S.S. United States article

Whilst I have no particular interest in the ship it is rather sad to see it in this predicament.  A beautiful vessel, though I find the enormous funnels a little out of proportion.

Michael 

I crossed the Atlantic on the SS United States in 1964, when I was a teenager. It was a grand ship, and a beautiful crossing. I still have the menu cover pictures that my folks kept from the voyage. I also have a sterling silver coffee pot that my Dad bought at the auction in Norfolk back in 1984. Some day I plan to build a model of her and put a display together with the coffee pot.

Steve

I toured the United States in 1984, just before the auction. The ship was still in somewhat decent shape. It was like stepping back in time to the 1950's with all the cast aluminum, vinyl, linoleum, formica and naugahide surfaces. It really wasn't what I had expected at all and I suppose I was a little disappointed to see how cheap it seemed. She was state of the art in her time, I know, and she was, afterall, just a Navy transport in disguise, but in comparison to true luxury liners, she was chintzy. The funnels were ugly, and I stand by that. Still, with that being said, I would love to see her brought back to a new standard and see her rip a wake in the lake at flank speed.

During my trip across I was amazed when a US Navy fleet oiler passed by on an opposite course less than 100 yards from us.

Steve

cruichin wrote:

During my trip across I was amazed when a US Navy fleet oiler passed by on an opposite course less than 100 yards from us. Steve

That, sir, is some really good navigating.

cruichin wrote:

During my trip across I was amazed when a US Navy fleet oiler passed by on an opposite course less than 100 yards from us. Steve

That's not good navigation, it's bad seamanship and worse judgement. I can't think of any reason to risk a high speed collision between a tanker and a passenger ship. It doesn't say much for the knukleheads who had the conn on either bridge. If it was 100 yards, it's even too close for good photography!

Fred

I have to agree with onyxman on this one - two large masses of metal going in opposite directions ... the inertia alone would allow for no margin of error if something went wrong. The cruise ship I was on last year got in a little race with a ship from a competitor's line, but we were both going the same direction and were never closer than about 1,000 yards. And it was broad daylight in calm seas.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, heroes! Let me set things straight here. First, I did not read the "opposite" in the course direction, (I don't always read everything in a sentence because I am a little dyslexic) in which case you guys are correct, that would be a fool hardy manuever (unless it was planned, then it WOULD be good navigating). But, I read the statement as the two ships were coming up alongside in a parallel course, in which case, it would be a good practice manuever for an underway replenishment. Since the United States was, in essence, a naval auxiliary, I assumed it was a little excersise for both crews and to give the passengers a little show. Back in the olden days, when I was in the Navy, I was a quartermaster (a kind of enlisted navigator), and occasionally we would do practice UNREPs with certain civilian ships as emergency contingency thing. I assumed that this was one of those episodes. Now I shall beat a hasty retreat.

Explanation noted subfixer!

As you say, in an UNREP the reletive speed is close to zero, which is not to say it's not a tricky maneuver. I used to do a similar thing when we'd connect a smaller tanker to a big one, in order to lighter off some cargo so they could enter port. They had big rubber bumpers to keep the steel from kissing. Once we were connected the bigger ship would stop and drop anchor. 

 

I found this photo on the USS Oriskany homepage, I'm driving the CVA on the far left: USS Ranger, the other carriers are the Enterprise, America, and Oriskany. We were photographed in the Gulf of Tonkin in 1973 at the time of the US withdrawal from Vietnam. It just happened to be my turn as helmsman for the special sea and anchor detail. We were keeping safe distances from each other,  OK?

 

 

About the SS United States,

The ship is half prenuke steel and half aluminum and has been stripped of hazardous materials makes her as appealing to the scrappers as a rabbit in a pack of coyotes.  I feel she should be scrapped, but here in America, in a Northern shipyard, and all material must stay in the States.

Sorry for my feelings since I'd love to see the ship sail again, but I work in the steel industry and am seeing the effect foreign scrap markets are having on our domestic prices. 

I agree with you on that, Scott. If they do scrap it, they might as well do it here considering all of the asbestos and hazmat is already removed. But, I would rather that she was returned to service again.