US Hedge Fund Billionaire Seizes Argentine Navy Tall Ship Libertad in Ghana Over Debt Dispute

Posted on by October 4, 2012

The Argentine Navy training ship Libertad and her crew of over 200, docked in port of Tema, Ghana, were seized by a court order obtained by NML Capital Ltd., a subsidiary of Elliot Capital Management, a hedge fund run by the US billionaire Paul Singer.  Argentina’s Foreign Ministry accused the Ghanaian court of violating rules of diplomatic immunity.

The conflict is over a more than a decade long legal battle between Argentina and hold-out creditors. In 2001 and 2002 Argentina defaulted on more than $100bn of debt, the biggest default in history. About 94% of these loans were restructured in 2005 and 2010, returning creditors roughly 30 cents on their dollar. Elliot Capital was among the 6% who did not participate in the restructuring and continued with legal action against Argentina.

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Bombs in the Gulf’s Offshore Oilfields

Posted on by October 4, 2012

55-gallon drums of chemical weapons near the mouth of the Mississippi River found by Texas A&M University researchers. Photo:Texas A&M University

We have previously posted about unexploded bombs from World War II being exposed by drought along the Rhine and Mosel Rivers in Germany, about similar bombs being found in the port of Marseille and about World War II phosphorus munitions burning two beachcombers at a seaside resort in the north of the island of Usedom on the German Baltic coast.  Now, as offshore drilling returns to the Gulf of Mexico following the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster, Texas A&M oceanographer William Bryant warns that the thousands of tons of bombs, ordnance and chemical weapons, including mustard gas, dumped by the US military in the Gulf after World War II, could pose a serious risk to new drilling.

World War II bombs, mustard gas in Gulf of Mexico need to be checked, experts warn

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Cutty Sark – the Good, Bad & the Ugly

Posted on by March 18, 2013

A ship partialy in a bottle, Click for larger image

After a multi-year, £50 million restoration, interrupted by a near catastrophic fire, the composite clipper ship, Cutty Sark, reopened last April.  Not everyone was impressed. Andrew Gilligan, the Telegraph‘s London Editor, called the restoration “a clucking, Grade A, … turkey.”  In September, the British architectural trade journal, Building Design, awarded the restoration of the historic tea clipper the 2012 Carbuncle Cup for the worst new building design in Britain. The Victorian Society’s new director Chris Costelloe has opined that it’s a pity that commercial motives were placed above heritage interests.”  Ouch.

While attending the Historical Novel Society 2012 conference in London last week, I spent a few hours crawling through the venerable ship.  There is indeed both good news and bad.  The bad is primarily related to what happens when the party planners and corporate events schedulers overrule the naval architects and ship restorers.  Nevertheless, there are areas where, Andrew Gilligan’s complaints notwithstanding, the ship presentation seems much improved over the previous incarnation.

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Hong Kong Ferry Collision Kills at Least 36

Posted on by October 2, 2012

Photo: Kin Cheung/Associated Press

At least 36 people drowned when a ferry carrying more than 120 collided with another vessel and sank last night around 8:30 pm local time near Lamma island off Hong Kong.   The ferry was taking staff and family members of the Hongkong Electric Company to watch fireworks in the city’s Victoria Harbour to celebrate China’s National Day and mid-autumn festival.

36 Confirmed Dead in Hong Kong Ferry Collision

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Knots on Mars! Hard to Improve on a Clove Hitch and a Reef Knot

Posted on by October 2, 2012

Square knots and clove hitches on wire bundles on the Mars Rover Curiosity

There is a wonderful discussion on the International Guild of Knot Tyers Forum titled “Knots on Mars! (and a few thoughts on NASA’s knots)” by Dfred.   I had never given much thought as to  how cable bundles on satellites and space craft are secured. The answer is some very old sailor’s knots.  Dfred writes:

While a few of the folks here are no doubt aware, it might surprise most people to learn that knots tied in cords and thin ribbons have probably traveled on every interplanetary mission ever flown. If human civilization ends tomorrow, interplanetary landers, orbiters, and deep space probes will preserve evidence of both the oldest and newest of human technologies for millions of years.

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The Human Cost of Piracy: Crew of MV Iceburg 1 – 29 Months in Captivity, A Grim New Record

Posted on by October 1, 2012

On March 29, 2010, the Panamanian-flagged ro/ro MV Iceburg 1 was hijacked by pirates about 10 nautical miles off the port of Aden, Yemen. Her crew of 24, of which 22 are believed to have survived, have been held hostage for 29 months.  The ship’s owner Dubai-based Azal Shipping & Cargo has been accused of effectively abandoning the ship and her crew.  One of the crew members, Wagdi Akram, committed suicide on October 27, 2010 by jumping overboard.  The ship’s chief engineer is believed to have been killed by the pirates in March or June of 2011.

Abandoned at sea – the forgotten hostages of the Somali pirates

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Schooner Bluenose II Launched in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia

Posted on by October 1, 2012

The schooner Bluenose II has been launched in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.  The local news outlets referred to the event as the “relaunching” of the schooner though as the hull was completely replaced and only some portion of the Douglas fir deck was re-used, it is effectively a newly built vessel.  The Bluenose II is a replica of the original Bluenose, a Grand Banks fishing schooner famous for its graceful lines and speed under sail.   See our previous post, The Schooner Bluenose II and the Ax that Never Wears Out

Rebuilt Bluenose II ready to sail after two-year restoration effort

Some are calling her Bluenose 2½. 

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Hemp and Pitch to the Rescue on HMS Victory

Posted on by September 30, 2012

An interesting article on the day after Nelson’s birthday – after using synthetic mastic, a modern caulking material commonly used in yachts,  for the last fifteen year without success, the folks restoring Nelson’s HMS Victory have returned to using hemp oakum and pitch, the caulking technique use when the ship was new.  Apparently the modern caulking materials could not adequately cope with expansion and contraction of the planking and the large spaces between the planks, allowing rainwater to seep through, causing rot in ship’s structure.  In this case, the tried, true and traditional method seems to be the best.  Visitors to HMS Victory will be able to see the ship being caulked just as it was before the Battle of Trafalgar in1805.

Nelson’s HMS Victory gets £50m facelift using a technique used by sailors 300 years ago after modern methods fail

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The Bounty Bound for Galveston?

Posted on by September 29, 2012

The replica of the HMS Bounty built for the 1962 movie, Mutiny on the Bounty, starring Marlon Brando make the port of Galveston, its winter home.  The deal apparently has not been finalized but the Galveston Daily News reports that negotiations are on-going. Thanks to Stacy for passing along the news.

‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ ship could dock at isle

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Herman Melville Died One Hundred Twenty One Years Ago Today

Posted on by September 29, 2012

Herman Melville’s grave

Herman Melville died September 28, 1891.  He was indeed a great American writer, some would argue the great American writer. He was also the greatest failed writer of his day. When he died all of his books had been out of print for more than 30 years. When he died, many commented that they thought that he had been dead for years. The book that would ruin his career was Moby Dick, which we know call his greatest masterpiece.

Melville is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx in New York City.  The grave is distinctive because it features a blank scroll.  It is said that Melville designed the memorial, some say out of bitterness for the way his life’s work as a writer had come to naught.  Whether there is any truth to the story may be unknowable. Nevertheless, every writer understands both the opportunity and the terror of the blank page.

Melville’s grave has become a shrine of sorts for writers.  Many leave pens behind in homage. Some leave all or parts of manuscripts weighted down by rocks or pebbles. The cemetery park rangers say that when the rains come, the sheets of paper soften then melt away until they seem to blend into the stone.

It just so happens that tonight I am in London at the Historical Novel Society Conference, which begins in about an hour  with a cocktail party.  I will be sure to raise a class to Herman Melville and to all writers who daily must face the blank page.

Lloyd’s List Awards “Seafarer of the Year” to the Crew of the Costa Concordia

Posted on by September 28, 2012

The press release says that the Lloyd’s List Global Awards are “a celebration of the best that shipping industry has to offer and the finalists are the innovators and the visionaries. They are the boldest and the brightest. They are shipping’s success stories.”   Unfortunately, one award granted on Wednesday night in London detracted and distracted from the awards in the various categories which were indeed awarded to “shipping’s success stories.”   In what appears to be an understandable attempt to retroactively find heroism in tragedy, the Lloyd’s List 2012 Award for “Seafarer of the Year” was awarded to the crew of the Costa Concordia.  

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Nelson’s Cribbage Board – Jamming a Desk Drawer

Posted on by September 27, 2012

Imagine an antique Victorian desk purchased for £30, that has a stuck drawer.  A determined auctioneer, working on the drawer with a screw driver for around 20 minutes, managed to un-stick it only to find that the object blocking the drawer was a small bone cribbage board with a label on the back that read:  ‘The cribbage board used by Victory Nelson & Admiral Quilliam.‘   The cribbage board had been hidden in the drawer for more than 70 years.  The cribbage board will be auctioned and is expected to attract bids of several thousand pounds.   Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing along the article.

Cribbage board Nelson used before he pegged out at Trafalgar is found in jammed drawer of Victorian desk bought for £30

Historical Novel Society Conference 2012 and Hell Around the Horn Available in Print

Posted on by September 26, 2012

The Internet is an odd place. There are writers who I feel that I know well and consider to be friends, and yet that I have never met in person.  This evening, I will be leaving to attend the Historical Novel Society Conference in London and am looking forward to meeting many of the writers with whom who I have been conversing on-line, in some cases for years, but have never met in the flesh.  I will also be participating in the “Ship’s Ahoy” Workshop with Linda Collison, JD Davies, Helen Hollick, and Margaret Muir.  Should be great fun.

Thanks to those who have emailed asking when my novel, Hell Around the Horn, will  be available in a print edition. It is now available on Amazon US and Amazon UK and should be available on Barnes & Noble and other other on-line retailers within the next few weeks.

Chinese Aircraft Carrier, Liaoning, Strategic or Simply Status?

Posted on by September 26, 2012

Now that China has finally commissioned  Liaoning, its first aircraft carrier, the discussion has focused on whether the ship is a meaningful addition to the Chinese Navy or merely a symbol of status and prestige. Some have pointed out that the Chinese are not believed to currently have enough carrier-capable fighter aircraft to make the ship operational. On the other hand, China does have a carrier based plane under development, so the question may be simply be how long it will take to produce the planes. Regardless, it may be that simply having an aircraft carrier provides sufficient prestige at a time when Western powers are cutting back their aircraft carrier fleets.

The New York Times reports that military experts say that “China does not have planes capable of landing on the carrier and so far training for such landings has been carried out on land.”

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Update: China’s First Aircraft Carrier, Liaoning, Enters into Service

Posted on by September 25, 2012

After ten sea trials and over 25 years of construction and refitting, China has put its first aircraft carrier into service.  Long rumored to be named Shi Lang, the carrier has instead been named Liaoning, after the province where it was rebuilt and refitted.  The ship started out as the Soviet aircraft carrier Varyag, whose keel was laid in 1985, but was never completed. Construction stopped in 1992. With the break-up of the Soviet Union, ownership was transferred to the Ukraine. The ship was laid up without engines, most machinery, electronics and a rudder. It was put for auction in 1998, when it was purchased by a Chong Lot Travel Agency for $20 million, with the stated intention that the ship would become a casino in Macau. The Varyag arrived at Dalian Shipyard in northeastern China on March 3, 2002.  The Chinese military finally confirmed in June 2011 that the ship was being refitted to serve as the nation’s first aircraft carrier.  See our previous post – From Varyag to Shi Lang – the Long Strange Voyage of China’s New Twenty Year Old Aircraft Carrier

China’s first aircraft carrier enters service