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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
