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1971 Litton Ship Systems Launches SS Austral Envoy- First Ship Launched From New Shipyard The recent christening of the Austral Em-ay at Litton Indus- tries' new $130 million shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss, inaugurated a new method of s1«p launching in the United States. With the ex- ertion of the splash from the champagne bottle, the new Farrell lines contaiuership was not launched in the usual fashion, in- stead ol a slide down the sfnfHvay as in a traditional launching, the Atsstr&l Envoy was transferred from land to water by way of a new launch platform 'system de- signed !>y Crandall Dry Dock En- jpoeers, Inc., Cambridge, Mass. This system is part of rite assem- hl^-Kne production process being utilized by Litton Ship Systems in the building of the Austral En- voy and her three sisterships, Au$- tot Ensign, Austral Endurance and Austral Entente, The Austral Envoy was spon- sored by Lady Phyllis Bates, wife of the Hon. Sir John Bates. OLE.. Tlte new Litton "shipyard of the future" employs new shipbuild- ing: concepts or* fabrication,, hand- ling and assembly of ship com* patients, which are all brought together in an integration area adjacent to a waterfront bulkhead. The launching of the ship is. the fins! operation oi this integrated system of ship construction. The Boating dry dock, of the Crandall I>rv Dmk Engineers' sectional sell-docking type with the wing on One side removable for transfer, was selected for this operation be- cause of its unique qualities. Launching Is accomplished from the yard, located 12 feet above wa- ter level, to a Hosting attitude as shown in the photographs to the right and as described m the Feb- ruary iS, 1971 issue of Maritime Reporter/Engineering News. This dock 'has the capacity to launch vessels weighing up to 3S,COO tons light displacement It has an over- all length of 950 feet and width of 2. In th» view ;he ship Has moved onto the faitnchu lwr» fo p!o?(orm is by means of o special iramicr diitcnce is cbOut 300 U;«t oreQui'ed four bourn wOS mjv«?
