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f|aew- Signalman—-signal lamp, flare gun, and
§s? Corpsman—first aid kit and stretcher?
oxswain? Engineer? Bow-hook? Rifleman?
tL ready? I order everyone into the boat,
sen at the Executive Officer’s nod
am orders “Lower away to edge.” 7
n stopping, the carrier has turned and the
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. --------------- ------------- —, ™ ^ ride,
uactically smooth water under a clear sky. e must go to save Oscar, our canvas-man
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^ carrier’s lifeboat normally remains on
I y I y binoculars go to the messenger, watch and wallet to the OOD—just in case I Rimming. Then I’m off, running, eight til t* c*own to tbc hangar deck, back through e ^ob and gear in Hangar Bay Two, out °Und the pickup truck parked on the spon- r°n’ and back and up to the duty lifeboat. The k Ute *s familiar; this is my second man over- °ard drill as JOOD on this cruise, p 6 sizeable crowd is there already—the OfrCUt*Ve Officer, Weapons Officer, Medical ra 'CCr’ an<^ Chaplain. The duty photog- r i)aer is on hand, taking pictures of the crew p adying the lifeboat. While the Ship’s °atswain helps me into my gear—life vest,
'*nbelt, and hard hat—I check over the Boat- the water’s
I
cjres marking “Oscar,” the dummy, are early visible less than a quarter of a mile WaV- It’s a beautiful day for a boat
r°ard. The duty helicopter is the primary Cscue vehicle. If the helo isn’t airborne, one q me escort vessels will be directed to pick up tpScar- If neither helo nor escort is available, tpen and only then—except for drills—will e carrier stop and launch her lifeboat. Law ^ custom charge our men-of-war with a*ntaining the ability to provide adequate scue services. Although generally effective, r present procedures are exceedingly expensive. Now that the three Ms of management (Men, Money, and Material) have become so important, it is time to take a fresh look at the cost of keeping Oscar.
For starters, each carrier has two lifeboats —26-foot motor whaleboats—plus associated equipment. At sea, a duty lifeboat, nucleus crew (cox’n, engineer, and bow-hook) and a three-man lowering detail is always on duty. Eighteen men—lifeboat personnel—stand two four-hour watches a day, seven days a week, on every carrier.
Each attack carrier has an SAR/utility helicopter detachment assigned to the Air Department when the Air Wing is on board. The detachment, consisting of 25 to 30 men and nine pilots under an O-in-C, operates and maintains the three utility helicopters.
During flight operations, there is no place for a quick reaction helo on the flight deck so the duty helo is always the first craft launched and the last recovered in the launch/recovery cycle. (Airborne alerts increase helicopter operating and maintenance expenses; a second helo and crew is on standby whenever one is airborne.) Once airborne, the pilot flies about a mile to starboard. He will remain there throughout the launch, out of the primary flight pattern but still close enough to come in fast if needed. Between launch/recovery cycles the helo may be available for shuttle duty. (Single engine helos are generally limited to a ten-mile circle around the carrier.)
In addition to the helicopters, division commanders frequently assign an escort ship to serve as plane guard. Station for this 300- man, 30-knot, $20-million lifeboat is one or two miles back in the carrier’s wake. Even if we had enough destroyers, this is still a tremendously expensive practice. At high speeds, ships use fuel more rapidly, and thus must be refueled more frequently—an exercise not to be treated lightly.
At two miles, the destroyer is too close to provide effective ASW/AAW protection to the carrier. Noise generated by the carrier’s 200,000-plus horsepower, and by the destroyer herself, prevent sonar operations. In fact, all crew training in the destroyer may be seriously impaired.
In time of war, we simply couldn’t afford to put the destroyer back there. The characteristic formation, big ship, little ship, and loitering helicopter, plus the communications needed to maintain the formation, increase the probability of detection and identification by an unseen enemy. Stopping either ship to launch a lifeboat constitutes an additional risk.
What is Oscar costing? On the carriers: the requirement to carry and support 60 extra officers and men, three helicopters, two lifeboats, spares and maintenance spaces. In the fleet: increased helicopter and pilot requirements, decreased effectiveness of ASW/AAW vessels assigned as escort ships and increased logistic support necessitated by high speed launch/recovery station-keeping operations.
Now that new aircraft types are stretching available carrier living and working space to the absolute limit; now that accelerated operating schedules have practically eliminated restricted availability periods; now that we can anticipate an indefinite period of near war on limited funds; now is a good time to re-evaluate the cost of keeping Oscar. How can we spend our SAR dollar most effectively?
Navy Regulations require lifeboats; however, definitions and regulations are both subject to change. Can we develop a replacement to do the job properly, find a vessel that can eliminate the presently redundant system? Time to reach the scene, ability to render assistance, and the amount of aid that can be provided, hazard to the people involved (and the number of people so endangered) are all important considerations in the SAR equation. A high-speed, stable, fully enclosed vessel capable of stopping safely in moderate to heavy seas, of carrying large payloads comfortably, over a distance, and of approaching and boarding (or transferring to) large ships while underway should merit serious consideration as a replacement SAR/ utility vehicle.
Such vessels—ground effect machines/ hover-craft/air cushion vehicles—exist, and have been tested.
The theory of air cushion vehicles dates back at least to 1716, when it was proposed by a Swedish philosopher Emmanuel Swedenborg. Primitive models were built and tested after World War I; however, there was little progress until the late 1950s.
Dr. William R. Bertelsen’s Model A-72 was possibly the first man-carrying ACV to fty1 This small American vehicle, powered by a 72-horsepower engine, lifted a total weight of 585 pounds six inches clear of the ground o'1 31 May 1959. The following day, 1 June, the Saunders-Roe SR-N1 made her first free flight' Both the American and British vehicle were hard-bottomed, pure ACVs. To clear normal obstacles, the entire vehicle had to rise several inches, permitting air to leak out. Across the channel, in France, ACV pioneer, M. Jean Henri Bertin, was already working on this problem. How can you get essential clearance while limiting air losses? His simple solution was first demonstrated in 1961 on the BC-4 Terraplane. Flexible extensions (skirts) provide a compliant link between the vehicle and the surface. This one invention, adopted on nearly all modern ACVs, has made the small ACV commercially attractive.
Unlike the British designers, Bertin spe' cializes in multiple skirt installations. Three or more plenums (air pressure chambers)) each fed by its own air source, and each with its own flexible skirt, are characteristic of ah Bertin designs. (Isolated plenums exert a stabilizing force greater than can be accomplished by other non-surface-contacting devices.) The small skirts are extremely resilient, their slightly conical shape self-restoring under internal pressure. Low mass and inertia enable them to adjust to the surface) decreasing wear and reducing air losses. A single large skirt surrounding the base trap5 the spilled air and provides additional lift, although at a lower pressure.
Bertin has defined three categories of ACV5 and has organized companies to develop them: Overland, Bertin et Cie Terraplane series! Overwater, SEDAM (Societe d’Etudes et de
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The High Cost of Saving Oscar 63
weight. Two 45-h.p. motors, driving all four wheels can propel the five-ton vehicle at speeds up to 50 miles per hour over practically any terrain. Simple design, and conventional propulsion, steering, and braking systems minimize initial equipment expense as well as simplifying operator and maintenance training. Bertin estimates quantity production versions would cost roughly two to three times as much as a conventional truck.
Another Bertin organization, SEDAM, lists a Sea Air Rescue role for its 27-ton, multiengine, 80-passenger pure ACV, the Navi- plane N.300. The N.300 entered service in the summer of 1968 as a ferry on the Cote d’Azur, but has not been purchased for SAR duty.
The U. S. Navy has long been interested in ACVs. In 1965, Lieutenant Commander R. E. Daley, U. S. Navy, was designated project officer for the OpTEvFor project “Investigate the Potential Usefulness of Air Cushion Ships in Naval Missions.” In a paper presented at the 2nd Marine Systems and ASW Conference, he reported “The amphibious capability of the ACV and the ability to operate both night and day in relatively high sea states, demonstrates its value for rescue operations.”
His project tested only state-of-the-art, pure ACVs (SKMR-1, SR.N5, and VA-3), all using flexible perimeter skirts. Crews (assault boat coxswains and marine gas turbine en- ginemen) were trained in approximately six weeks.
Operators could solo in ten hours or less; however, nearly 50 hours are needed to gain proficiency. Trainees reported that learning to maintain the large crab angle (required by lack of surface contact) when operating cross wind was the most difficult part; coxswains familiar with small boat operations in strong tidal waters had the least difficulty adjusting to the new machines.
The highest seas encountered during the test averaged 12 feet, with 18-foot peaks. Although the SKMR-1 took green water over the bow, she maintained a speed of 10 to 20 knots and good control during the worst weather. During a thundersquall in Willoughby Bay, 400-yard visibility with winds gusting from 10 to 35 knots, did not prevent safe operation of the craft or successful completion of the test.
In their paper, Daley and J. U. Korden-
^eveloppement des Aeroglisseurs Marins) i, ay!plane series; and Guided, Societe de 1 Aerotrain.
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erlln et Cie designed a prototype, based vV^e or*g*nal BC-4, Airfield crash/rescue yC ‘cle. The Terraplane BC-4 Crash/rescue ^ehicle, was demonstrated at the 1965 Le- ^°Urget (Paris) International Air Show. This .JUtsual machine, although never produced quantity, has a number of interesting de- Sl-?n features.
th^ ®aS turb‘ne engine generates the lift; v e high pressure, high temperature, high b °^*ty exhaust is mixed and cooled in a
Eah °f “diluting eJectors”—Venturi Mixers.
aeh of these diluting ejectors mixes exhaust ts yith the surrounding air in a ratio of one- frei®bt or ten, boosting the gas flow rate S(°'n approximately 50 kg/second to 712 kg/ cond. The output from each mixer feeds to jne of seven skirts (six 1.9-m. and one 2.4-m. sUrdlameter)- A larSe> slightly longer skirt ^ . rounds the entire vehicle. Twin airscrews, aiYen bY a single engine, propel the BC-8, our non-driven wheels support her “off-
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the bc'11 C^a*mS tbe following advantages for
av ^1° Preliminary warm-up, maximum power ailable within seconds; both engines n be started at once.
Parking wheels stabilize the vehicle and ^ interact hose torque. m stalled, packaged fire-fighting equip- rae?t (two 750-kg powder reservoirs) can be % P'dly removed.
w ^lft engine can be coupled to a powerful % ,er pump for fire-fighting operations. loari-°W’ Wide’ loadinfl platform simplifies large numbers of passengers and
Passage from land to water (or marsh) at eeds up to 60 km/hr, even with a half ^eter drop.
sj ®ert>n introduced a different lift/propul-
ca°chdesign in the BC'7 Terraplane. Ten skirts, taC 1-h meters in diameter and slightly _^Pered throughout her 50-centimeter length,
<“a k Cd ^ hour centrifugal fans. The fans, b^h rated at 41.5 h.p. at 2,850 r.p.m., are
Hvri'driven by a single reciprocating engine.
5 y raulically adjusted wheels support from 0 20 per cent of the fully loaded vehicle’s
ugal fan-driven ACV. The onc-and-a-quarte*
ton CC-7 is an eight-to-ten-passenger, PureMfc
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the CC-7 clocked 46 knots on the measure^ ar
brock listed several desirable features for future (naval) ACVs:
• good all-around visibility
• multi-engine, single-engine capability. (In the ZPG-2, -3 airships, either engine could drive both propellers.)
• armor protection for crew and critical components
• versatile, protected personnel/cargo compartment
The SR.N5 (SK-5) series has been built in quantity. The Model T of the ACVs, she has been tested and operated under nearly every conceivable condition including combat duty in Vietnam and Borneo.
In 1967, the Canadian Coast Guard leased an SK-5 (Bell Aero-system Company’s version of the SR.N5) for a one month evaluation. During this period the CCGS Simcoe carried, launched, and recovered the seven-ton SK-5. The ACV was tested in a variety of Coast Guard roles: towing, transfer, firefighting, and water rescue. Required/recommended improvements to the vessel are included in the report “Trials of an SK-5 Hover-Craft for the Canadian Coast Guard,” available as Defense Documentation Center Acquisition Number AD-817145. The report concluded that:
• The SK-5 hover-craft (suitable modified) can perforin a wide variety of Coast Guard operations in smooth and rough water, and can operate effectively at night.
• Using the hover-craft, the Coast Guard could extend its rescue operations.
The Canadians have since bought one SR.N5, equipped for her new SAR role with reinforced side decking, scrambling nets, firefighting equipment, radar, and communications gear. This hover-rescue vessel was accepted by the Coast Guard in the summer of 1968 and is presently assigned to the Sea Island Airport, Vancouver, B. C.
The Finnish Navy and Coast Guard started evaluating the SR.N6 (a stretched version, ten feet longer than the basic SR.N5) in March 1968. On 28 March, the SR.N6 made the 80-mile passage from Helsinki to Koltka. During the trip, she had to head into a 30- knot wind and cross 4 to 5-foot waves. Top speeds of 65 knots were attained in the easy stretches; speeds of 20 knots were maintained over rough boulder ice up to three feet high.
Late in the spring of 1968, Cushioncraft Ltd., a subsidiary of Britten-Norman, Ltd: introduced a low-cost, lightweight, centrft
ACV, designed to operate in 3-to-4-foot waveS: and climb a one-in-six gradient. Rated aS fantastically maneuverable and whisper-quiej by one observer, the design is capable 0 speeds to 50 knots. With her 390-h.p. gaS turbine engine running at 80 per cent powet mile. The U. K. Ministry of Technology bought the first CC-7 (for approximately $75,000) and assigned her to the Nation^' Physics Laboratory Hovercraft Unit, at Hythe, for evaluation. Cushioncraft is study" ing the market possibilities of a stretched' 18-passenger version of the CC-7.
Since these ACVs will be operating pr*' marily at sea, amphibious capability is no* essential. Surface-contacting designs simplify the weight and noise control problems, de' crease training, and greatly reduce cost'
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gravity, and relocate the propulsive thruS1 from far above to beneath the vessel’s cente1 of gravity. Extremely large airscrews and rudders, required for effective control at lo'' speed, constitute a major weight, height, and location problem for the large ACV.
Why specify gas turbines? A diesel operate* from the same fuel, and far more efficiently' High-speed marine diesels, in the sizes preS' ently required, cost only about half as mud1
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Why specify airscrew propulsion? A watef screw, or water jet, costs only about half aS much as an airscrew of equivalent power an1 will have negligible maintenance require' ments. In addition, underwater propulsio1’ would: eliminate the prime source of ACV. noise (the airscrew), lower the center 0
British Hovercraft Corporation
Winchester Class SR.N6
British Hovercraft Corporation
HM.2 Fire/Rescue Hovercraft
Hovermarine Ltd.
a §as turbine initially, are less subject to ^°rrosion, and cost less to maintain. The f'avier diesels can be placed low in the ssel, making the weight penalty relatively lmportant; this penalty ceases to exist for Ss<‘ls designed for 15 or more hours of opera- u extra weight of fuel and tanks required r the less efficient turbine balances out at ^Pproximately that point. The diesel is capa- ^ e °f operating over a greater speed (r.p.m.) nge; decreased power requirements and 1Se at idle may be an important factor (i.e., SUrPrise).
soon-to-be-launched Vosper Thorny- a t V-i semi-amphibious ACV is a good ^andidate—although she is too large for ■ptrier duty—for an open ocean SAR ACV. rls “ferry” uses twin midship keels, twin y hers, and water screw propulsion, y'nety-six feet overall, with a 40-foot beam, tc V l -l has a designed all-up-weight of 75 rns’ and a permissible 15-ton overload. At ^ated load (10 cars and 162 passengers) the tes^el’s installed 3,600-h.p. diesel or gas . rbine gives a top speed of 48 knots. More ,llP°rtant, the VT-l will make 35 knots into
six-foot head seas and a 23-knot head wind.
Her thin keels support little of the vessel’s weight (3.75-foot draft, using propellers); most of the stabilizing force is exerted by the air cushions. Thus the VT-1 retains most of the advantages of the pure ACV while eliminating most of her costly problems.
In March 1968, Hovermarine, Ltd., commenced delivery of the HM-2, a 16-ton, rigid sidewall machine similar to the U. S. Navy’s Captured Air Bubble Boat. This 50-foot craft is designed to carry 60 passengers at speeds to 35 knots. The standard, diesel-driven version sells for about $175,000, approximately a third as much as the SR.N5 (and far less than the UH-2A helicopter). Standard equipment includes passenger seats, stressed to 3-Gs, life rafts, and life jackets for all passengers, VHF radio, PA system, navigation lights, gyrocompass, heaters, and automatic fire extinguishing system.
The HM-2 is approximately the same size, and twice as heavy, as the present utility (liberty) boats. Presently the carriers have five 50-foot and two 40-foot utility boats, two 40- foot personnel boats, the captain’s gig, and sometimes the admiral’s barge—in addition to life boats—and approximately one hundred men to maintain and operate them.
It’s a peaceful night at sea. Our duty ACV is swung out on her trapeze beneath the island. (The trapeze was developed in the Navy’s rigid airship program.) An umbilical cable supplies compressed air, electrical power, and phone circuits, keeping the ACV’s crew in direct contact with the bridge. The four-man crew (cox’n, engineer, radar/radio operator, and rescue-man; the engineer and rescue-man double as lookouts and gunners) are lounging at ease in the ACV’s air- conditioned cabin.
The alert bell clangs, calling the crew to sortie stations, while the diesel engines automatically light off. At the captain’s order, “Man Overboard, port side. Away the ACV.” the cox’n twists a knob on his overhead panel. The trapeze drops until the crash rescue ACV is riding on-cushion. Pulling another lever pops the umbilical. (Until the umbilical was cut, all communications had been via sound- powered phones. The ACV had not appeared as a separate radar, acoustic, or visual tar-
A graduate of Purdue Unl‘ versity in 1961, Lieutena1’1 Robbins enlisted in 1953, at' tended various schools, v'*1’ trained and served as radar operator and maintenand technician on P2V-5, WV-7 and ZPG-2N aircraft. Select^ under the NESAP, he vf* commissioned, as an Avionid LDO in January 1960. ■ three-year tour on the staff of NAESU was followed b! two years on Commander Fleet Air JacksonviU‘ Staff. He served in the USS Saratoga (CVA-60) at1” therein qualified as OOD underway. Now assign^ to NavPlantRepO, Baltimore, he has been selected a* one of the initial cadre of Aeronautical Maintenan<X Duty Officers.
get.) A third switch opens the claw releasid? the trapeze, and the ACV slips free. The gia'1' ship need not slow or turn during this evolb" don; the cox’n has learned to compensate f°r wind and waves as he leaves the carrier.
Swinging back into the carrier’s wake, thc ACV turns and then speeds back down thf track at 50 knots to where flares mark Oscar The cox’n secures the lift fans and proceed* in displacement mode at trolling speed whik the crew looks and listens for Oscar. OncC located, it’s a simple matter to make the approach, swing out the rescue ramp, and 1$ the injured man from the water.
With everyone safely aboard, and Osc^ resting warm and safe on a stretcher, the cox 11 lifts off and heads back for the carrier, slows to match speed with her as he complete-' his approach through the turbulent wake Snagging the trapeze on his first attempt then plugging in the umbilical, the cox twists the knob causing the ACV to swid- back up into position. As soon as she’s up’ waiting hands open the hatch and carry Osca1 off to sick bay.
The crew re-stows the gear, then relaxe5 as the cox’n completes his report to the OO* with “ACV ready for duty, sir.”
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Fanciful—of course! Impossible—most dr finitely not! Early AC Vs—SKMR-1 could df 80 knots over calm water—were superior all displacement vessels, and faster even tha> a helicopter in most instances. The ability tf stop rapidly, and settle safely to the water give even a medium speed—35 to 50-knot^
front of the carrier in heavy or other conditions, when the Rules of ?e Road require moderate speed. These ad- ttional eyes and ears for the OOD (U. S. ufVy Regulations, 1948 (Art. 0751) . .
, den underway during low visibility ... at cast one lookout shall be stationed in the
bow
as far forward and as near the water as
the
captain’s ulcer.
^ a performance and safety advantage °|,er the single-engine helicopters. ACVs can so be used in many cases (bad weather, exCessive range or heavy loads) where the heli- c°Pter either couldn’t be used, or would be required to make a number of trips. The l0lsy> high-silhouette SK-5 ACVs have proven SUrvivable in Vietnam combat; for inshore rescue, an armored ACV should be safer than a helicopter.
The carrier’s ACV need not be limited to rescue work (any more than the existing helos re)- Large platform, big payload, excellent ^Worthiness, as well as novelty, make her candidate for high priority and prestige s- Low crew and operating costs are an bed advantage. One peculiar ACV quality Serves special emphasis; her ability to stop J^aPidly. The ACV is able to attain high speeds . ecause of her low-friction air cushion. Los- or deliberately dumping, the air cushion . 'h stop the machine, from top speed to dead n the water in a few yards.
Moderate speed, normally interpreted as ead slow, thus has an entirely different Waning for ACVs. One or more ACVs could scout quietly fop th, dit;
18 feasible.”) would increase safety and ease
The High Cost of Saving Oscar 67
The present method of saving Oscar and his sea-based cousins is extremely costly in men, money, and material. ACVs (operated by general service enlisted crews, by crews that can be trained, and qualified in a short period) could replace all the present carrier’s boats, as well as the helicopter detachment. Low cost ACVs, as quiet and as maneuverable as the existing boats, should be permitted to operate freely in foreign ports.
Under emergency sortie conditions, the ability to load boats (ACVs), after getting underway, will greatly increase the flexibility of operations and simplify the Beach Guard’s problems. Loading boats would become a routine operation, instead of the present major evolution involving most of the deck division personnel.
Increased speed, stability, and safety of the ACVs will: permit improved boating with fewer boats and crews, eliminate the requirement for the nine pilots and 30 men of the helicopter detachment, improve the crew’s morale, and enhance the Navy’s image both from within and without the service.
Although at present no ACV has been designed expressly as an open ocean liaison vessel, or naval sea-air rescue machine, a number of existing ACVs (the HM-2, CC-7, VT-1, BC-7,-8, and the well known SK-5/ SR.N5,-6) clearly demonstrate the possibility of an order of magnitude improvement over present SAR capability.
An ACV designed for carrier SAR operations will help cut costs, and improve our ability, of saving Oscar.
. ^
One Bad Turn Deserves Another
In a recreation room at a certain Navy Separation center, I noticed a sergeant busily leafing through a stack of magazines and carefully clipping out coupons. Finally, overcome by curiosity, I asked him for an explanation.
“Well,” he replied, with evident glee, “my former commanding officer came through here yesterday, and I managed to get his address. I’m filling out each of these coupons for him. I have now enrolled him in seven book clubs and three correspondence schools. I have asked nine insurance companies to send representatives to see him, requested 47 booklets, 24 samples of beauty preparations, and a free 30-day trial of a ladies’ undergarment.
“That so-and-so made me miserable for two years, and now it’s my turn!”
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Contributed by Thomas Eng
(The Naval Institute will pay $10.00 for each anecdote published in the Proceedings.)