70,367

2,606

855 x 103 x 25

70,367

2,606

Carnival Paradise

1998

855 x 103 x 25

70,367

2,606

Carnival Sunshine (ex-Carnival Destiny)

1996/2013

892 x 125 x 27

102,853

3,758

Carnival Sunrise (ex-Carnival Triumph)

1999/2019

892 x 125 x 27

101,509

3,873

Carnival Radiance (ex-Carnival Victory)

2000/2021

892 x 125 x 27

101,509

3,873

Carnival Spirit

2001

963 x 106 x 26

88,500

2,610

Carnival Legend

2002

963 x 106 x 26

88,500

2,610

Carnival Pride

2002

963 x 106 x 26

88,500

2,680

Carnival Miracle

2004

963 x 106 x 26

88,500

2,680

Carnival Conquest

2002

952 x 116 x 27

110,000

3,756

Carnival Glory

2003

952 x 116 x 27

110,000

3,756

Carnival Valor

2004

952 x 116 x 27

110,000

3,756

Carnival Liberty

2005

952 x 116 x 27

110,000

3,756

Carnival Freedom

2007

952 x 116 x 27

110,000

3,754

2008

952 x 116 x 27

113,300

3,734

Carnival Dream

2009

1,004 x 122 X 27

130,000

4,631

Carnival Magic

2011

1,004 x 122 X 27

130,000

4,724

Carnival Breeze

2012

1,004 x 122 X 27

130,000

4,727

Carnival Vista

2016

1,055 x 122 x 27

133,500

4,977

Carnival Horizon

2018

1,055 x 122 x 27

133,500

4,977

Carnival Panorama

2019

1,055 x 122 x 27

133,500

5,146

2021

1,130 x 137 x 28

182,800

6,465

FANTASY CLASS

DESTINY/SUNSHINE CLASS

SPIRIT CLASS

The 2016-built Carnival Vista in Miami.

gas (LNG), which reduces emissions. At 180,000gt, the new ships accommodate nearly 6,500 passengers, giving Carnival some of the largest cruise ships in the world.

Harking back to their origins, the first ship was named Mardi Gras. She also introduced a new livery, with a swooping blue section from the bows. She will be joined by a

sistership, Carnival Celebration, later this year and a third ship, Carnival Jubilee, in 2023.

The operational pause during the pandemic caused the corporation to accelerate the sale of older, less profitable members of the fleet, including six of the Fantasy class ships. Carnival Cruise Line currently has 24 cruise ships, making it still the largest part of the corporation.

All of Carnival’s cruise ships are expected to return to service during 2022, helping the company to resume its strong growth in the industry.

Looking back over the past half-century, starting with a second-hand liner that grounded on her maiden voyage, Carnival has created the world’s largest cruise corporation, and one which is poised to continue to dominate the multibillion-dollar industry it helped to build.

CONQUEST CLASS

SPLENDOR CLASS Carnival Splendor Dream Class

VISTA CLASS

EXCEL CLASS Mardi Gras FUTURE SHIPS TBA (ex-Costa Magica)

892 x 125 x 27

103,000

3,470

Carnival Celebration

2004/2022 2022

1,130 x 137 x 28

182,800

6,465

Carnival Jubilee

2023

1,130 x 137 x 28

182,800

6,465

 Alchemy Bar on Mardi Gras.  The new 181,808gt Mardi Gras is Carnival’s flagship, having been completed by Meyer Turku as lead vessel of the Excel class. She is Carnival’s largest ever ship. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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PART II

SHIPS OF THE SOVIET UNION During its existence, the Soviet Union operated a large merchant fleet, early examples of which were illustrated in the June issue. This follow-up feature by Malcolm Cranfield looks at ships in operation from 1967 until 1991, when the Soviet Union was broken up.

A

dmiral Sergei Gorshkov (1910-1988), who came to prominence following the 1962 Cuban missile crisis and subsequent fall of President Khrushchev, underlined that ‘a strong merchant fleet is an important element in the overall build-up of Soviet sea power’. New ships, many built in Soviet yards but with others sourced from Finland, Poland, East Germany and elsewhere, then transformed the Soviet Union into an important international trader.

In the 1980 edition of his book ‘Soviet Merchant Ships’, Ambrose Greenway wrote that larger and more sophisticated

ships were being built, with an increased emphasis on ro-ro and bulk fleets, the latter including many vessels specifically designed for use in extreme northern latitudes, where a large part of the Soviet Union’s mineral resources were located.

The Soviet Union’s merchant fleet had three other functions: to earn hard currency on international trades, to support the Navy, and to provide transportation of military and economic aid

cargoes to and from other communist nations, which had included North Vietnam, the People’s Republic of China and North Korea in the 1960s and 1970s.

During the 1970s the Soviet Union also established several international cargo liner services, including Baltic Shipping Company of Leningrad’s Balt Atlantic service to North America.

In May 1978 Balt Atlantic was accepted into the Liner

 DEBALTSEVO • The ore/coal carrier Debaltsevo, seen in Gallions Reach in the River Thames in about 1967, served the Soviet Union from 1960. She was built at Warnemünde in East Germany and allocated to the Azov Shipping Company of Ukraine. In the 1980s she mainly traded in the Black Sea and eastern Mediterranean and in February 1986 was sent from her home port of Mariupol (then named Zhdanov) to Sveti Kajo near Split, Yugoslavia for breaking. AUTHOR’S COLLECTION

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SOVIET SHIPPING BRATSTVO • Bratstvo arriving at Cape Town for a bunker call in January 1974 during a northbound voyage from Umm Qasr in Iraq when the Suez Canal was closed. She was a steam turbine-powered ‘tweendeck freighter of the Project 567 Leninsky Komsomol type. Delivered at Kherson in December 1963, she was allocated to the Black Sea Shipping Company of Odessa. On 18 September 1984, shortly after sailing from Ceuta during a voyage from Port Cartier in Canada to Odessa with a cargo of wheat, she suffered an explosion and flooded engine room due to a collision with the Soviet submarine K-53. She was towed into Gibraltar Bay, beached and later broken up locally. IAN SHIFFMAN

 NAVARIN • The dieselelectric powered Navarin, built at the Far Eastern port of Komsomolsk in 1967 for polar service, arriving at Cardiff on 2 February 1979 during a voyage from Montreal; she sailed six days later for her home port of Murmansk. The post-1991 privatised Murmansk Shipping Company sold her in 1995 to the local company AIF, but she was sent to Alang for breaking in 1999. JOHN WILTSHIRE

 LESOZAVODSK • The 17-knot B54 type Lesozavodsk, built at Gdansk in 1960, has since 1983 been berthed at Odessa port and, following modifications, used at least since 1992 as a training ship for sailors and military personnel.

Seen at Singapore in July 1979 during a voyage from Da-Nang in North Vietnam to Novorossiysk on the Russian Black Sea, she was one of many ships allocated by the Soviet Union to the Black Sea Shipping Co of Odessa. IAN SHIFFMAN

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Conference, which sought to control services between North Europe and the United States. Serving the Far East were Balt Orient Line and Odessa Ocean Line. By 1980 the Soviet Union had an active seagoing merchant fleet of 7,495 ships.

By 1990 the Soviet Union was fifth in the World Maritime ranking, with almost 25 million deadweight tonnes of shipping.

The breakup of the Soviet Union, however, saw the fleet being allocated between the nations which it had comprised, and between the regional shipping companies in Russia and Ukraine, with many older ships soon being sold to international buyers or broken up.  KAPITAN GAVRILOV • The 1982 Warnemünde-built Mercur II type container ship Kapitan Gavrilov at Singapore on 19 February 1983 when operating on Balt Orient Line.

Having been lengthened in 1989, she continues to operate on feeder services as MSC Iris. In 1995 the privatised Baltic Shipping Company sold into the management of Delphic Shipping of Athens ten ships, including Kapitan Gavrilov, which was renamed Lisboa. Sold in 2002 to Sarlis Container Services and renamed Pelat, she was bought

by MSC in 2004. DON BROWN

 BRATSK • Bratsk, operated on Transpacific services by the Far-Eastern Shipping Co of Vladivostok, off Vancouver in November 1988. One of 19 SA-15 type multipurpose cargo ships with ro-ro and icebreaking capabilities constructed in Finland for the Soviet Union between 1982 and 1987, she was built by Valmet at Helsinki in 1983.

Bratsk was purchased by Andrew Weir in 1995 for Bank Line service to the South Pacific. Renamed Arunbank, she became Tikeibank in 2006, when the business was sold to China Navigation (John Swire). She was beached at Chittagong in 2009 for breaking. RAY THORSTEINSON

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SOVIET SHIPPING

 VYRU • Vyru berthed in Felixstowe Dock Basin on 7 June 1985, probably discharging a cargo from Tallinn in Estonia, with Marriage’s Mill in the background. Vyru, operated by the Estonian Shipping Company since being delivered to the Soviet Union in 1964, was one of the Povenets type built by Neptun Werft at Rostock between 1963 and 1967. She was sold in 1989 to buyers in the United Arab Emirates and broken up at Alang in 1995 as Victory. The Rank Hovis flour mill, demolished in 2005, was constructed in the early 19th century when the basin was the hub of a traditional cargo dock. ROGER HURCOMBE

 BEREZOVKA • Photographed on 27 March 1992 departing Langton lock, Liverpool, Berezovka was one of many similar ships built in Ukraine between 1962 and 1967. She was built at Kherson and delivered to the Soviet Union on 1 June 1967, being allocated to the Black Sea Shipping Company and registered at Ilyichevsk. As she had sailed from Odessa in January 1992 bound for Havana, it seems probable that she had discharged a cargo of Cuban sugar at Liverpool and would soon have been repainted with the funnel colours of her privatised owner. Following a voyage from Piraeus to China early in 1993, she remained in the Singapore area until May 1994, when she went to Chittagong for breaking. AUTHOR

 PALEKH • Palekh was the second of 17 Mercator type multipurpose cargo ships, with a 60-tonne heavy lift capability and capacity for 368TEU, constructed at Warnemünde in East Germany for the Soviet Union between 1972 and 1976. She is seen leaving her load berth at Liverpool on 22 June 1991 during a voyage from Leningrad to Mombasa. By August 1995, with her privatised owner, Baltic Shipping Company, then in financial difficulty, she anchored off Flushing and was sold at auction on 21 February 1996. On 7 March she was renamed Marina.

After a voyage from Mexico to Madras in 1997, she was beached at Alang for breaking. AUTHOR www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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A busy scene overlooking Rosslare Harbour, with Blue Star 1, Stena Horizon and Brittany Ferries’ Cotentin in port, November 2021.

MARITIME MOSAIC ROSSLARE FERRIES

Rosslare Europort, the ferry port in the south-east corner of Ireland, has hosted numerous different ferries over the past couple of years, as the impact of Brexit affected ferry operations between Britain and Ireland. The port is the regular terminal for services from Fishguard and Pembroke Dock, but during 2020 and 2021 was visited by a variety of ferries running services to European ports to enable freight to avoid the UK ‘landbridge’. Patrick Healy was on hand to photograph some of the visitors.  Blue Star 1 berthing after a passage from Pembroke Dock.

The 1999-built Irish Ferries ship has been a daily caller at Rosslare since April 2021, when she replaced the Dover-bound Isle of Inishmore on the twicedaily round-trip from Pembroke.  The 2003-built Destination Gotland vessel Visby departing Rosslare on 15 May 2021 for Dunkerque. She has been on charter to DFDS since January 2021 on the Rosslare-Dunkirk route. She continues on the route but has been named Visborg since January.

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READERS’ ARCHIVE

 Brittany Ferries’ 2007-built ro-pax ferry Cotentin (22,308gt) approaching Rosslare on 13 November 2021, on the first arrival of the weekly Le Havre-Rosslare freight only service. Between 2013 and 2020 she was chartered to Stena Line for their service between Karlskrona, Sweden and Gdynia, Poland and was renamed Stena Baltica.

 The 1980-built Stena Europe (ex-Kronprinsessan Victoria) has been a regular caller at Rosslare for more than 20 years, is the longest-serving ferry on the Irish Sea and has maintained the Fishguard service throughout the Brexit upheavals.

 The 1997-built Pelagos (ex-Lagan Viking, Liverpool Viking, Liverpool Seaways) at Rosslare in May 2021 during a two-month charter to DFDS for the Le Havre-Rosslare service.

She is currently operated by the French company La Méridionale.

 Brittany Ferries’ Kerry arriving at Rosslare in September 2020 from Bilbao during the final weeks of her charter to Brittany Ferries.

However, Kerry was not away from Rosslare for long. She returned in January 2021 as one of the three ships on DFDS’ RosslareDunkerque service.

Her time in Rosslare ended in late September 2021 and she is now operating for Balearia on their Valencia-IbizaBarcelona service. www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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TILBURY LANDING STAGE 90 YEARS ON The extraordinary year of 2020 saw the 90th anniversary of the opening of Tilbury Landing Stage, complementing the Port of London’s huge docks complex adjacent, and serving as the port’s principal passenger terminal. It still serves in this capacity, and has hosted many famous cruise ships and liners, as Geoff Lunn recounts.

M

ore than two centuries have passed since the construction of London’s first purposebuilt docks. The opening of the West India Docks in 1802 heralded a period of considerable development which lasted throughout most of the 19th century.

Apart from the King George V Dock that opened in 1921, these developments culminated with the building of Tilbury Docks, 26 miles down the River Thames from the heart of London, which were officially opened on 17 April 1886.

A 700ft entrance lock and favourable tidal conditions

in Gravesend Reach meant that the largest ships in the world at the time could be accommodated within the docks. Two berths for Orient Line and P&O Line ships were constructed in the docks’ tidal basin, each with rail connections with London.

By the 1920s the number of passengers coming through the docks was increasing, while larger ships were coming on the scene. It was decided that a dedicated passenger terminal should be built on the Tilbury riverside, and the Port of London Authority and the Midland Railway promoted a Bill in Parliament for the new landing stage. The Bill passed in 1922, with construction work due to start two years later,

Looking across Gravesend Reach to Tilbury in the early years of the landing stage. The Tilbury Hotel is in the centre, while passenger liners can be seen in the docks.

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ANNIVERSARY

 Orient Line’s Oronsay (1929/20,043gt) waits off Tilbury in the days before the landing stage. She was lost off North Africa in 1942.  The P&O liner Mongolia (16,504gt), which was built on the Tyne and launched in August 1922, was the first ship to board passengers at the new Landing Stage.  Edith, built in 1921, was the largest of the Gravesend-Tilbury passenger ferries.

but by this time the Midland Railway had been taken over by the London, Midland & Scottish Railway, and the work was delayed until 1926.

The contract for the work was awarded to the Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Co. Designed by Sir Edwin Cooper, the landing stage featured a floating platform secured to the riverbank by four hinged steel booms, allowing a rise and fall of up to 21ft with the tide.

Its total length was 348m, of which 256.5m was allocated for passenger liners and the remaining 91.5m for ferries. Five bridges connected the stage to a new enlarged railway station, which featured a turret with a weather vane and clock. A vast cupolatopped baggage hall, almost 100m long, was constructed alongside the station.

Tilbury Landing Stage was officially opened on 16 May 1930 by Prime Minister J. Ramsay MacDonald, who had travelled with guests downriver from London on the paddle

and P&O, who introduced new tonnage on their routes to India, the Far East and Australia. Orient Line took delivery of Orontes (20,186gt) in 1929, the last of five sisters.

Otranto (1925/20,051gt) remained in service until 1957, but the other three, Orama (1924), Oronsay (1925) and Orford (1928), were all lost in World War II. In 1935 Orient Line introduced its groundbreaking 23,696gt liner Orion, the company’s first ship to have a single funnel and have a corn-coloured hull, a colour that became the Orient Line trademark. A sistership, Orcades, joined Orion on the Australian route in 1937, but her career was short-lived, as she became another Orient liner to fall victim to the war.

P&O, meanwhile, took delivery of the 22,568gt Strathnaver and Strathaird, in 1931 and 1932 respectively, followed by three further ‘Strath’ ships: Strathmore in

steamer Crested Eagle. The ceremony closed with the arrival of the P&O liner Mongolia (1923/16,504gt), which boarded passengers for Australia.

The 1930s proved to be a busy time for the Landing Stage. At its eastern end two car ferries, the 371gt Tessa and the 463gt Mimie, had joined the passenger ferries Catherine, Rose and Edith in 1924 and 1927 respectively.

The liner business was dominated by Orient Line The Gravesend-Tilbury car ferry Tessa joined the service in 1924.

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GERMAN VISITOR IN THE 1930s

 The German liner Wilhelm Gustloff at Tilbury in April 1938.

During the late 1930s an unusual visitor arrived at the Landing Stage in the shape of the 25,484gt German liner Wilhelm Gustloff, operated by Hamburg Süd. She was just a month old when she called on 10 April 1938. She was being used

1935, Stratheden in 1937 and Strathallan in 1938, the last of which did not survive the war. With their buff funnels and white hulls, replacing the Line’s previous black livery, they were among the most handsome ships to berth at the landing stage. P&O’s Corfu, Carthage and Canton, all built during the 1930s, operated on the company’s Far East route.

While Orient Line’s and P&O’s ships on the Australia run moved into Tilbury Docks between voyages, a number of smaller liners on other worldwide routes sailed further upriver to the Royal

as a floating polling station for the 2,000 Germans residing in England to vote on the inclusion of Austria as part of Germany. But in January 1945 she was sunk by a Soviet submarine with the loss of more than 9,000 lives, the worst maritime disaster in history.

Docks after disembarking their passengers at the stage.

Royal Mail Line’s three Highland ships, Brigade, Monarch and Princess, all 14,216gt, sailed to and from South American ports, and Rangitata, Rangitiki and Rangitane (another war loss) were employed by the New Zealand Shipping Company on routes to the Antipodes.

Perhaps the most frequent visitors to the Landing Stage, however, were the small 4,661gt short-sea passenger ships Suecia and Britannia, which ran across the North Sea between Tilbury and Gothenburg until 1966.

 The Gravesend-Tilbury ferry Gertrude steams through Gravesend Reach, probably acting as a tender for the Orient Line ship (left), while a three-masted steamship is moored midstream.

WARTIME AND AFTER

With the Luftwaffe concentrating their efforts on the docks nearer to London, Tilbury Docks survived the war unscathed, although a V2 rocket struck railway sidings near Tilbury Riverside. After the war the Landing Stage was again busy with passenger liner traffic, with 300 calls a year.

Following the introduction of the Assisted Passenger Scheme on 31 March 1947, under which migrants could travel to Australia for a ten pound fare, the Landing Stage became the point of farewell for thousands of ‘Ten Pound Poms’.

As passenger ships returned from war duties, many of the older vessels were hurriedly converted into migrant carriers with austere accommodation in a bid to meet the high demand for berths. Orient Line’s Ormonde (1918/15,047gt), for instance, spent the final five

 The short-sea passenger vessel Britannia, pictured in a changed white livery, was operated by Swedish Lloyd with her sistership Suecia for many years, voyaging between the landing stage and Gothenburg.

years of her life sailing from the Tilbury full of migrants.

In the immediate post-war years Orient Line and P&O embarked on a shipbuilding programme to replace their older vessels. In six years Orient Line introduced Orcades (1948/28,164gt), Oronsay (1951/27,632gt) and Orsova (1954/29,790gt), while P&O launched Himalaya (1948/27,955gt) and Chusan (1950/24,214gt) for the company’s Far East service, and the handsome Arcadia (1954/29,734gt) and Iberia (1954/29,614gt).

With the conversion of Orontes and the four Straths into one-class ships for the migrant trade, the Landing Stage was becoming ever busier, with both migrants and full-fare paying passengers.

Returning to peacetime commercial service after the war, liners of the Royal Mail Line and New Zealand Shipping Co continued the regular pattern of calling at Tilbury, to and from the upriver Royal Docks. Both lines renewed their tonnage, as did Union-Castle who, with their new 17,000gt passengercargo ships Braemar Castle, Kenya Castle and Rhodesia Castle, operated a service from London to South and East African ports. Another regular sight at the Landing Stage after the war was the 7,494gt Soviet passenger ship Vyacheslav Molotov, which was renamed Baltika in 1957. She ran regularly between Leningrad (now St

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ANNIVERSARY P&O’s Canton would call at the Landing Stage on her way to and from the Royal Docks upstream.

 Royal Mail Line’s Highland Princess boards passengers for South America at the Landing Stage.  The Soviet passenger ship Baltika (ex-Vyacheslav Molotov) makes one of her many calls to the landing stage.

Petersburg) and the Stage.

In 1960 the iconic 37,783gt Dutch liner Rotterdam, one of the best-known ships to berth at Tilbury Landing Stage, sailed up the Thames. Only a year old, she was taking a diversion from her RotterdamNew York schedule and was, at the time, the largest passenger ship to use the Stage.

The coming decade saw many changes affecting the Landing Stage, starting with

the replacement of the three steam-driven GravesendTilbury passenger ferries with new diesel vessels. But the completion of the Dartford Road Tunnel in 1965 spelled the end of the car ferry service, and Tessa and Mimie were soon sent to the breakers.

Although the Ten Pound Assisted Passage Scheme was still in operation, migrant numbers sailing from Tilbury were declining and P&O’s

‘Strath’ ships and Orient Line’s Orontes were taken out of service. The newer vessels on the Australian run were undertaking occasional cruise itineraries and, in October 1969, P&O, who by now had completely taken over Orient Line and whose ships had been the mainstay of Tilbury’s passenger business for so many decades, transferred its liner operations to Southampton.

The future for Tilbury

looked bleak, but an event that had occurred some four years earlier contributed to a change of fortunes.

In August 1965 the 19,860gt Soviet passenger liner Aleksandr Pushkin berthed at Tilbury during her maiden voyage. Her clean modern lines created much interest, but nobody thought the same ship would be calling at the stage 55 years later.

Soviet connections continued

 Orient Line’s Ormonde transported thousands of ‘Ten Pound Poms’ from the landing stage to Australia after the war.

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TIMELINE 1886 Tilbury Docks completed.

1922 Bill passed for building of a landing stage at Tilbury.

1930 Opening of Tilbury Landing Stage.

1944 Tilbury Hotel destroyed.

1947 Migrant voyages to Australia began.

1992 Tilbury Riverside station

and passenger terminal closed.

1995 Passenger terminal

reopened as London Cruise Terminal.

1997 CTC Cruise Lines go bankrupt.

 Built in 1976, Kareliya was designed as a passenger/car ferry for Black Sea service. Photographed at the landing stage in 1978, she was converted for full-time cruising in 1981.  Ferry passengers look across at the Soviet liner Alexandr Pushkin on the liner’s maiden voyage in August 1965.

2010 Cruise & Maritime Voyages established.

2017 Largest cruise ship Mein Schiff 3 called.

2020 Cruise & Maritime

Voyages go into administration

into the 1970s with calls by sistership Ivan Franko and members of a 19-strong fleet of miniliners, such as Estonia, Mikhail Kalinin and Nadezhda Krupskaya, each measuring around 5,000gt.

CRUISING FOCUS

In 1976 UK-based CTC Lines, founded in 1966 to build upon the family reunion market created by the postwar emigration boom to Australia and New Zealand, was appointed UK General Sales Agent for Soviet shipping companies. It had already

chartered Soviet ships for its voyages to the antipodes, but was now encouraging cruising in addition to line voyages from Tilbury Landing Stage.

In 1978 the Black Sea ferry Kareliya was converted into a cruise ship, and during the 1980s she built up a strong British clientele while cruising for CTC. Renamed Leonid Brezhnev, the 15,065gt

vessel could carry up to 650 passengers, The decade was otherwise relatively quiet at the Landing Stage, with infrequent calls by cruise ships such as Vistafjord, in both Norwegian America and Cunard colours, and Costa’s 37,753gt Eugenio Costa.

The following years saw expansion of the cruise industry and CTC, following Making an unusual appearance at Tilbury Landing Stage in August 1989 was the Italian cruise ship Eugenio Costa (1966/32,753gt).

the disbanding of the Soviet Union, changed its name to CTC Cruise Lines. Having reverted to her original name, Kareliya was used for cruising, in tandem with her sister Azerbaydzhan, from the Landing Stage during the summer. In 1995 another cruise ship was added to the fleet with the acquisition of the 17,070gt Starship Majestic from Premier Cruises, which was renamed Southern Cross.

In addition to these regular callers, the Landing Stage welcomed its largest vessels to date in the early 1990s, starting with Crystal Cruises’ first ship, the 46,621gt Crystal Harmony, in May 1992. Holland America Line showcased its brand-new 55,451gt Statendam at the Stage in July 1993, while Crystal Cruises brought its second ship, the 50,202gt Crystal Symphony, into the Thames in April 1995.

Despite the increased passenger traffic, the cruise terminal and Riverside Station both closed in November 1992.

However, the facilities were considerably upgraded three years later, with the terminal

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ANNIVERSARY The new Virgin Voyages cruise ship Valiant Lady makes her Thames debut at Tilbury Landing Stage in March. FRASER GRAY

reopening as the London Cruise Terminal.

In 1997 CTC Cruise Lines filed for bankruptcy, creating a huge hole in the Landing Stage’s passenger business. Cruise ship calls were intermittent, until the creation of a British-based Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV) in 2010. Its first ship was the former Soviet liner Aleksandr Pushkin, now named Marco Polo, which returned to the Landing Stage in 2008 under charter to the German tour business Transocean.

CMV was an immediate success, and the stage saw the subsequent arrivals of all of CMV’s new acquisitions, starting with Ocean Countess and Discovery (ex-Island Princess).

CMV continued to expand, with Astor (1987/20,704gt) and the much-travelled Astoria (1948/12,165gt, exStockholm). These were followed

by Magellan (1981/46,052gt, ex-Holiday) and Columbus (1988/63,786gt, ex-Star Princess, Arcadia, Ocean Village, Pacific Pearl).

In September 2017 the biggest ship to call at the Stage so far arrived, the 99,526gt German cruise ship Mein Schiff 3, and in the summer of 2019 Norwegian Pearl

(93,539gt) made a handful of calls. However, in 2020 CMV went out of business as a result of the Covid-enforced cruise shutdown, which more or less stopped cruise ships calling.

However, this year some notable new cruise ships have visited Tilbury, and, although the Landing Stage will never again see as much activity as it did in the years before and after the war, 90 years on from its opening there is still much optimism for its future.

 Vistafjord, in Cunard colours, arrives in Gravesend Reach in the 1980s.

The 1988-built Columbus (ex-Pacific Pearl, Ocean Village, Arcadia) at Tilbury Landing Stage in June 2017, shortly after her debut for Cruise & Maritime Voyages. She went for scrapping in April 2021. EFAS

www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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CHARTROOM SHIPS MAIL

SCARLET LADY CONTINUES TO BE MUCH DISCUSSED Since her debut, Scarlet Lady has definitely had an impact on the shape and design of cruise ships.

First of all, the bulbous bow, helping stabilise ships, is nonexistent on Scarlet Lady and her sisters, Valiant Lady and Resilient Lady. I do not know if it impacts the ship’s behaviour in stormy seas, but I think the bow is too long, making the ship look a bit like Pinocchio.

If Virgin Voyages wanted to pull

Gone but not forgotten Having travelled from the UK to Spain on the cruise ferry Cap Finistère (Portsmouth) and Pont-Aven (Plymouth) many times, I have been following Galicia and Salamanca (SM, May) with interest. Compared to Cap Finistère, the new ships are larger, carrying ten per cent more cars and having 20 per cent more berths, but being operated by 20 per cent fewer crew. I am sure operating costs and environmental impact are improved, and they will be more profitable.

However, the 23-hour crossing time from Portsmouth to Santander or Bilbao on Cap Finistère (with one longer trip incorporating a crew change in Roscoff) now takes, as standard, over 28 hours to Santander, and to Bilbao over 33 hours (and two

off the new forward bow look, they should have made the rest of the ship longer, to even out the looks. Currently, she looks like she is missing a huge chunk of aft section. Indeed, at the aft end, Virgin Voyages appeared to have copied MSC Cruises’ Seaside class but failed, making it look more like a modern version of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The ship’s colour scheme has also had negative feedback, but, personally, I find it rather attractive.

In terms of interior design, I like it. She brings a whole new look to the cruise industry, but there is one problem that puts me off sailing with nights, not one) from Portsmouth.

While I love travelling by ship, I wonder if some will now consider driving down through France as a quicker option? We will miss Cap Finistère (far from perfect but fast).

We will remember the ship powering up to 28 knots, heading south, with ceiling tiles in the Planets Bar vibrating. We wish her well back in the Med, while we will now have to take the slow boat to Spain!

Simon Brown Newbury

HMAS Melbourne Regarding the letter of the month (SM, Mar) recalling P&O liners, I would like to comment further on the HMAS Melbourne incidents described. In neither case was Melbourne found to be ultimately responsible, although

WHAT SHIP IN THE GULF IN 1960s?

I am a marine Aids to Navigation (AtoN) consultant with over 40 years of experience in the Gulf. I have been trying to find out more about the photo below. It shows the Shatt Al Arab light float, with an old cargo ship in the background, and I have

been trying to identify this ship, but without success . Can any reader identify the vessel? The photo was taken by a friend of mine around 1966, but I cannot confirm the year.

Ian Atkinson Foulridge, Lancs

Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady in Weymouth Bay in 2021. She is something of a ‘Marmite’ ship – some love her, others hate her. PAUL DALLAWAY

Virgin Voyages: the pools. There are technically two pools, but one is wedged between the gym and spa.

The other is so small it would be right at home on a cruise ship that can carry 600 passengers. Scarlet Lady the two captains had a hard time during the subsequent inquiries and both ended up leaving the RAN. In both cases, which occurred at night, junior officers were on the bridges of Voyager and Evans and both groups were requested to act as plane guard behind the carrier, but both got the evolution wrong and ran their ships under the bow of the carrier.

In the case of Voyager, the captain was in his cabin suffering from an alcohol-related complaint, while the captain of Evans was asleep. Neither captain should have allowed junior officers to have been in charge without supervision. In the case of Voyager, she had only just come out of dock and was not ‘worked up’. A friend of mine had a lucky escape, but 82 men died on Voyager. My friend was in the shower and was catapulted into the water when the collision occurred.

John Jones Armidale, Australia

USS Growler I admit to being a trifle pedantic, but in your article on the submarine USS Growler the missiles were incorrectly described. The missile pictured on page 59, positioned athwart the vessel, is a Regulus 2, not a Regulus 1. The Regulus 1 was a much more mundane-looking aircraft, having a blunt intake in the nose, with parallel chord wings and fin. The missile pictured on Growler’s launch ramp on page 61 is a Regulus 1.

The Regulus 2 was a more futuristic-looking machine, with a sharply pointed nose, a belly intake

carries up to 2,770 passengers, so it is almost impossible to even move around in the pool. But no doubt the ship will continue to divide opinion.

Jimbob Noodle By email and tapered chord wings and fin. Just about the only thing the two types had in common was their name.

Kit Spackman Lydney

New Fred. Olsen ships I was interested to read about the new Fred. Olsen ships (SM, Feb), as I am a seasoned sailor with Fred., and to learn the history of both the current and older ships in the fleet.

Last September I sailed on Bolette on the first foreign cruise to Denmark and Sweden, having previously sailed on Balmoral, Boudicca, Black Watch and Braemar. What a stunning ship Bolette is, and what a remarkable turnaround for her after her time under the Holland America flag.

A few years ago I enjoyed two mini-cruises from Newcastle to Bergen on Jupiter, but never knew that she had previously been a Fred. Olsen vessel. This particular Jupiter was considerably smaller than the current Fred. Olsen versions but, nevertheless, she was a very good ferry with excellent facilities. At that time she was sailing under the Fjordline flag, and, although the cabins were all en-suite, the inside cabins were tiny.

Miss Janice Goodwin, Derby

Canberra Star memories I was delighted to see the picture of the old Canberra Star in your article about ships out of Southampton. As a school leaver of 19 in 1961, I was desperate to get to Africa. I was allowed to work my passage to Mozambique as a ship’s ‘peggy’, so I went from Liverpool

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READERS’ PAGES

Sydney Harbour Bridge In honour of the 90th birthday of Sydney Harbour Bridge, which was officially marked on 19 March 2022, I am sending an old photo of Shaw Savill’s Northern Star inbound to Darling Harbour in the 1960s. Many celebrations were held during the weekend in March in Sydney.

Stuart Durant, Sydney, Australia

to Mozambique, stopping in Takoradi, Ghana, where the ship picked up 1,700 tons of cocoa for Australia.

In Cape Town we disembarked two Lancashire-built electric locomotives for South Africa and then stopped at East London, Durban and Lourenço Marques, before I started my journey hitch-hiking through Africa to Kenya.

As ship’s peggy, on contract at one shilling a month, I washed up for the deck crew, cleaned cabins and did everything in the galley and mess.

In Lourenço Marques, a docker was killed because he dozed on deck in the lethal space into which cover hatches were folded back. Outside Durban, the crew tempted sharks onto hooks laced with meat. The crew

were very protective of me, so much so that a whipround amassed £12 and 200 cigarettes, in Beira, to see me on my way. The ship then left for Australia and I was left with memories of an unforgettable five weeks.

Revd Robert de Berry, Pewsey

Recovery ship Phil Kempsey asked (SM, Dec 2021) why RN aircraft carriers (and RAN HMAS Melbourne) have the letter R in their pennant numbers. The R stands for Recovery Ship: when aircraft at sea had to land on the water, they would be recovered by the aircraft’s ship. The tradition of using ‘R’ continues today.

Noel Hedges Melbourne, Australia

CAN YOU HELP BARGE PUDGE? A centenary appeal is under way to enable volunteers to complete the final stages of restoration of the Thames sailing barge Pudge.

Based at the K.J. Finch Shipwright yard at Fullbridge, Pudge will have new decks, and coamings, beams and ceilings replaced, along with an upgrade to her below-deck accommodation, thanks to Lottery Heritage funding, donations and grants from charitable trusts, including Essex Heritage Trust, Garfield Weston, Foyle Foundation and Trinity House. The historic vessel is 100 years old this year.

The work by Thames Sailing Barge Trust (TSBT) volunteers to remove her fittings began in the summer of 2019 and Pudge, which was built in 1922 by London & Rochester Trading Co, moved into dry dock in May 2020 for the major works to begin.

However, help is still needed, as Volunteer Steve DeLaSalle explained: ‘Due to the combination of Covid restrictions and inflation,

we are struggling to complete the work, so we have launched a crowdfunding event.’

For anyone wishing to assist with this important project, donations can be made as follows: www. crowdfunder.co.uk/p/thamessailing-barge-trust-1102840. The TSBT is a registered charity that exists to preserve two Thames barges in sailing condition and was formed in 1948.

Write to Ships Mail, Ships Monthly, Kelsey Media, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Yalding, Kent ME18 6AL, or email sm.ed@kelsey.co.uk. Please note that letters via email must enclose sender’s full postal address. Contributions to Ships Monthly must be exclusive and must not be sent to other publications. The editor reserves the right to edit material. Kelsey Media reserves the right to reuse any submission in any format.

MYSTERY SHIP MAY’S MYSTERY

THIS MONTH’S MYSTERY SHIP This month’s mystery is a classic cargo liner from the last century, as depicted in a colour postcard, but with no name visible. So which ship is it? What was her name and for which company did she operate? What was her fate?

And why is she dressed overall?

The mystery ship is British Railway’s Falaise (1947) after she had been converted to a car ferry but before she was painted in Sealink’s blue-hulled livery. Her car deck’s tapered extraction fan cowlings, installed during conversion, are distinctive. She was converted in the first half of 1964 and was painted in Sealink livery in early 1965, so the picture is likely to have been taken as she steamed stern-first into Newhaven.

Ian Moignard, Jersey

Send answers, including a postal address, by email to: sm.ed@kelsey.co.uk; or by post to Mystery Ship, Ships Monthly, Kelsey Media, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Kent ME18 6AL. Emails preferred.

The mystery ship is Falaise, the first cross-Channel steamer to be built for the Southern Railways after World War II. In appearance she had the new styling which was introduced by the Dover ferry Invicta in 1940. Falaise was launched on 25 October 1946 at Dumbarton for the Southampton to St Malo service. She had a speed of 20.5 knots and was delivered to the port of Southampton on 14 June 1947.

David Jolliffe, Dover www.shipsmonthly.com • July 2022 •

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CHARTROOM SHIPS LIBRARY

bookof themonth The Fleet Air Arm and the war in Europe 1939-1945 David Hobbs Published by Pen & Sword Books Ltd, 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, tel 01226 734555.

Price £35 (£16.99 online).

This impressive book tells the story of how naval air operations evolved into a vital element of the Royal Navy’s ability to fight a three-dimensional war against both the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe. An integral part of RN, the Fleet Air Arm was not a large organisation, with only 406 pilots and 232 frontline aircraft available for operations in September 1939. Nevertheless, its impact far outweighed its numbers – it was an RN fighter that shot down the first enemy aircraft of the war, and an RN pilot was the first British fighter ‘ace’ with five or more kills. well as lesser known operators such as Speedferries. Historic ferries, such as Southsea, are also mentioned, while maps showing the major ferry routes round off an impressive publication.

• Published by Ferry Publications, PO Box 33, Ramsey, Isle of Man IM99 4LP; tel 01624 898445, info@ lilypublications.co.uk, 150-page softback, price £22.50.

The Fleet Air Arm’s rollcall of achievements in northern waters included the Norwegian Campaign, the crippling of Bismarck, the gallant sortie against Scharnhorst and Gneisenau as they passed through the Channel, air attacks on enemy E-boats in the narrow seas, air cover for the Russian convoys, air attacks that disabled Tirpitz, and strikes and minelaying operations against German shipping in the Norwegian littoral that continued until May 1945. By the end of the war in Europe the FAA had expanded to 3,243 pilots and 1,336 aircraft.

This book sets all these varied actions within a naval context, as both technical and tactical aspects are explained with brief descriptions of aircraft, their weapons and avionics. Cross referencing with the Fleet Air Arm Roll of Honour has been made for the first time, to put found throughout the country. From Viking ship replicas to the Mary Rose, warships at Chatham to Nelson’s historic flagship HMS Victory, this extensive guide includes details of museums large and small, as well as the many preserved ships which can be seen around the UK and Ireland.

• Published by Kelsey Media, World of Ships No.22, tel 01959 543747, shop. kelsey.co.uk/single-issue/world-ofships-magazine/022, price £8.99.

The Ferry Log: into the next Millennium John Bryant The Ferry Log’s ‘The New Millennium Years 2000-2021’ is the first in a trio of profusely illustrated volumes each charting around two decades of ferry activity around Britain and Ireland utilising Ferry Publications’ extensive article archives. ‘The Ferry Log’ itself is a month-by-month account for each individual year. In addition, there are cameo pieces on other ferries for whom that year was a notable event, complemented by an annual ‘In The News’ section to provide the context.

The 150-page volume provides a record of ferry activity over the course of two decades, recording all of the notable new ferries, as well as significant events in terms of new routes opening and old ones closing.

There are features on all of the major ferry companies and operations, as

A Guide to Maritime Museums and Preserved Ships Roger Cartwright and Nicholas Leach The British Isles has a unique and varied maritime heritage, which permeates the identity and culture of the nation. The history of ships and the sea is closely interwoven with the history of Britain, and the importance of this heritage is reflected in the many museums and preserved ships

French Warships in the Age of Steam 1859–1914 Stephen S. Roberts In 1859 the French Navy was at a high point, having fought alongside the British in the Crimean War and developed a formidable fleet of fast wooden-hulled steamships. But in that very year the world’s navies had to start over again when French naval architect Dupuy de Lôme designed

names to those aircrew killed in action wherever possible. The Fleet Air Arm and the War in Europe completes David Hobbs’ six-volume series chronicling the operational history of British naval aviation. NL Gloire, the first seagoing armoured battleship. Beginning with the ironclad revolution, this book is the first comprehensive listing in English of around 1,400 warships that were added to the official French Navy fleet list between 1 January 1859 and the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

It includes everything from the largest battleships to a small armoured gunboat, which resembled a floating egg. Reflecting the main phases of naval policy, the ships are listed in three separate parts to keep contemporary designs together, and then by ship type and class. For each class the book provides a design history explaining why the ships were built, substantial technical characteristics for the ships as completed and after major reconstructions, and career milestones, including the ultimate fate of each ship.

Taken with the earlier volumes written jointly with Rif Winfield, French Warships in the Age of Sail 1626-1786 and French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786-1861, this volume completes a trilogy which provides a complete picture of the development of French warships over a period of almost three centuries. The 512-page hardback is well illustrated with both drawings and illustrations, as well as high quality photographs. PS • Published by Seaforth Publishing, 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS; www. seaforthpublishing.com; email info@ seaforthpublishing.com; price £50.

88 • July 2022 • www.shipsmonthly.com

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NEXT ISSUE SUPERFAST’S

DYNAMIC DOZEN A look at the impressive careers of 12 ro-pax ferries built by Superfast between 1995 and 2002 that are still running in fleets around the world, along with the story of the man who was the inspiration behind them. Part 1 covers the first six ships.

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DON’T MISS 6 ISSUES £22 AN ISSUE + FOR FREE BOOK FUTURE FUELS • The advances being made by shipping companies to convert to ‘future fuels’, such as methanol, ammonia and hydrogen.

MSC MERAVIGLIA • Profile of MSC Meraviglia, one of the newest ships in the MSC Cruises fleet, with a look at what she has to offer.

US NAVY CARRIERS • A look at the various carriers used by the US Navy, which, has been at the forefront of aircraft carrier development since 1945.

SHIPS OF THE SOVIET UNION • The third of our photo features depicting ships operated by the Soviet Union portrays the post-1991 arrangements focusing on ships operated by Russian interests.

AUGUST ISSUE ON SALE 29 JULY Next issue_NL.indd 90

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OCCEEAANN LL II N R O NE ER

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Could you support UK Merchant Navy seafarers and their families at a time of crisis?

To support our Winter Appeal online, visit: www.merchantnavyfund.org www.maritimeheritagetours.co.uk Or text MNFWINTER15 to 70470 to donate £15 or sign up for our newsletter via the website

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Founded in 1947, the World Ship Society has some 2,000 members worldwide who are interested in ships, past and present. Its monthly journal “Marine News” is a byword for accurate information.

DELIVERED AS A PDF BY E-MAIL EVERY MONTH: SHIPPING NEWS AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT MARINE NEWS amd its monthly digital Supplement provide the most comprehensive and convenient listings of merchant ship activity for enthusiasts, some 10,000 entries a year covering launches, name and ownership changes, details of casualties and demolitions, all available as a Picture Ships 01/10/2019 11:56:24 64-page digital magazine. PUBLICATIONS Fifty excellent WSS fleet lists and specialist history books areIND.indd available to1members at greatly discounted prices with up to three new titles each year. BRANCHES The World Ship Society has over 50 local branches worldwide which hold monthly meetings. MEMBERSHIP annual membership of the World Ship Society (includes 12 digital copies of “Marine News” and digital Supplements per annum) costs £26 (£22 outside UK and EU) Get a trial digital copy of ‘Marine News’ by e-mailing your name and address to: membershipsecretary@ worldshipsociety.org or write to the Membership Secretary, World Ship Society, 17 Birchdale Road, Appleton, Warrington, Cheshire WA4 5AR (UK)

WORLD SHIP SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP HAS NEVER BEEN BETTER VALUE www.worldshipsociety.org

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