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The Mirlees Blackstone-powered Charles Darwin, constructed at Appledore, shows the MacGregor Navire 20-ton gantry. Britain-Marine Industry (continued from page 21) ing both merchant and naval ships, and is scheduled for privatization. Having used the concept of modular construction on the RO/RO-con- tainership Atlantic Conveyor and the cable repair ship Pacific Guar- dian, the company is applying the same techniques to warships. The Swan Hunter yards are currently building two Type 22 frigates for the Royal Navy, and have recently com- pleted sea trials with the aircraft carrier Ark Royal, which is shortly to be handed over to the Royal Navy. This ship will be used as an offshore base for vertical takeoff Sea Harrier fighter aircraft and Sea King anti-submarine helicopters. New orders for Type 22 frigates were placed in January this year with Swan Hunter and another BS yard, Cammell Laird of Birkenhead. Swan Hunter has also been awarded a 40 million pound contract to build a new 3,000-ton Sir Galahad to replace the landing ship lost in the Falklands. The fortunes of Harland & Wolff in Belfast have also improved. This shipyard is building four 10,500-ton refrigerated cargo ships for Blue Star Line, all for delivery in 1985. These modern 19-knot reefers are each powered by a 15,200-bhp H&W-built M.A.N.-B&W engine. Work at the yard extends into 1986 with an order from British Steel for a 173,000-dwt bulk carrier. Among the warship builders, as yet nationalized, is Vosper Thorny- croft of Portsmouth and South- hampton. This company is now fit- ting out the seventh in a series of nine Hunt Class mine countermeas- ures vessels, said to be the largest vessels ever built in glass reinforced plastic. The yard is completing the guided missile destroyer Gloucester for the Royal Navy, and is hoping to fill the gap in large warship con- struction that will follow delivery of this ship with an order for frigates from Pakistan. Vosper Thornycroft has recently diversified from the construction of fast patrol boats to sieze a market opportunity to build two passenger craft for High Speed Ferries of Hong Kong. Handed over in Janu- ary this year, these 170-foot ferries are designed to carry 700 passengers at 27 knots. Propulsion power is provided by four 3,000-bhp Paxman Valenta engines. Vosper Thornycroft and Paxman Diesels of Colchester, a leading die- sel engine manufacturer, have made a recent breakthrough into the U.S. market. Fifteen 110-foot patrol boats will be built by Bollinger Ma- chine Shop & Shipyard, Inc. of Lockport, La., for the U.S. Coast Guard to a Vosper Thornycroft de- sign. VT is providing stabilizers, steering gear, and propellers, while Paxman is supplying twin 2,800- bhp, 16-cylinder Valenta engines for these vessels. Yarrow Shipbuilders at Scotstoun on the Clyde launched the London, fourth Royal Navy Boxer (Type 22) Class frigate in October 1984. The third of the class now fitting out at Yarrow, named Brave, is the first British warship to be fitted with Rolls-Royce Marine Spey SM1A gas turbines, which promise to be more economical than the Rolls-Royce Olympus turbines. Brave is also the first ship to receive the new light- weight Seawolf fire control system from British Aerospace. Yarrow has orders for further Type 22 frigates that will provide work until 1987, and has also been participating in the Hunt Class minehunter pro- gram. The Clyde yard will also build the lead ship of the new Royal Navy Type 23 light frigate. British Shipbuilders' smaller yards include Hall Russell of Aber- deen and Appledore Shipbuilders in Devon. Appledore recently com- pleted the specialized research ship Charles Darwin for the National Environment Research Council at its covered facility. This oceangoing vessel is equipped for geophysical and geological investigations around the world, and has an endurance of 35 days at 12 knots. Propulsion is by a Mirrlees-Blackstone diesel driving a Stone-Vickers controllable-pitch propeller designed for silent run- ning. The Devon yard is also build- ing a cargo vessel for Iceland. Hall Russell has come to special- ize in offshore patrol vessels of late, although the yard was a traditional trawler builder. A series of five Pea- cock Class, 200-foot armed offshore patrol vessels are now being deliv- ered to the Royal Navy for opera- tions in Hong Kong waters. The yard also has orders for three Minis- try of Defence mooring and salvage vessels, and is hoping to secure an order to build a third generation off- shore patrol vessel for home waters. A traditional builder of small war- ships, patrol craft, and landing ships on the East Coast is Brooke Marine, another member of BS. The man- agement has offered to buy out this yard, which has a strong export record and has recently designed and built sophisticated 300-foot landing ships for Algeria and Oman. There has been considerable ac- tivity among the independent build- ers of para-military and small naval craft. Fairley Marine of Cowes has recently built three 108-foot Load- master landing craft for Kuwait and secured, early this year, an order for three 108-foot patrol craft for the Bahamas Defence Force in the face of strong competition from the U.S. The neighboring Souter yard on the Isle of Wight is building a 100-foot patrol boat for Bahrain, and has acquired a remarkable run of over- seas orders for three luxury motor yachts, the latest a 123-foot vessel costing 3 million pounds. Watercraft at Shoreham in Sus- sex delivered the first of a new design 65-foot patrol boat to the Oman Coastguard in December 1984, and has received orders for another 14 of this type from the Royal Navy for use as training craft. Watercraft also has thriving divi- sions producing survival craft, par- ticularly for the offshore industry, rescue boats, and fishing vessels for export through Cygnus Marine. Notable among the independent builders of small ships are four yards on England's East Coast— Cochranes of Selby, Richards (Ship- builders) of Lowstoft and Yar- mouth, Richard Dunston of Hessle, and Yorkshire Dry Dock at Hull. Cochranes is mixing offshore work with the construction of pas- senger/vehicle ferries. A 3,300-grt drive-through, RO/RO ferry with additional side-loading facilities is due for delivery to Caledonian Mac- Brayne, the West of Scotland ferry operator, to join a similar ship built by Ferguson-Ailsa in 1984. Richards, a traditional builder for the fishing industry, recently ac- quired a contract to build a series of 12 steel-hulled, deep-water mine- sweepers for the Royal Navy Re- serve, and is now constructing these vessels at Lowestoft and Great Yar- mouth. They will be used for train- ing, and will use deep-sweeping equipment provided by BAJ-Vick- ers. Richard Dunston recently se- cured contracts to build five water tractor tugs propelled by Voith cy- cloidal propellers for the Royal Navy, identical to four already in service. Yorkshire Dry Dock has been building small ships at Hull since 1918. The company's specialty over the past 10 years has been bulk car- riers classed for deepsea service. Of under 800 gt and designed to carry 1,400 tons deadweight, no less than 22 of this type have been built or are in the course of construction; five are due for delivery to coastal ship- ping companies during 1985. Tyne Shiprepair, Britain's largest ship repair company, has achieved a modest profit for its first full year of operations since being denational- (continued on page 24) HMS Harworth, 9th Hunt class minehunter constructed at Vosper Thornycroft 22 Maritime Reporter/Engineering News
