124 OCEANOGRAPHY IN THE UNITED STATES 



Not having access to service files, It is not possible to substantiate all the 

 figures contained in this stunmary. They are however, to the best of our knowl- 

 edge, true, and of such variance to the Fish and Wildlife Service report that we 

 feel that a complete and exhaustive investigation is warranted. 

 Very truly yours, 



E. H. HiiXER, 



Master, Chief Officer. 

 Austin J. Powers, 



Second Officer. 



Maech 9, 1959. 

 Subject: Report on deactivation of Albatross III, submitted by U.S. Fish and 

 Wildlife Service, dated February 25, 1959. 



The statement on the conditions of the Albatross III, contained in subject 

 report, is very misleading and, in part, something less than factual. Take the 

 very first statement in the report, for instance : "As a result of continued repairs 

 and shipyard work the Albatross III is in safe operating condition." It is only 

 as a result of continued maintenance and annual overhauls that any vessel is 

 kept in a safe operating condition. Repairs and shipyard work is not unique 

 in the case of the Albatross III, as this sentence would have you believe. 



It is a provable fact that considerably less than average amounts of money 

 have been spent on repairs to keep the Albatross III at sea. A recent check of 

 Boston shipyards indicates that the annual overhaul costs for a 100-foot towboat 

 ranges between $30,000 and $40,000. Yet subject report, which shows an annual 

 outlay of $33,000 for Albatross III overhaul costs, would have you believe this is 

 exorbitant. 



Even if the figures shown for shipyard repairs, on page 3, were accurate and 

 actually represented expenditures made solely for repairs and maintenance, this 

 would still be well below the amounts spent by other Government services and 

 private companies to keep their vessels in shape. 



But these figures are misleading. During the years 1955 through 1957 the 

 records will show that a considerable portion of the money, itemized as shipyard 

 repairs in the report, actually was spent on structural changes and safety equip- 

 ment to comply with U.S. Coast Guard and American Bureau of Shipping rec- 

 ommendations. Some of these items, which run into many thousands of dollars, 

 include : two new metal lifeboats and launching equipment, an escape hatch from 

 the crew's quarters forward, extra fire hydrants, a new general alarm system, 

 and other items totaling 42 deficiencies found to exist on the Albatross III. 

 Ironically, most of these deficiencies have never been corrected on the Delaware, 

 which the Service proposes to continue operating with a double workload. 



Also included in the "shipyard repairs" must be the several thousand dollars 

 put into designing, building and installing a new winch for the Scallop project. 

 Due to faulty design, this winch has never been operated, nor will it ever be 

 oi)erated without extensive and expensive alterations. There she sits, "a $20,000 

 piece of ballast." 



No ; if the actual upkeep costs of the Albatross III were itemized for all 

 the years she has been operating since 1949, the results would be so low as to 

 be downright embarrassing to the Fish and Wildlife Service. For actually it 

 was other Government services and a private institution that have, over the 

 years really put the money into the Albatross III. 



The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution spent some $80,000 on her in 

 1951, making extensive alterations and improvements. When the vessel was 

 drafted into military service during the war, she was refastened from stem to 

 stern, a new powerplant was installed, bottom plates replaced where necessary, 

 and frames and longitudinal members reinforced throughout the vessel. It was 

 due to these repairs, made by others, that the Albatross III met classification 

 requirements of the American Bureau of Shipping in 1957. It is for the same 

 reason that she is in a seaworthy condition today. Not because of exorbitant 

 repair bills paid by the Fish and Wildlife Service. 



In all the years she has been operated by the Fish and Wildlife Service, the 

 Albatross III has experienced but one major breakdown. That was when her 

 main bearings burned out in 1957. This can happen to any ship, old or new, and 

 certainly should not be construed to indicate old age and high upkeep costs. 



Referring again to page 1 of subject, the new deck installed in 1958 was a 

 job that should have been done a year ago or so earlier. It would have been, too. 

 if it had not been for the engine breakdown, which fact shows that the expense 



