Q JUSTIN T ROGERS
Justin T. Rogers
OUTSTANDING
OFFSHORE/SHALLOW-DRAFT
VESSELS OF 1983
A portfolio of the most
important offshore and
shallow draft vessels
constructed during 1983 ...
selected because of unusual
and superior characteristics
of design, purpose or
performance.
ACTINIA
Hitachi Zosen
The semi-submersible offshore
drilling rig Actinia was delivered
in 1983 to Actinia Shipping Cor-
poration by the Ariake yard of Hi-
tachi Zosen. The rig is Hitachi's
SS-4000 type, based on an original
design of Friede and Goldman of
New Orleans. The unit is 270 feet
long, 200 feet wide, 116 feet high,
and has a variable deck load of
3,200 metric tons.
The Actinia is capable of oper-
ating in water up to 1,500 feet
deep and of drilling to a maximum
depth of 25,000 feet. It is designed
to withstand waves up to 100 feet
high and winds of up to 100 knots.
An 8-point mooring system keeps
the rig in position during drilling;
four thrusters provide back-up
during adverse weather condi-
tions. The rig complies fully with
the rules and regulations for oper-
ation in the U.K. sector of the
North Sea.
AIR RIDE EXPRESS
Atlantic & Gulf
Boat Building
Built under subcontract from
Air Ride Marine, Inc. of Miami by
Atlantic & Gulf Boat Building,
Inc. of Port Everglades, Fla., the
65-foot crew/supply boat Air Ride
Express entered service in mid-
1983. The new vessel, which is
owned by South Florida Offshore
Services, Ltd. and operated out of
Mobile to the offshore oil industry
by Gulf Crew Transport of Pensa-
cola, Fla., is a surface effect ship
(SES) built to the proprietary Air
Ride design that features a shal-
low pressurized air chamber under
the hull.
Unlike other SES craft, the Air
Ride Express has a rigid intercon-
nected structure and requires no
flexible seals. Above the waterline
it looks similar to a conventional
boat. The Air Ride design, which
was developed by Air Ride Marine
(continued on page 20)
18 Maritime Reporter/Engineering News
Digital Wave Publishing