Picture of the day

The Tanzanian Navy takes delivery of their new strike aircraft, 1998:

e9kam0xr4za21.jpg
 
scott585 said:
I really dont understand the economics of scrapping ships, even after the war. Its not like repair and maintenance is more costly than building from scratch. how many people would love a short cruise on a converted cruiser? can DDs not be converted for fishing or something? Parts were never off the shelf items, so that is a moot point, new motors can be retrofitted if need be.It just seems so wasteful to me.
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In Greece they think like you for the most part. I was there in the late 80's and pretty much every coastal area you visit will have an abundance of "marinas" there. There was no shortage of "converted" military ships in these marinas, hundreds of them made into pleasure craft for the rich & famous were lined up in these marinas.


I did see the other end of the spectrum as well, The wife's uncle worked in a shipyard and gave me a tour one day. He showed me the Guillotine that was used to slice up huge decommissioned transport as well as military ships. After all the "usable stuff" (winches, pumps, etc.) were stripped, the hull was pulled into this machine and a big knife (pushed by 2 huge hydraulic rams) cut 4 ft at a time or so off like a cheese block from the hull.
 
Dark Alley Dan said:
The Tanzanian Navy takes delivery of their new strike aircraft, 1998:

e9kam0xr4za21.jpg
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Caption should read:
Tanzanian locals pose in front of a swordfish, probably from 796 squadron. at RNAS Tanga, c.1943

Image courtesy David Bilcliffe.

Tanga_1943_Swordfish_2.jpg


Tanzanian locals dance in front of a swordfish, probably from 796 squadron. at RNAS Tanga, c.1943

Image courtesy David Bilcliffe.

http://www.royalnavyresearcharchive.org.uk/FAA-Bases/Tanga.htm#.XECs-1xKiM9

Many years ago I worked with an English gentleman who flew Swordfish off the Arc Royal. He was hospitalized just before she sailed on her historical cruise for the Bismarck.
He much later worked as a draftsman at Canadair on the CF-104.

From
1024px-HMS_Ark_Royal_h85716.jpg


to
Canadair-CF-104-Starfighter-with-various-stores---James-Craik.jpg
 
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scott585 said:
I really dont understand the economics of scrapping ships, even after the war. Its not like repair and maintenance is more costly than building from scratch. how many people would love a short cruise on a converted cruiser? can DDs not be converted for fishing or something? Parts were never off the shelf items, so that is a moot point, new motors can be retrofitted if need be.It just seems so wasteful to me.
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The biggest issues were running and maintenance costs. Fuel costs are horrendous plus the cost of the crew. Ships also need extensive maintenance on a regular basis. After WW2 there were literally thousand of ships which were no longer required. Also a lot of ships were outdated. Ships built at the beginning of the war could no longer accommodate the modern electronics requirements. Battleships in general were basically very expensive waste space. There were also a lot of ships which had been very hard used and is just wasn't worth effort. Remember many countries incurred huge debts during the war.

While I wish they had kept a few more it really did make sense to scrap most of them.
 
fingers284 said:
In Greece they think like you for the most part. I was there in the late 80's and pretty much every coastal area you visit will have an abundance of "marinas" there. There was no shortage of "converted" military ships in these marinas, hundreds of them made into pleasure craft for the rich & famous were lined up in these marinas.


I did see the other end of the spectrum as well, The wife's uncle worked in a shipyard and gave me a tour one day. He showed me the Guillotine that was used to slice up huge decommissioned transport as well as military ships. After all the "usable stuff" (winches, pumps, etc.) were stripped, the hull was pulled into this machine and a big knife (pushed by 2 huge hydraulic rams) cut 4 ft at a time or so off like a cheese block from the hull.
Click to expand...

Not sure if it still applies, but at one time steel from older ships was in demand for some reasons, because the fall out from nuclear tests resulted in radioactive contamination of steel produced during that time period. :confused:

Grizz
 
Aristotle Onassis made his fortune providing resurrected scrapyard freighters (with crews) to the allied war effort with the proviso that any ships lost in the service of the Allies would be replaced. Oddly enough a very high percentage were ‘written off’ and subsequently replaced with brand new ‘Liberty’ ships ... he did very well with his brand new fleet (and excellent connections) ... some people have suggested that not a few of the older rust bucket shipping that were lost may have actually been scuttled —- although naturally it was attributed to enemy action in order to cash out on the deal.


for several years there was a Canadian Corvette docked in Hamilton (Ont) harbour that reportedly belonged to Onassis and was awaiting a refit as his personal yacht.
 
for several years there was a Canadian Corvette docked in Hamilton (Ont) harbour that reportedly belonged to Onassis and was awaiting a refit as his personal yacht.

You're not talking about the Haida, are you ? :confused:

Grizz
 
Dark Alley Dan said:
HMCS Stormont before:

STR0011.jpg


...and after.

christinao-benoit-donne-superyachtphoto.jpg
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Hard to see what they kept.

It's been said that a boat is a hole in the ocean that you fill with money. Gotta think it's no different for governments or the mega-wealthy. It's just that a government is supposed to be accountable for their expenditures, while someone like Aristotle Onassis answers primarily to himself, and likely no one else.
 
Probably, but when you count your cash by the cubic mile, why not spend the money?

Some of the details about the Christina O are pretty "out there":

Christina O has a master suite, eighteen passenger staterooms, and numerous indoor and outdoor living areas, all connected by a spiral staircase. Compared to a typical 21st-century superyacht, her staterooms are small and Christina O lacks the indoor boat storage that is now standard; however, the number of living areas is large, and the amount of outdoor deck space is very generous. The aft main deck has an outdoor pool with a minotaur-themed mosaic floor that rises at the push of a button to become a dance floor, and there is a helipad on the promenade deck. The bar stools in Ari's Bar retain the original upholstery crafted from a very soft, fine leather made from the foreskins of whales.
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It's all about connections. I wouldn't even know who to talk to about accessing a whale foreskin.
 
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