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Contents:
Liquefied Natural Gas Carriers and Their Development 99
By Captain Robert A. Carl, U.S. Naval Reserve (Retired)
NAVSTAR Global Positioning System:
Navigation for the Future 101
By Captain David C. Holmes, U.S. Navy (Retired)
Nakhimov Naval Cadet Schools (Nakhimovskiye uchilishcha) 104
By Commander Albert E. Graham, U.S. Naval Reserve
Liquefied Natural Gas Carriers and Their Development
By Captain Robert A. Carl, U.S. Naval Reserve (Retired), Special Assistant for Transportation to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Installations and Logistics)
A relatively new and fascinating development with the merchant fleets of the world is the LNG (liquefied natural gas) carrier. With the world demand for energy increasing, a means had been long sought for the carriage of this fuel. Natural gas, after processing, consists mostly of methane and must be carried at temperatures as low as -265° Fahrenheit.
The first LNG tanker was a converted dry cargo ship, the Methane Pioneer. She went into service in 1958, but it was not until 1964 that designs to insure safe transporting of this gas were sufficiently in hand to permit the start of construction of dedicated ships for LNG service.
As of 1 January 1977, the following countries had these LNGs on order or under construction: Belgium, one; France, 13; West Germany, two; Japan, three; Norway, one; Sweden, one; and the United States, 20. In the United States, General Dynamics has orders for 12; Newport News, three; Avondale, three; and Sun Shipbuilding, two.
The designs vary not only in the size of the vessel but also in the type of tank construction. There are three types of LNG carriers being built in the United States: the membrane type in Newport News; the conch tank type at Avondale and Sun Shipbuilding; and the spherical type at General
Dynamics, Quincy, Massachusetts. Illustrations provided show the general characteristics of the three. These ships are vital in overcoming a projected and continuing shortfall of natural gas as our energy needs increase. The shortfall in 1976-77 was estimated to be 100-400 billion cubic feet.
The types of tanks used in these ships may be classified as follows:
► Self-supporting tank of adequate strength to withstand the loads imposed by the cargo; may be prismatic (single-walled or double-walled), spherical, or cylindrical in form.
► Membrane tank which contains the natural gas within a thin metallic liquid-tight lining completely supported by load-bearing insulation. This, in turn, is supported by the structure of the ship. There are two types available, one with a single metallic lining, the other with two linings separated by insulation.
► Semi-membrane tank in which metallic lining is free of support at the corners.
All three types of tanks require a double-hulled ship. The space between the two hulls is used for ballast. The cargo tanks are thus placed within holds formed by the inner hull and transverse bulkheads.
The LNG construction program now represents a major portion of the present U. S. merchant ship construction effort. Sixteen of these carriers are being built under construction differential subsidy contracts using Title XI mortgage. These 16 will bring the natural gas to the United States from countries such as Algeria and Indonesia. Other LNG carriers being built in the United States for potential use in the domestic trade from Alaska have required no government assistance. Eventually, it is hoped that there will be 11 LNG carriers servicing the Alaska to Southern California run.
The largest series of U.S. LNG ships is the 12 tankers either under construction already or planned at General Dynamics in Quincy, Massachusetts. These carriers will transport the gas at -265° F. The characteristics of these dozen ships are outlined in the pictorial on pages 60-73 of this issue.
The initial contract for these LNG carriers is for $89.6 million per ship. The contract was signed on 28 September 1972 and provided for a construction subsidy of 23.7%. The delivery dates of these three initial carriers were for 31 December 1976, 7 May 1977, and 11 February 1978. Obviously, all are behind schedule because not even the first of the ships has been delivered yet. The initial General Dynamics vessel, LNG-41, is
scheduled for sea trials and delivery in May. (Newport News’ first LNG is scheduled for delivery in August 1977; Avondale’s in November 1977; and Sun Shipbuilding’s in September
1979.)
All LNG carriers provide for sufficient insulation to insure that any leakage of the gas does not come into contact with the hull of the ship. Safety precautions are very exacting, but it should be noted that liquefied natural gas is non-combustible and non-explosive as long as it is not mixed with oxygen. Several ports in the United States have indicated a desire to construct LNG terminals. The port of Los Angeles has recently authorized construction of a $155 million terminal. It is anticipated that the movement of the natural gas from Algeria will be into ports on the North Atlantic and the Gulf with the Alaskan product moving into California. It is also anticipated that future production will call for the movement of liquefied natural gas from Indonesia to California; and from the U.S.S.R., Iran, and Nigeria to the United States.
There has been concern over the safety factors involved in the transporting of natural gas. The carriage of any liquid cargoes—except beer, orange juice, or water—poses certain risks, including explosion or ecological damage, but outweighing these risks are the increasing energy demands. Every precaution within means has been built into the LNGs, including double hulls so that the risks will be minimal.
On 20 December 1976, the Maritime Subsidy Board removed a major operating rule which required that the operation of a ship receiving subsidy must show that 30% of its cargoes are in the U.S. foreign trade. The temporary removal of this regulation will encourage further interest in LNG carriers.
For the American merchant marine, the advent of the LNGs has provided a new and challenging forward step which could provide the United States with leadership in this field of endeavor. This is particularly welcome in view of the declining new construction of dry cargo ships and oil tankers.
It is anticipated that as demands for liquefied natural gas increase, continuing building programs will be forthcoming for additional construction of natural gas carriers.
There has been considerable concern about this country’s dependence on foreign sources of liquefied natural gas. This concern resulted in the formation of an interagency task force set up by the Energy Resources Council which was directed to review the import situation and provide policy recommendations. In August 1976, as a result of the task force recommendations to the President, the liquefied natural gas policy was announced and included the provision that no more than one trillion cubic feet per year of liquefied natural gas would come from any one source, and that the general guidelines of two trillion cubic feet per year from all foreign sources may be changed should national policy dictate. Projects have already been approved totaling 380 million cubic feet per year from Algeria. The project actively before the Federal Power Commission, totaling 944 billion cubic feet per year, is broken down as follows: y Indonesia: U. S. project of 201 billion cubic feet a year (six U. S. ships to be built).
► Algeria: U. S. projects of 793 billion cubic feet a year (between ten and 13 U. S. vessels required).
There are two major competing projects to bring Alaskan natural gas to western state sites. The Alaskan reserves, estimated at 26 trillion cubic feet, would move via either of the following methods pending a decision by the Federal Power Commission:
► The Arctic gas proposal would build pipelines through Alaska and Canada to the U. S. Midwest and could deliver 2.34 billion cubic feet per day at an estimated capital cost of $8.1 billion (1975 dollars). Operating costs are estimated to be $89 million per year.
► The El Paso-Alaska liquefied natural gas project would deliver gas to the port of Valdez where it would be converted to liquefied natural gas, then shipped by tanker to Southern California. This alternative could deliver 2.7 billion cubic feet of gas a day at a capital cost of $7.0 billion (1975 dollars). Operating costs are estimated to be $ 149 million per year. This would be a wholly domestic project, with increased security of supply one of the expected benefits, and would involve the construction of at least 11 liquefied natural gas carriers in U. S. shipyards resulting in about 35,000 man-years of employment in U. S. shipyards.
Legislation (P.L. 94-586, signed in October 1976) was passed to expedite the delivery of Alaskan gas. It requires a Federal Power Commission decision on the competing projects by 1 May 1977 and requires the President to make a final decision on the project by 1 September 1977. Unless Congress vetoes the decision within 60 days, the project will go forward, and no court contest is allowed except on constitutional grounds.
The interest in liquefied natural gas continues to grow, and there is no question that, given continued incentives, the American merchant marine can stand in the forefront of the liquefied natural gas programs, benefiting not only our merchant marine but our ports as well. Even more important, LNG tankers will help meet our nation's urgent energy demands.
NAVSTAR Global Positioning System: Navigation for the Future
By Captain David C. Holmes, U.S. Navy (Retired), Consultant, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, author of 12 published books including What’s Going on in Space? and The Search for Life on Other Worlds
Since July 1974, an earth satellite has been in orbit which is the forerunner of a network of space-borne beacons that will revolutionize the ancient science of navigation. The initial phase of this development, called the NAVSTAR Global Positioning System or GPS, was approved by the Defense Systems Acquisition Review Council (DSARC) in December 1973.
The Air Force has been designated the executive service for Phase I of the GPS. Management of the program is under the direction of a Joint Program Office located at the Air Force’s Space and Missile Systems Organization (SAMSO) in Los Angeles. All the services have been involved in the basic studies and analyses which led to the design concept. The Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Defense Mapping Agency are represented in the program office along with Air Force personnel.
The current design is largely the outgrowth of the Navy’s TIMATION program, whose name was derived from the words TIMe navigATION, and the Air Force’s 62IB Project. TIMATION was conceived by a group headed by Roger L. Easton at the Naval Research Laboratory in 1964. As originally designed, TIMATION used a network of subsynchronous satellites, while 62IB envisioned operating a number of synchronous altitude satellites to provide navigation signals. The final design employs 24 satellites in 12-hour orbits at an altitude of about 11,000 nautical miles broadcasting spread spectrum pseudo-random-noise signals. This network will supply worldwide continuous all-weather navigation for a wide variety of users, both military and civilian. Figure 1 illustrates the planned evolutionary development of GPS capability.
The basic methodology of position fixing by means of man-made satellites is as old as the science of navigation, except for one significant detail. In the case of celestial navigation, the distances are not known, but the angles may be calculated in accordance with the immutable laws of Newton and Kepler so that the angles can be predicted in advance and reduced to tabular form for use in calculating lines-of-position (LOPs). In the case of satellite navigation, distances are known and are used as the basis for solving the navigation equation.
Figure 2 illustrates the basic navigation triangle. The height of the satellite above earth’s center is deter-
mined within a few meters. The earth’s radius is also known, and the range from the observer to the satellite is measured electronically. Since the other sides of the triangle are known, the range line serves to describe a LOP on the surface of the earth upon which the observer must be located. Two such iines-of-position determine a two-dimensional fix. Three are needed to determine a position plus an altitude in the case of an aircraft. Additional LOPs, if more than three satellites are available, can be used to provide more accuracy or to measure the time difference between satellite and observer clocks.
All of the above is very familiar to those who have had some association with the grandfather of all satellite navigation systems, the Navy’s TRANSIT program. TRANSIT has been operational since 1964 and is now used by both naval and commercial vessels. However, there are significant differences between the GPS and TRANSIT. Instead of being at an altitude of 11,000 miles, the TRANSIT satellites orbit the earth at 600 miles. The TRANSIT satellites orbit lower because their ranges from an observer are determined by measuring doppler signals produced by the satellites’ rapid passage overhead. This doppler is then converted into range. Range measurement to GPS satellites, on the other hand, is determined by a quite different technique. The increased altitude has the advantage of requiring fewer satellites to obtain continuous worldwide coverage. In addition, the GPS high altitude satellites will avoid the drag which continuously changes the orbits of the TRANSIT birds.
Using the GPS technique, the range will be obtained by measuring the time required for an electromagnetic pulse to travel from satellite to observer. In effect, the system becomes a one-way radar. To accomplish this, precise clock synchronization is required between observer and satellite so that the time required for the navigation signals to reach the observer may be determined to provide the range.
The first two TIMATION satellites were launched by the Naval Research Laboratory with quartz crystal clocks to test the concept. Using the best crystals, it would be possible to build a system whose position fixing accuracy might be comparable to that obtained with several good star sights. The requirements placed on GPS are much more stringent. As a result, the development of highly accurate and stable atomic clocks was a basic requirement before a useful GPS became feasible. Rubidium, cesium, and hydrogen are all considered promising candidates for satellite clocks.
TIMATION III was scheduled to fly with an improved quartz clock. However, during the year prior to launch, two significant events occurred. First, a rubidium standard became available and was placed on the satellite. Secondly, DoD approved the GPS, and the TIMATION project became part of the DoD program. TIMATION III was renamed Navigation Technology Satellite One (NTS-l), and the Naval Research Laboratory team, under Mr. Easton’s direction, was designated the technical agency responsible for GPS clock development and testing. NTS-l was launched on 14 July 1974.
The NTS-l satellite, illustrated in Figure 3 as it appears in orbit, weighs about 650 pounds. The solar panels, held flat against the sides of the satellite during launch, are extended like paddle wheels in their normal positions, facing the sun. Eleven different solar cell configurations are being tested on the NTS-l to determine their characteristics. The long booms stabilize the satellite so that its antennae will always point earthward. The lower boom contains a magnetic damper which locks into the earth’s magnetic field to maintain stabilization. This system is similar to the one used on TRANSIT.
The two rubidium clocks placed on board NTS-1 have performed very satisfactorily. The NTS-2, tentatively scheduled for launch in May of this year, will test cesium beam standards. The cesium beam’s accuracy is expected to be an order of magnitude better than the rubidium standards and should be able to meet the longterm stability requirements of the operational GPS. Later this year the Air Force will launch a series of prototype operational GPS satellites which are now being designed and built by Rockwell International’s Space Division.
These prototype satellites will weigh about 950 pounds and will be launched by an Atlas F booster which also propels the NTS into orbit. They will transmit on two L-band frequencies and use a pseudo-random-noise signal structure to provide accurate, secure navigation for a variety of military users.
The GPS will have a number of important advantages over conventional navigation systems.
► It will provide a secure navigation signal for military users with an accuracy of better than 10 meters.
► Other users who do not require this high accuracy will be able to receive clear signals providing navigation good to perhaps 100 meters.
► User equipment costs will vary from perhaps $30,000 for the highly accurate secure equipments to about $10,000 for lower accuracy receivers.
► Ultimately coverage will be continuous worldwide.
► There is no requirement for the user to radiate and thus broadcast his position.
► The system can be used simultaneously by any number of users.
► It will eliminate the need for proliferating a number of smaller local systems designed to meet special requirements.
► All the GPS satellites need not be placed in orbit at once to provide some operational capability. Nine satellites, appropriately spaced, will furnish continuous worldwide capabil-
48 IN.
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SOLAR CELL EXPERIMENTS ON TOP
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Figure 3 Navigation Technology Satellite One
ity for two-dimensional fixes.
The GPS is expected to fulfill the positioning needs of a large group of military customers. The Army will use the system in deploying its tactical units, for control of fire support, and for pinpointing enemy positions. Aviation units will use the system for all aspects of navigation, including altitude determination. Since the system will be highly dynamic and provide instantaneous and continuous position information in either geodetic or relative terms, it will also be useful for a wide variety of tactical and strategic situations involving both ships and aircraft.
During the first phase of the program, lasting through early 1978, six satellites will be deployed in a constellation designed to provide a demonstration of basic system capability. The first will be NTS-2, designed and constructed at the Naval Research Laboratory, and the remaining five will be built by Rockwell International under an Air Force contract.
This constellation will be tested along with prototype user equipment and ground monitoring station components to provide basic data regarding system feasibility, effectiveness, cost, and the time-scale required to meet operational objectives. Phase I is expected to forecast a realistic estimate of the military value of GPS prior to commitment of the vast resources needed to continue full-scale development. The Phase I satellites will be deployed so that the entire constellation will be in position for a daily test period over the Southwestern United States.
A decision to proceed with Phase II will be made by DSARC II in mid 1978. Phase II will culminate in a worldwide, two-dimensional operational capability. Phase III of the GPS program consists of implementing the full operational system of 24 satellites to provide continuous, worldwide, three-dimensional coverage. As each phase progresses, work will be continued to improve the accuracy and stability of the clocks and reduce the cost of the user equipment.
The Phase I and Phase II GPS satellites are scheduled to be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base. (Phase III satellites will be launched from Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg.) They will be placed in 12-hour circular orbits at 11,000 nautical miles, and will transmit continuous coded information which includes a timing signal and their positions. The navigation receivers will be able to translate this information into navigational fixes.
For Phase I, the master control station will be located at Vandenberg Air Force Base. The control station will compute the orbital parameters of each satellite and provide this information, as well as a clock update for each satellite, at least once a day. Several monitor sets are planned to calibrate the satellite at various known geographic points on the globe. Information from them will then be transmitted to the master control station.
Ephemeris data are also sent to the Navy’s computer facility at the Naval Surface Weapons Center, Dahlgren, Virginia, where a prediction model of each satellite’s path will be generated. This forecast value for the satellite ephemeris will be checked against the actual values received by the monitor sets. The predicted ephemeris can be fed into the satellites to provide the system with extended life in case the ground stations are destroyed and the daily ephemeris update is not available from the master control station.
There are currently six requirement classes of user equipment which have been identified to meet the needs of the many diverse customers who are expected to use the operational GPS.
► Class A—a radiation-hardened receiver for strategic aircraft to provide the highest possible accuracy under wartime conditions.
y Class B—a slightly lighter unit for tactical fighter aircraft and helicopters.
► Class C—a low-cost receiver for use by support aircraft such as tankers and cargo ships.
► Class D—a tactical receiver for tanks, amphibious craft, and armored personnel carriers.
► Class E—a lightweight unit for use by Army and Marine infantry troops in the field.
► Class F—a receiver for use by submarines and certain other shipboard applications.
While each of these receivers imposes different size, weight, and software requirements, these basic classes will be investigated in Phase I through the development of three general receivers which have been identified as X, Y, and Z. Magnavox Corporation’s Advanced Products Division has been chosen to produce development models of the X, Y, and Z receivers.
The X set is designed to track four satellites simultaneously and will receive three codes from each of them. First, they will acquire the clear/ acquisition code which allows them to identify and lock on the other signals of the transmitting satellite. The precision navigation signals will be received from each of two P codes which are separated in frequency by the ionosphere. The P signals will utilize an extended pseudo-random-noise code so that only receivers capable of reading the code will be able to use these precision navigation signals.
The Y receivers will provide sequential rather than simultaneous tracking of four satellites. Their accuracy will be equivalent to that of the X sets, but they will be designed to meet the requirements of less dynamic users, i.e., ships instead of high- performance aircraft.
The Z set is a low-cost, relatively low accuracy receiver, designed for users such as civilian aircraft and ships whose accuracy requirements are not high. The Z receiver will be able to receive only the non-secure clear/ acquisition signal.
The Z receivers will have the largest group of customers and will be the cheapest. It is envisioned, for example, that the Z receiver will ultimately be an acceptable replacement for TACAN. To this end, a Z receiver is being designed that will fit the standard TACAN rack on most aircraft. It will have the same power and wiring requirements.
In addition to the Magnavox receiver contract, Texas Instruments is to produce two engineering development receivers: one, a small lightweight receiver which can be carried by a combat infantryman for use by Army and Marine infantry units; and the second, a highly dynamic receiver for use in aircraft. These sets will provide accurate, three-dimensional position information.
The NAVSTAR GPS will replace many of the navigator’s oldest and most venerable tools—his sextant, his chronometer, and his star tables. The system complements operationally essential self-contained systems, such as LORAN, TACAN, and OMEGA; it offers an increased degree of survivability for its users because they can remain passive; and its accuracy enhances force effectiveness. It will place the ancient science of navigation in a new threedimensional context, and because of its capability for nearly instantaneous operation, it will introduce the fourth dimension, time, as a dynamic element in the navigation equation. In the fast moving world of military technology, NAVSTAR will provide a fundamental tool upon which most future weapon systems will depend.
Nakhimov Naval Cadet Schools (Nakhimovskiye uchilishcha)
By Commander Albert H. Graham, U. S. Naval Reserve, Senior Slavic Reference Librarian in the Slavic and Central European Division, Library of Congress
The Nakhimov School was created to provide Russian youngsters with a Communist education and training, to assure their overall development, and to prepare them for admission into Higher Naval Schools and subsequent careers as commissioned naval officers.
The Nakhimov Naval Cadet Schools, named for the great 19th century Russian naval commander P.S. Nakhimov (1802-1855), were es
tablished by the 21 June 1944 decree of the U.S.S.R. Council of People’s Commissars and the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. Aside from the fact that they are state run and state supported, they closely equate to the numerous private naval schools and academies extant in the United States. Originally, there were four Nakhimov Schools, located in Baku, Leningrad, Riga, and Tblissi.
The Riga Nakhimov School and the Tblissi Nakhimov School ceased operations in 1953 and 1955 respectively. No specific data could be found concerning when the Baku Nakhimov School was either established or abolished. The only school of this type existing today is the Leningrad Nakhimov School, located on the bank of the Neva across from where the historic ship Aurora is anchored.
The school’s address is formally listed as Leningrad, P-46, ul. Petro- gradskaya naberezhnaya, 2/4.
Access to these special secondary naval schools was initially limited to the sons of servicemen, partisans, collective farmers, and Party and manual workers killed during World War II. This policy has changed, and nowadays only a few of the students at the Leningrad Nakhimov School are sons of workers, active duty petty officers, and enlisted war heroes. Presently, the great bulk of the Nakhimovites are the male offspring of Party and government leaders as well as active duty, reserve and retired officers. This admission program creates an inbred officer corps which the Russians consider to be advantageous, since they believe that military and naval traditions are best preserved by the family. The Leningrad Nakhimov School thus forms the base for the reestablishment of the naval officer caste which was destroyed during the 1917 Russian Revolution. Its graduates reportedly comprise the elite of the contemporary Soviet naval officer corps.
The early Nakhimov Schools were similar to the former Imperial Cadet Schools in that students entered the program when they were seven or eight and received a complete secondary education, which especially stressed mathematics and science and included military subjects and drill. For all practical purposes then, the program was the same as the regular ten-year schools except there was no first grade and a considerable portion of the curriculum was devoted to special military subjects and extensive physical and military training.
Changes instituted after World War II predominantly transformed the Nakhimov Schools into boarding schools for sixth grade and higher students. Eligible for admission at that time were 12-13 year-old males who: (1) completed five grades of a secondary school, (2) successfully passed entrance examinations in Russian and arithmetic, and (3) enjoyed good health. The curriculum included general educational subjects up to the tenth grade level along with courses dealing with basic naval training, shipboard equipment, naval weapons, observation, and communications. A great deal of attention was also devoted to physical culture and sports. Students were at the same time taught how to row, handle small boats, and rig ships. In the summertime, they received practical experience at naval camps and on board ships. The former Nakhimovites, like their present-day counterparts, wore special military uniforms and were subjected to strict military discipline.
Since 1964, those eligible for admission to the Leningrad Nakhimov School had to be 15-16-year-old males who had completed eight grades of a secondary school, possessed a good knowledge of English, and were in good physical health. The older age requirement apparently resulted from the fact that many younger children were forced into a naval career by dominant parents. Fifteen and 16- year-olds, the Soviets claimed, were better able to consciously choose the navy as a career.
Applications for admission to the Leningrad Nakhimov School must be sent in by the candidates’ parents between 1 June and 20 June. Applications are submitted by:
► Navymen, through command channels, addressed to their chast or soyedineniye commander or the chief of their installation
► Servicemen in other branches of the armed forces, as well as reserve and retired officers, generals and admirals, and collective farmers and manual and office workers who live in areas around fleets and flotillas, addressed to the Fleet (Flotilla) Commander
► Individuals living in other areas of the country, addressed to the Commander of the Leningrad Naval Base
Each set of parents or guardians has to submit the following documents together with their application:
► The candidate's personal statement, addressed to the Chief of the Leningrad Nakhimov School, expressing his desire to study at this school and his reasons for wanting to become an officer
► An original birth certificate
► A diploma indicating that the applicant has completed the eighth grade
► A reference letter from the class supervisor and the school director
► Komsomol reference from the applicant’s school Komsomol—The Young Communist League—committee (for Komsomol members only)
► A medical evaluation of the applicant’s health and fitness to attend the Nakhimov School issued by a garrison medical board or a medical board attached to a military commissariat
► Two 3-by-4 centimeter snapshots of the applicant
► References from the place of work or on the nature of the work of the parents or guardians
In the application the parents must also state that, upon completion of the Nakhimov School, their son will continue to study in a naval educational institution for the purpose of becoming a naval officer. This same declaration has to be made by the applicant in writing.
Chast and soyedineniye commanders select the most worthy candidates for admission to the school and submit documents on these candidates with their own remarks by 20 June to the selection boards (otborochnyye komissii) established in the four fleets, Northern, Baltic, Black Sea, and Pacific, Red Banner Caspian Flotilla, and Leningrad Naval Base. These boards are created by order of the fleet or flotilla commander or the Commander of the Leningrad Naval Base, according to a requisition approved by the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Navy.
The particular selection board considers the materials submitted on candidates for entry into the Nakhimov School, chooses the most worthy students in accordance with the number of vacancies allocated to the fleet by the Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Navy, and sends documents on the selected candidates to the Leningrad Nakhimov School by 25 June for preliminary consideration by the school’s admissions’ committee (priyemnaya komissiya). The latter committee, headed by the chief of the school, examines the documents and decides which of the selected candidates should be summoned to the school for the final selection process. Its decision is reported to the Fleet, Flotilla, and Leningrad Naval Base Selection Boards. All things being equal, preference is given to the orphans of servicemen and the children of parents who are serving in remote areas of the country.
Summoned candidates from the fleets, flotilla, and Leningrad Naval base are sent to the Leningrad Nakhimov School in groups, accompanied by active duty naval officers.
Parents and guardians may travel with their sons or wards at their own expense. Only the candidates are provided with travel documents and receive room and board at the Nakhimov School while undergoing medical examinations and taking competitive entrance examinations.
Youngsters selected as candidates for admission to the Leningrad Nakhimov School take the competitive entrance examination between 15-30 July. Usually three to four candidates compete for each available vacancy. Prior to 1974, candidates had to take written and oral examinations in Russian and mathematics only, according to the eighth grade school program. Moreover, those students who had graduated from the eighth grade with excellent marks in all subjects (except for singing and drawing) were automatically excused from taking competitive entrance exams. Presently, however, prospective Nakhimovites must take both a written and oral mathematics examination, a Russian language dictation test, and an oral physics examination. The new 1974 regulations also stipulate that students who graduate from the eighth grade with excellent marks are no longer automatically excluded from taking competitive entrance exams. They are now obliged to take one examination—either written or oral—at the discretion of the Chief of the Leningrad Nakhimov School. Those who receive excellent grades in this single examination are immediately enrolled in the school, providing they have passed their physical examinations. Those who get only good or satisfactory marks (“3” or “4”) on this single examination have to take the other entrance examinations along with the rest of the candidates. Orphans and children of servicemen on duty abroad or in remote areas of the country are still excluded from the overall competition, however they still must score passing grades on the entrance exams and be in good physical health to be enrolled in the Leningrad Nakhimov school.
Candidates who do not satisfy the admissions requirements for reasons of health or who do not pass the entrance examinations, as well as those who have not competed, are sent back to their patents or guardians.
Candidates admitted to the IX class of the Leningrad Nakhimov School who, during the first academic year, show a weak general educational background, do not master the general program, and receive marks of “2” in several academic subjects at the end of the second academic quarter, as well as those who display low moral qualities, lack of discipline, and no desire to study, are dismissed from the school.
To raise the quality of Nakhimov students, reduce training costs, and increase the number of graduates for staffing higher naval schools, the Council of Ministers of the U.S.S.R., by Resolution No. 57, dated 21 January 1964, approved a three-year period of training at the Leningrad Nakhimov School. The entire course of training was thus divided into the IX, X, and XI grades. Sometime in the mid to late Sixties, however, the training course in the Leningrad Nakhimov School was reduced to its present two-year period. The entire course of study is currently divided into two classes—the IX and X, respectively.
The Leningrad Nakhimov School year begins immediately after the entrance exams. Those successful selectees are enrolled in the IX class by the order of the head of the school and report to the school’s camp by 1 August. Here they receive 30 days of basic combined arms training.
The academic year is divided into academic quarters: the first quarter, 1 September—6 November; the second quarter, 12 Novembet—29 December; the third quarter, 11 January— 23 March; and the fourth quarter, 1 April—30 May. End of the year and final examinations begin on 1 June. The deadlines for completing examinations are determined by the academic schedule. After the examinations, Nakhimovites from class IX undergo a six-week summer training program which includes two weeks of familiarization practice on board naval ships and four weeks of training at the Nakhimov School’s permanent camp.
Aside from the regular scholastic program, Nakhimov School students must also stand watches at the school and perform other duties. Senior Nakhimovites, in fact, live on board the cruiser Aurora. Here they perform shipboard duties as well as stand watches. Students with excellent academic records but who cannot cope with the military aspects of the Nakhimov School program are reportedly dismissed from the school.
The daily routine in the Leningrad Nakhimov School strictly conforms with both naval and internal service regulations. Nakhimovites are granted holidays between the academic quarters. They are permitted to visit their parents or guardians during the winter (30 December—10 January) and summer (August) holiday leave periods. Nakhimovites, who have been successful in their studies and have not received a grade of “2" in any subject during the entire quarter, are also granted leave by the head of the school to visit their parents during the fall (7-11 November) and spring (24-30 March) holidays. Those who remain at the school receive additional instruction in the subjects they are failing. In addition, they have to participate in mass sport and mass culture programs. Students who have done well in their studies and have displayed good military discipline are granted holiday liberty and permission to go into town on their days off.
Graduating Nakhimovites who have received annual grades of "5” in all subjects taken in grades IX and X, have passed all examinations with a grade of “5,” have displayed exemplary behavior, and have taken an active role in the social life of the school are awarded gold medals “For Excellent Success in Study and Work and for Exemplary Behavior.” Those graduates who attained special success in the study of one or several subjects, have annual marks of “5” in these subjects in both grade IX and X, and have passed examinations in them with a grade of “5” are awarded certificates of honor “For Special Success in the Study of Certain Subjects,” providing their grades in their other subjects are good, and they have displayed exemplary behavior.
Each Nakhimov School graduate receives the title of “Qualified English Language Translator.” Moreover, Nakhimovites who graduate with excellent grades have the right to select the higher naval school they wish to attend. The remainder of the Nakhimov School graduates are enrolled as cadets in the first courses of higher naval schools by order of the Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Navy for Naval Educational Institutions. However, these graduates’ desires and preferences are often considered when assigning them to a higher naval school, and they are excused from taking entrance examinations. Nakhimovites who graduate from the Nakhimov School but who do not wish to enroll in a military educational institution are drafted and sent to the fleet to fulfill their regular active military service.
A Nakhimov School graduate is considered to be on active military duty the day he is enrolled in a higher naval school. His service time is calculated from that day, and all the time he spends at the higher naval school is included in his overall naval service.
THE CIVIL WAR SKETCHBOOK of Charles Ellery Stedman,
Surgeon, United States Navy
The Civil War Sketchbook
Biography and Commentary by Jim Dan Hill
Throughout the Civil War, the armies of both the North and the South were portrayed by hundreds of “combat artists” who accompanied the troops. Charles Ellery Stedman, by contrast, was one of very few artists aboard ship. His drawings, prepared initially for the Massachusetts Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion, have remained relatively unknown for almost a century. Their appearance at this time provides a new and personal view of life in the Navy of the Civil War.
Stedman served aboard a Federal blockade ship off the Carolina coast, in a monitor- class ironclad, and with a supply ship in the Gulf of Mexico. An astute and sensitive observer, Doctor Stedman recorded his experiences with both the brush of an artist and the pen of an author. His humorous caricatures are surpassed only by his keen attention to detail and the accuracy of his naval drawings.
The letters written by Stedman give a vivid picture of an almost unknown side of the Civil War, a written description which complements his excellent sketches. A graphic commentary on contemporary events, prepared by naval historian Jim Dan Hill, supplements Stedman’s drawings and letters. This book represents a significant contribution to the documentation of this critical period of American history.
1976. 218 pages. Illustrated. Bibliography. Index.
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