the Coast Guards newest medium icebreaker arrived for the first time in Halifax this week. the ship was acquired by the coast guard last year, and will be modified in when the work on the other two ships of the class are in service.
It tied up at the worst possible dock for photos, so hopefully a chance to get a better one will emerge in coming days.
The Coast Guards newest ship was out exercising in the Basin this afternoon. Finally gave me a chance to get a decent look at her.
CCGS Teleost, Outbound this afternoon.
March usually brings the Coast Guards sole Heavy Icebreaker the CCGS Louis St. Laurent into port. The ship arrived overnight, and anchored in the basin. With the end of the federal governments fiscal year coming, the fleet looks to be transferring fuel.
The CCGS Edward Cornwallis is due to undergo refit in Shelburne at the end of the month, so it makes sense to transfer off unneeded fuel to another vessel.
the CCGS Sir William Alexander also entered port, and this morning, and after waiting of BIO took to Anchorage 11 in the Basin. If the William Alexander moves alongside the LSL, it would suggest this may be a balancing the budget type exercise then a transfer before refit.
the Brand new fisheries science vessel CCGS Capt. Jacques Cartier arrived in Halifax Friday night, The ship was the second built by SeaSpan as part of the NSPS in Vancouver.
Sunday morning A welcome procession was held featuring a Sail past of CCGS G. Peddle S.C, CCGS Courtenay Bay, CCGS Cape Roger, and CCGS Capt. Jacques Cartier. The sailpast happened around 8am, and the vessels turned in the basin and headed for BIO by 8:45.
This week in the Herald I talk about the work done by the Coast Guard to HMCS Cormorant.
This should be an easy case for the CG to deal with, yet it appears they did a substandard job dealing with the ships 2015 sinking, and now needed to come back and fix what they did.Even this most recent action is problematic, as steps that probably should have been taken when the assessment being conducted discovered the issues. The assessment was completed in October, and Work began Dec 1.
Bellow are the CCGS Tweets on the work.
The CCGS Frederick G. Creed has been conducting survey work off the Eastern coast of Nova Scotia for the past few weeks. the vessel sails from BIO in the morning, and returns in the evening, and appears to operate on a 7am to 7pm schedule. the ship works for the Canadian Hydrographic Service.
Built in 1988 by SWATH Ocean Systems in San Diego, the ship utilizes a Swath Design.SWATH stands for Small Waterplane Twin Hull. Unlike a catamaran, which features two displacement pontoons in the water, the SWATH design is like resting the ship on top of two submerged submarines. the bulk of the hull mass is submerged below the surface, and only a narrow volume is taken up at the water surface. By placing the majority of the ships displacement under the surface, it remains unaffected by wave action.
As a result the ship is incredibly stable in rough sea states. SWATH technology was developed by a Nova Scotian, Frederick G. Creed in the 1930’s, and awarded a British patent in 1946. The CCGS Frederick G. Creed is the Coastguards only SWATH design in the fleet, and appropriately bears the name of the inventor of the technology.
As far as my records go, the ship was last in Halifax in 2009.
(Above) CCGS Earl Grey gets some topside paint form the shore side, and some hull paint from the sea side. (Below) CCGS Sir William Alexander tied up along side.
Today brought a number of Simultaneous announcements about the Coast Guard.
The Prime Minister Announced in Vancouver an investment of $15.7B to renew the CCGS fleet, investing in up to 18 large ships to be built by Canadian shipyards. The Minister for Nova Scotia announced the 2 rumored AOPS for the Coast Guard at BIO. Those ships are to be built as fisheries patrol vessels. A role it is suited for
From the Release:
The Government of Canada is investing in two new Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships, which will be adapted for the Coast Guard to perform tasks including offshore patrols. These ships will be built by Irving Shipbuilding in Halifax.
The Government of Canada is investing in up to 16 Multi-Purpose Vessels to support a variety of missions, including light icebreaking, environmental response, and offshore search and rescue. These ships will be built by Vancouver Shipyards.The Government of Canada will also proceed through a competitive process with the design of a new class of smaller ships, the new Mid-Shore Multi-Mission Ship, which would complement the work of the large fleet in shallow areas and deliver mid-shore science activities.
Repairs, refits, and vessel life extension work will be carried out on the existing fleet until the new ships are delivered, with over $2 billion to be invested on a competitive basis for this purpose.In addition to funding for shipbuilding, the Government of Canada is also providing over $351 million to support ongoing Canadian Coast Guard capacity enhancements such as strengthening management oversight and promoting innovation and greener practices.
So besides the 2 AOPS – they are committing to Replacing the 1100 class. These ships are a big win for the Vancouver shipyard, but will take years to deliver given to volume of work that is needed now by the Coast Guard. Its unclear what the design of these vessels will be, though VARD has been commissioned to study this. the design is likely several years out.
the reference to the Midshore vessels is interesting, as that is a less well defined project, and there is no vessel count assigned to it. However the announcement also included the line
the Government of Canada intends to add a third Canadian shipyard as a partner under the NSS. The Government of Canada will move forward with a competitive process to select the third shipyard in the coming months.
Its unclear what work will be going to that yard, though the release does mention Coast Guard work and the midshore vessels are currently unassigned. these would be an odd fit, as there smaller size could be done by a smaller yard. Davie may end up with some of the sea span work. Though the release cites an open competition, it would be a huge shock if it wasen’t Davie.
the CCGS Caporal Kaeble V.C arrived last night, and tied up at Tall Ships Quay on the waterfront. Its a Nice opportunity to view one of these vessels up close.
