SS Cape Fear was built at the Avondale Shipyard and was delivered to Prudential Lines as the LASH (Lighter Aboard SHip) Espania in 1971. This vessel was acquired by Farrell lines in the 1970s and renamed the Austral Lightning. The Austral Lightning was on a regular service with two other sister ships from the US West Coast to Tahiti, American Samoa, Australia, and New Zealand. My last trip as a cadet was on the sister ship Austral Moon, often carrying frozen beef from Australia and New Zealand to the US for fast food companies. After the Austral Lightning was withdrawn from service, it was chartered to the US
government and spent five years in Diego Garcia as a prepositioned ammunition ship.
SS Mount Washington
MARAD eventually acquired her and she made many voyages to Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm. I worked as a first engineer on the Austral
History in Miniature Custom Built Ship & Yacht Models • Research Service
Allen K. Haddox Nautical Research Guild, Society for Nautical Research, US. Naval Institute, NMHS, CAMM
Lightning for two years trading between Saudi Arabia and the US. My time as cadet on her sister vessel proved invaluable, as I was the only crewmember that had served on this type of vessel before. She could easily make the trip from San Francisco to Saudi Arabia without stopping, and we carried Patriot missiles, helicopters, trucks, aircraft bombs, and black powder canisters for the US Marines. After Desert Storm, MARAD renamed her SS Cape Fear to be in line with MARAD's other "Cape F-" LASH ships. Many retrofits were made to the cranes and engine room. Eventually the Cape Fear's MARAD status was reduced and some equipment was removed for use on other vessels. MIKE ELBERS
New York, New York
View from the Ferry
803 N. Howard Street #148 Alexandria, VA 22304 E-Mail: allenhaddox@comcast.net Home: 703-751-1301 Cell: 703-915-6160
NMHS holiday card, 2011, based on a painting by William G. Muller
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.A. Free admission to the museum with overnight docking. .A. No height limit, deep draft, electric & water hook-ups, wi-fi, showers, restrooms, & picnic area available.
True Plank-On-Frame Construction CAMPBELL class Revenue Cutter JEFFERSON DAVIS LOA: 35\li'' SCALE: 7/32" HEIGHT: 21 W' ITEM #K1051 KITCOST: $355
Also available as a completed model
Build this beautiful and impressive model of the "ultimate Baltimore clipper," JEFFERSON DAVIS. Our kit, for the experienced modeler, includes rugged basswood frames, pre-beveJed I~ ensure a fair la to the planking.
• Fine ship models si11ce 1905!
B 6
LUE'TA.CKET
www.bluejacketinc.com
SHI
160 E. MAIN ST., SEARSPORT ME 04974
P°VC RAFT B RS
Open year round
1-800-448-5567
When I was in my teens living in Queens, New York, I would take the subway down to the Battery and rake a ride on the Staten Island Ferry across the Hudson River and back again. I would stand at the bow, see the ships in the harbor and the Statue of Liberty, while listening to the water splashing against the hull as we made our way across. Later, when I was a midshipman at the US Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, we traveled from the academy to the Battery by ferry for the Maritime Day parade, where we then marched down Broadway for the ceremonies. Before the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge was built (1964), the fastest way to visit friends in Staten Island was by ferry. Standing in the wind and seeing the New York skyline, we enjoyed every minute of the thirty-minute trip. Your card each year is sent to customers and friends who enjoy getting them. Thank you for giving me good memories and selecting such wonderful pictures. SIDNEY HILL
Cleveland, Ohio
SEA HISTORY 138, SPRING 2012