Big Tugs, Big Move

This morning the big tugs Siem Commander and Atlantic Osprey arrived towing the jack-up drill rig Noble Regina Allen.

The two boats were pulling pretty hard judging by the smoke, but they weren't making much speed.

Arriving at the same time was the massive Maersk Mobiliser.

It did not appear to be part of the rig move, and tied up briefly at pier 31.

Harbour tugs were not to be left out with the bigger tugs Atlantic Bear and Spitfire III working the rig arrival.

 The other harbour tugs Atlantic Oak and Atlantic Fir  were assigned to move the autocarrier Torino from pier 31 to Autoport.

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Which Way Did He Go

"Which way did he go?" would have been a good question today after tugs could be seen going frontwards and backwards in Halifax harbour.

McKeil Marine's Lois M arrived this morning towing the barge Atlantic Swordfish and after dropping the tow line, took the barge "on the hip". However the berth at the IEL dock in Woodside was blocked and the pair had to wait until another barge was moved out of the way.

Lois M and Atlantic Swordfish moving northbound (left to right) and Roseway heading southbound (right to left).

The small tug Roseway was called in to  move the other barge, but that operation had to wait until Roseway completed working the headlines for the arriving tanker East Coast.

In the meantime Lois M did a 360 degree turn and began backing against a stiff wind from the north until the berth was finally clear and available.

Meanwhile HMCS Moncton was underway on a cold move from Bedford Basin to HMC Dockyard.

Wearing commemorative camouflage Glace Bay is southbound (from right to left in the photo) with the Voith-Schneider tractor tug Glenevis providing the power (while going astern). Not visible is the pup tug Listerville pushing on Glace Bay's flat stern.

It is a common sight for Dockyard tugs to work astern since their V-S systems are omni-directional. I am sure the operators will miss this feature when the new ASD tugs are delivered.

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Osprey

This afternoon the the Anchor Handling Tug Supplier Atlantic Osprey returned to the port where it was built. The 3453 gt vessel was delivered by Halifax Shipyards in 2003 and has worked from ATL's St.John's base. It was built to the Ulstein UT 722-L design, and has carried a variety of cranes and other gear over the years. However it now has a clear working deck.

It is also fitted with one conventional thwartships thruster and an azimuthing thruster forward. There are also two thrusters aft. Its four Bergen main engines geared to two controllable pitch props, deliver approximately 16,000 bhp with a design bollard pull in excess of 100 tonnes. It also carries the usual fire fighting gear and dynamic positioning.

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Off to Turkey

As planned Burin Sea sailed from Dartmouth this morning towing Trinity Sea bound for Aliga Turkey.

The Trinity Sea had been stripped of some of its valuable gear, such as rescue boat and lifeboat,  which might have been vulnerable while in tow. Storm shields have been fitted to the wheelhouse and a white draft line painted on the bow.

The harbour tug Atlantic Oak (stern just visible in the photo above) assisted in getting Trinity Sea off the dock.

Burin Sea appeared to be fully equipped for the tow, and possibly carrying the rescue boat from Trinity Sea on deck.

The ETA for Aliaga is December 27.

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