SEPTEMBER 2024
BEYOND THE HORIZON
September 2024
MERCHANT FLEET
Three gigantic container ships have been or will be soon launched by huge carriers CMA CGM, Evergreen, and MSC. The size and capabilities of these vessels capture the attention of shippers worldwide.
The Evergreen “A” class ships, of which there will be 13, carry 23,992 containers. These beasts are 236,000 tons (think of the USS IOWA-class ships that weighed in, fully loaded, at 55,000 tons). 1,312 feet in length (the USS IOWA was about 900’) with a beam of 202’ but a draft of 56 feet. The engine that provides 79,00o hp is so mammoth that the ship must be built around the engine. These babies will hit 22.5 knots.
CMA CGM’s contribution to the industry is run by 60,000 cubic feet of liquid natural gas stored at -258 degrees. The ship is 1,312’ in length with a beam of 201’. The fleet will hold 23,100 containers each at a total price of $1.26 billion. The 63,000 kW power means about 20% less CO2 emissions.
MSC does not wish to be behind the eight ball so ordered ten ships at the ubiquitous length of 312’ and width of 201’. MSC’s ships will carry 23,300 containers. China is building the vessels for about $150 each.
CMA CGM BOUGAINVILLE
GRAY FLEET
The Russians lost the KILO-class submarine ROSTOV NA DONU (B-237) in the Black Sea compliments of the Ukrainian anti-ship missile and drone attack. Originally launched in 2014, the sub was 250’ with a 21’ beam and had a crew of 52. In truth, the sub had sustained serious damage in previous attacks but was unable to transit the Dardanelles Strait necessary to enter a drydock.
ROSTOV NA DONU (B-237)
The world keeps dumping more and more duties and expenses on the poor Coast Guard. Already on a tight budget, the Coast Guard incurred an additional $24 million in costs due to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The Army Corps of Engineers had the opportunity to spend $75 million in unexpected expenditures. A new bridge will be around $1.9 billion. Congress may have to adjust the National Budget to meet the demands. It will certainly require some additional funds for the Coast Guard.
The Fiscal Responsibility Act was a bipartisan attempt to cope with financial problems within the nation’s economy. It suspended the debt limit for a year, capped discretionary funding, and limited SNAP and TANF Block Grants. It sure seemed like a good idea at the time.
The Navy took a hit in funding for VIRGINIA-class submarine construction that was scheduled for 2 per year; however, inflation lowered the ability to pay for these subs to 1 per year. Worse, we have a commitment to deliver older VIRGINIA-class subs to Australia.
The CONSTELLATION-class frigates, an ENTERPRISE-class carrier, and COLUMBIA-class submarines are behind schedule due to the funding issues that limited annual increases to 1% but the 3% inflation is stifling construction. Raising taxes and spending during an election year is unacceptable to Congress.
In the largest scandal in governmental history that almost destroyed the U.S. Navy, 91 admirals and over 600 senior officers were implicated in the Fat Leonard scheme to defraud the Navy of tens and tens of million dollars through false invoices, overcharges, and imaginary bills. Leonard Francis (Fat Leonard) learned that the military was easily bilked for services not provided, over billing, and a monopoly on logistics in the Western Pacific.
He got away with this by befriending admirals, ship commanding officers, supply and logistics officers and staff personnel at the Headquarters of the 7th Fleet. He had moles so deep into NCIS, Navy Intelligence, and the 7th Fleet that he could have ships diverted from one port to another where Fat Leonard had the staff and supplies to inflate his invoices.
When an investigator finally was able to breach the security walls Leonard built at NCIS and Navy Intelligence for a meeting with Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, head of the Navy merely said, “Holy Shit”. He knew that virtually all the top officers who had ever been in the Pacific could be court martialed or civilian tried and jailed.
Two Chiefs of Naval Operations, the Superintendent of the Naval Academy, high level supervisors at NCIS and Naval Intelligence, Commanding Officers of a multitude of ships, and a whole passel of 7th Fleet staff officers were involved. Many received lavish $1,000 per head dinners, Cuban cigars by the carload, leather chairs, Rolex watches, and hookers….lots of hookers at parties replete with Dom Perignon champagne, Cuban cigars, and even truffles flown from France that day. Wives received Versace handbags worth over $10,000 and Gucci perfume priced at $2500.
Justice required fellow officers, former roommates, classmates, old friends, and pals to convict this overwhelming number of high-ranking officials. Worse, the Navy realized that such an endeavor could eliminate virtually all the top-ranking officers in the Navy. A few got slaps on the wrist, former officers who had retired got “Letters of Reprimand” in their service records, a couple spent time in jail; but overall, most got away very easily.
Fat Leonard was lured to the U.S. and arrested. He reasoned he was the star witness and used his knowledge to gain freedom from jail and house arrest to a luxury condo with his family, servants, a limo, and his own guards instead of American police. He finally escaped in 2022 but was captured in Venezuela. With no extradition treaties, our Southern Cousins used Fat Leonard in exchange for a multitude of drug lords, criminals, spies, etc. The U.S. agreed.
Fat Leonard is still awaiting trial and sentencing. The Navy only releases heavily redacted information under court order through the Freedom of Information Act, and then it takes months. The overall picture of the scandal is beyond belief.
OFFICERS CHARGED IN SCANDAL
ENVIRONMENT
The Rapidan Dam, near Mankato, MN, catastrophically failed after significant rainfall in the region pushed water over and around the dam. Houses along the river were quickly washed away. YouTube video of the incident is incredible. The historic levels of water literally carved away the land around the dam and from underneath houses.
A University of Texas PhD candidate is using underwater audio sounds to check on the environment of oyster reefs. Virtually all creatures emit some semblance of sound, and by understanding their noises, we can see if the appropriate entities are on the reefs and helping it survive. Absence of certain sounds indicate a reef is dying because fish are abandoning it. It is a quick-and-easy method of “dip-sticking” the health of an environment.
We all know that whales have certain very low frequency sounds. Their calls can be heard hundreds or even thousands of miles away; but the meaning of the sounds has baffled biologists until the development of Artificial Intelligence and quantum computers that, hopefully, will be able to translate those whale noises into human translations.
This is no off-the-wall idea. Dog owners know when their pets are communicating to be let outside, feed, or that they are frightened. It is no farfetched idea to learn whale-ese.
WHITE FLEET
“The SS United States is a retired ocean liner that was built between 1950 and 1951 for United States Lines. It holds the distinction of being the largest ocean liner constructed entirely in the United States and the fastest to cross the Atlantic Ocean in either direction. This speed record was set during its maiden voyage in 1952 and remains unbeaten.
The ship measures 990 feet in length, with a beam of 101.5 feet and a draft of 32.5 feet. It has a gross tonnage of 53,330 tons and features 12 decks. The SS United States was designed to carry 1,928 passengers and a crew of 900. Its propulsion system consists of four steam turbines and eight boilers, generating a total of 240,000 horsepower, which enabled it to reach speeds up to 38.32 knots (about 44 miles per hour) during trials, and a service speed of 35 knots (about 40 miles per hour).
Designed by naval architect William Francis Gibbs, the ship incorporated several innovative features, such as extensive use of aluminum to reduce weight and improve fire safety, and watertight compartments to enhance survivability. It was built with the capability to be quickly converted into a troopship, able to transport 14,000 troops if necessary.
The SS United States served from 1952 until 1969, after which it was retired due to the rise of transatlantic jet travel. Since 1996, it has been docked on the Delaware River in Philadelphia. Preservation efforts by the SS United States Conservancy are ongoing, with various plans for restoration and reuse being explored.”
(Historical Stories—Facebook)
SS UNITED STATES
American Cruise Line started sea trials for the new catamaran AMERICAN LIBERTY, a 100-passenger boat that is a 200’ by 54’ vessel destined for the New England coastal tours, and it is the first of 24 similar boats that should be in service by 2026. ACL’s fleet consist of paddle-wheelers that accommodate 100-180 guests, INDEPENDENCE-class coastal cruisers for 90 people, while the PATRIOT-class, Coastal Cats, and CONSTELLATION-class cruisers carry from125-175 customers.
AMERICAN LIBERTY
INLAND WSTERWAYS
According to Waterways Journal, 3,761 towboats ply the rivers of the United States pushing 22,356 barges. These tows are categorized by horsepower. Those under 2,000hp are considered harbor tows. 1,200 vessels are above 2,000hp and work at specific sites on assigned rivers. The standard tow in the Midwest is between 5,000 and 7,000 hp and can handle the 15 barge grain tows of the Upper Mississippi. More powerful tows can be found on the Lower Mississippi and can push up to 56 barges at one time. Interestingly, 85% of these tow boats have engines made in America.
Allisions and Collisions
ALLISIONS AND COLLISIONS
The USS DUBUQUE (LPD-8), ship designed to provide littoral assault capabilities for the Marine Corps, was sunk by the Air Force this past summer as a target. Personally, I loved the DUBUQUE as it berthed next to us during the 50th Anniversary of the Re-taking of Guam in WWII. The ship was 684’ x 105’ with a draft of 23 feet and could hit speeds more than 22 knots. She carried 28 officers and 333 enlisted unless it was hauling Marines, then she had 66 officers and 633 enlisted personnel. She carried 4 MV-22 Osprey jets and 14 assault boats. The USS TARAWA was also sunk in this exercise.
DUBUQUE had a checkered past. In June 1988, she came across a boat overloaded with Vietnamese refugees. The Commanding Officer decided that his obligation was to determine the seaworthiness of the boat, and render aid if it looked poorly. He decided it was seaworthy and refused to intervene. With one apparent dead refugee easily seen by the entire crew, the men threw life-rings to three people in the water but they were castigated by the bridge and ordered to cease such actions. When some tried to crawl monkey lines, the crew was ordered to shake the lines forcing the refugees to lose grip. Marines launched rubber boats with food and medicine. The Skipper of DUBUQUE deemed his duty completed and left the area.
Several days later the refugee boat was finally discovered by a freighter. An additional 30 people had died after the encounter with the Navy ship. The Captain maintained that he complied with standing orders regarding refugee boats; however, the Judge Advocate’s Office disagreed, and Captain Alex Balian was officially reprimanded.
The ULTA GALAXIE, a 124-meter bulk carrier sank near South Africa. The crew was rescued by a fishing boat MALACHITE as the bulker broke into 4 pieces.
BONHOMIE WILLIAMS, a 49’ yacht, was sunk by orca attacks. The sailors were rescued by the Spanish Coast Guard.
Typhon Gaemi, a category 4 typhon, left a major path of destruction as it passed through the Philippines. Among the ships that sank in the storm were: 320’ cargo ship BASIA, 243’ DOLPHIN, 180’ freighter TANZANIA, 230’ freighter GINAN, 299’ bulk carrier HUNG SHENG 88, concrete hauler IRIANA, 322’ cargo ship KETA, 312’ cargo ship SOPHIA, TERRA NOVA with the loss of a crewman, and 276’ freighter KINLI.
ETHOS, a super luxury yacht ran aground due to crew error.
CITA XX, an Indonesian Navy LCT, simply disappeared.
GOD BLESS DIXON was a Nigerian cargo ship made of wood. She caught fire and 20 of her crew died.
Mike Lynch, a super-rich multi-billionaire called England’s Bill Gates who sat on the Board of many major corporations, is missing and presumed dead after his 150’ super-yacht went down in a storm off Italy. BAYESIAN, owned by Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, had 12 guests and 10 crew. She and 14 others were rescued but one is dead and the rest missing after their boat was hammered when at anchor. Evidently the mast came down and the boat capsized. A 35-year-old mother momentarily lost her 1-year-old child but grabbed her at the last moment and were able to get to a life raft. The baby needed a few stitches but the survivors all had minor to major injuries.
BACEASIAN
Due to light and atmospheric conditions, optical illusions at sea are not uncommon. Ships may seem to float in the air. Either that or my recent eye surgery is to blame.
