I suppose I could call this “random and gorgeous tug fotos I wish I’d taken.”
Thanks to John Skelson for this one of Coastline Bay Star. I’ve seen this vessel only once in this incarnation of her, but it was in Belt traffic from which a foto was impossible. John nails it here. What a beaut!!
The rest come from Birk Thomas. This series I just find stunning: Gramma Lee T turns out after escorting her Nth vessel. I’m wondering if there’s an actual count of assists for her decade of service since her June 2002 delivery. Happy Decade 1 celebration.
Birk got this foto off New London: Allison Crosby looks like a Vane boat, whose series she post-dates, but for ocean towing, she has a 10,500 hp plant in the engine room.
Buster Bouchard has been around since 1979, but I saw her in the sixth boro for the first time only this spring.
The newest twins in the boro . . . Discovery Coast and Chesapeake Coast.
Also, by Birk, Ocean Delta, Norway-built, moving more parts for the nickel mining operation in Newfoundland.
Ocean Delta (ex-Sistella) is a 1973 UT 505 design from the Ulstein Group. Click here for a snowy/icy foto of Ocean Delta.
Thanks to Birk and John for these fotos.
tugster: a waterblog 
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June 15, 2012 at 9:29 am
Les Sonnenmark
I can’t figure out how ALLISON CROSBY can claim to have 10,000 hp. She has two Cat 3516 engines with maximum continuous rating of 2100 hp each (per her ABS record). Tug services are often hired on the basis of bollard pull or engine hp; towing companies are known to inflate the ratings to charge higher rates.
June 15, 2012 at 6:42 pm
sleepboot
Will,
The “Ocean Delta” sailed as “Sistella” for the Duch Tugboat Company I.T.C. International Transport Contractors from Heemstede.
It seems that the tug is managed by Mckeil Workboat from Hamilton, ON.
June 15, 2012 at 8:14 pm
tugboathunter
The McKeil emblem surprises me because she is owned by McKeil’s competitor, LeGroupe Ocean.
June 15, 2012 at 9:39 pm
sleepboot
The Canadian Shipping Register says Le Groupe Ocean
but Equasis tells this:
0341379 ISM Manager MCKEIL MARINE LTD 208, Hillyard Street, Hamilton ON L8L 6B6, Canada. since 27-01-2012
John.
June 16, 2012 at 7:00 am
Carl Stroud, Capt. Lee T Moran
As of the end of May, 2012. The Gramma Lee T. Moran has posted over 17,000 assists since we came out in 2002. We’re still running strong!
June 16, 2012 at 9:06 am
tugster
capt stroud– thanks much for the info. i’ll stay a fan for the next 17,000 assists.
June 16, 2012 at 7:07 am
Chris Williams
Question for Birk: what took him to New London? (My old home port, and we’ve been back to visit a couple of times, so I’m simply curious)
June 16, 2012 at 11:42 am
Birk
Chris,
I live in the New London area. That particular day, I was on the ATB Lucy Reinauer on which I work. We had just discharged at Hess Groton and were en route back to NYC when the Allison was in Long Island Sound for a US customs inspection on a return trip from Halifax. They allowed us to get close for the shots.
Carl,
I have many, many shots of the Gramma Lee over the years. If you want I can send them to you on a disc.
June 18, 2012 at 11:02 am
Carl Stroud, Capt. Lee T Moran
Birk, that would be very nice of you to send photos of the Lee T. Send me an email to ztug1249@gmail.com and I’ll send along an address for you. Thanks again, Carl Stroud
June 16, 2012 at 3:10 pm
Chris Williams
Birk – I was homeported out of the sub base on ASRs back in 68 – 71. I know the Hess pier well – I think the quarternasters called it Pfizer’s Pier, since it was close to the Pfizer facility, just South of EB, but I recall Hess tankers discharging there when we went up or down the river. It was one of the bearings we took during a river traverse to confirm our position in the channel. I have very fond memories of the area, and try to re-visit on a fairly regular basis. I have a friend who’s a wreck diver in the area, and has been diving on a Navy barge I helped put on the bottom off Block Island back in late ’70. That, however, is a story for another time. Congratulations on living in a great area.
June 16, 2012 at 3:41 pm
tugster
chris– i’m eager to hear the block island story. tugboathunter– thanks . . . i’d missed the MM Newfoundland barge name.
June 16, 2012 at 3:37 pm
tugboathunter
Also the barge being towed by Ocean Delta is “MM Newfoundland”
June 17, 2012 at 11:26 am
Chris Williams
Hi Will
The short story is that the Underwater Sound Lab, located in New London at the time, wanted to place an array of sonar transducers in a precise location and orientation near Block. Their approach was to fix a tower to a barge, arrange the transducers on the tower, and then “precision sink” the barge in a place where they could run a power and signal cable to the shore. Sunbird got the call to assist with the sinking. The tower is long gone, but the barge is still there. Two years ago we went out with the guys on a run over to Block on our way to another wreck, and they put me “on top” of the barge for a few minutes in the dive boat. Brought back many fond memories of that job. I’ve seen some pictures they’ve taken as well – the barge end of the signal and power cable still trails off towards the shore, and the remnants of a manila line we used in conjunction with a YTB to adjust the final orientation is also still there. The sinking job was a nice break from our normal routine and something very out of the ordinary for us.
June 17, 2012 at 4:01 pm
tugster
thanks, chris. here’s a foto/article about Sunbird ASR-15. Last year Chris did a guest post about ASR-16 Tringa. Read it here: https://tugster.wordpress.com/2011/08/26/relief-crew-14/