Sea Power: A Global Journey PDF
Preview Sea Power: A Global Journey
Text and Photography by Luc Cuyvers Naval Institute Press Annapolis, Maryland © 1993 by Luc Cuyvers. Central Television Enterprises Limited, and Nippon Hoso Kyokai All rights reserved. No part ofthisbookmay be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cuyvers, Luc. 1954- Sea power a globaljourney/ text and : photography by Luc Cuyvers. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 1-55750-145-9. —ISBN 1-55750- 146-7 (pbk.) 1. Shipping. 2. Sea power. 3. Ocean travel. I. Title. HE571.C89 1993 387.5-^ic20 93-4470 Printed in the United States ofAmerica on © acid-free paper 98765432 First printing Page A view from the foremast of the Por- i: tuguese naval training ship Sagres. Page iii: Odysseus and the Sirens, as painted on a vase ofthe fifth century B.C. The Greeks left us many accounts and illustra- tions, providing the first complete record of the maritime doings ofthe ancient Mediter- ranean. Page vi: Portuguese sailors climb the rigging ofthe Portuguese naval trainingship Sagres. — Pagex xL Hong Kong's StarFern Still . one ofthe most scenic, and cheapest, rides in the world. my To parents with deep appreciationfor the many years ofsupport and encouragement ' -i ..i s -> >^-^Sg^ Oft- *-'-5^ . , -- r ««**«' ooct ' ST" . .- -. r -~~ !- -- .»_- 9*^ Contents H _ -' Acknowledgments vii Introduction xiii The Great Highway 1 - ' : •• The Riches of the East 41 uST Passage to Paradise 89 WC Ruling the Waves 125 Mineral Wealth 165 mMc£!u A Depth of Knowledge 203 : 5*.^ Bibliography 243 r^^'-fT^-; tin Acknowledgments o ne of the nice things about writing a book, as opposed to making a television program, is that you can do it by yourself. All you need is a pen and paper, or preferably a word proces- sor, something to write about, and off you go. At least, that's how it works in theory. In practice it is often a different matter. This book couldn't have been done without the help ofa lot ofpeople, to whom I am deeply indebted. It is impossible to mention all, but I'll do my best. Getting aboard the several ships that are featured in this book was a major challenge. For one thing, there was the matter ofworking out schedules. Some shipping lines operate like veritable bus services, but most don't, andjoining their ships within well-defined time limits proved to be a brainteaser. There also was the matter ofpermissions. Oil tanker com- panies, for instance, are not keen on taking along writers. As far as I can tell they have nothing to hide, but after getting a bum wrap from the press for many years, they'd rather not deal with it. So back came the negative replies from Exxon, Mobil, Shell, and others. Nonetheless, I did eventually get on a tanker, courtesy of the Troodos Shipping Com- pany, which kindly allowed me to sail along on the Crown, one of its Greek-flagged vessels. Meeting up with the ship, and her unpredictable schedule, took a couple tries but it finally worked and was well worth the effort. Of the many people at Troodos, I would like to thank Captain Richard Gunns, Captain Roger Holt and Captain George Fragiadakis in par- ticular for allowing me aboard. As for the Crown herself, I'll never forget the hospitality I received from her officers and crew. A special thank you goes to Captain Kostas Papagian- nakis and Chief Officer Kanaris Antonopoulos for sharing so much about their work, and to Chief Steward Petros Viazis for the punctual (10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.) frappes. Getting aboard the OOCL Envoy for the trip described in chapter two was easier, because most container vessels stick meticulously to a schedule. Nonetheless, if it weren't for the kind cooperation from Hong Kong-based Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL), I wouldn't have been able to join her trans-Pacific crossing. Thank you Jaemi Frankenberger SEA POWER: A GlobalJourney and Stanley Chen for making the trip possible. I am also indebted to the officers and crew of the Envoy, and in particular to Martin Weir, her indelible master. Thank you also Terrance, Andy Simon, and Bee for showing me around and sharing what life at sea is all about. It didn't take a great deal of foresight to plan the Caribbean trip aboard the Majesty ofthe Seas for the middle ofJanuary, yet it wouldn't have been possible with- out the kind cooperation of the people at Royal Caribbean Cruises. Ltd.. where Jim Lida in particular was extremely generous with his time and assistance. Special thanks also go to the officers and crew of the Majesty, who introduce some 2,500 landlubbers a week to a different kind of sea power. I am particularly indebted to Captain Eigil Eriksen, Staff Captain Gunnar Liland, Chief Engineer Tormod Isaksen, Hotel Manager BarryJones, Cruise DirectorJeffrey Arpin, and Executive ChefWerner Zurcher for generously allowing me a look behind the scenes. A book on sea power wouldn't be complete without naval vessels, and I was par- ticularly fortunate to be permitted aboard the USS Ranger and the USS Valley Forge, as they were diverted from Operation Southern Watch in the Persian Gulf to Opera- tion Restore Hope off Somalia. I am indebted to Rear Admiral Kendell Pease, the U.S. Navy's Chief of Information, and Commander Charles Quigley Assistant Chief of Information, for allowing me to join this fascinating trip. Many thanks also to Lieu- tenantJim Fallin for working out the details, and to Fred Rainbow, Editor-in-Chiefof Proceedings, for putting in a good word on my behalf. Visitors sometimes feel out ofplace aboard ships that have been away for months on end, but that certainly was not my experience aboard the Ranger and the Valley Forge. In fact, the officers and crew of both vessels actually went out of their way to make me feel welcome, for which I am grateful. Aboard the Ranger, I was fortunate to spend some time with Rear Admiral William Hancock, Commander, Cruiser Destroyer Group One; Captain Dennis McGinn, Commanding Officer; and Comman- der Frank Bossio, Executive Officer. Lieutenant Rod Hill, the ship's public affairs offi- cer, meanwhile, helped me figure out which way was forward and aft in a matter of days. Due to unforeseen circumstances I remained on the Valley Forge longer than expected, but it wasn't a delay I will ever regret. I am grateful to Captain Billy Cor- nett, II, Commanding Officer; Lieutenant Commander Alvin Smith, Executive Offi- cer; and Master Chief George Luiz for extending the welcome mat for several days. And thank you to all other officers and crew who so generously gave of their time to provide insight into the workings ofan Aegis cruiser. The most northerly excursion described in this book was made possible through the kind cooperation of Norsk Hydro A.S., operator of the North Sea's massive Ose- berg oil field. Making sure I got the most out of a relatively short trip were Ove Lunde, public relations manager; Oivind Berg, senior training officer; and Eigill Nys2ether, chief geologist. Many thanks are also due Svein Vaksdal, platform man- ager of the Oseberg Field Center, and Eirl Marholm, shipment manager at the Mongstad Base, who arranged passage aboard a supply vessel. Both Captain Ollbjorn Austnes and First Officer Per Gunnar Vasdal of the FarSky made the short trip to the platform extremely pleasant and interesting. The final voyage would not have been possible without the cooperation of series co-producer NHK. where Executive Producer Masao Ogasawara and Producer Syunya Hirano coordinated our request to join the Japan Marine Science and Tech- nology Center research vessel Yokosuka. It is thanks to their tireless efforts that Jam- stec allowed me and a camera crew to join the Yokosuka on one of her trips to the Japan Trench. At Jamstec I am indebted to Dr. Hiroshi Hotta, Director of the Deep Sea Research Department, Tadaaki Soejima, Manager of Public Relations, and Kat- sumi Sakakura for their invaluable support and assistance. Many thanks go also to the officers and the crew of the R.V Yokosuka, headed by Captain Hiroshi Hyodo, who treated this gaijin with a great deal ofconsideration. \in SEA POWER: A GlobalJourney
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