cost of operation. The International Ice Patrol must use judgment 

 in deciding the manner and frequency of the observation of ice condi- 

 tions. During the interval between observations, the ice environment 

 and all significant forces acting on the ice must be studied so that ice 

 conditions can be forecast until the next observation. 



There are three basic areas where the International Ice Patrol 

 should endeavor to improve its services ; ice observing, the study of ice 

 conditions, and dissemination of ice information. The improvement 

 of ice observing techniques is most urgently required if the Ice Patrol 

 is to efficiently serve shipping in the future. A diligent study must 

 be made continuously of icebergs, their characteristics, and the forces 

 affecting their movement and deterioration. The study of ice condi- 

 tions must be zealously conducted so that ice observation can be more 

 efficiently conducted and so that shipping can be informed twice daily 

 of the observed or best estimate of existing ice conditions. A most 

 effective service of study and observation of ice conditions would not 

 be worthwhile if shipping were not properly kept informed. The 

 International Ice Patrol must constantly seek to improve its services 

 if there is to be any hope of ever solving the problem of the annual 

 iceberg menace to shipping in the North Atlantic. 



Before the improvement of ice observing techniques are discussed, 

 it is necessary to consider how the International Ice Patrol has 

 observed ice conditions and guarded the ice limits over the years. 

 For many years, the services of the International Ice Patrol were 

 accomplished by two Coast Guard cutters which alternated the duty 

 as Ice Patrol Vessel. The Ice Patrol Vessel alternately guarded the 

 most dangerous iceberg and scouted the shipping lanes or areas of 

 reported or suspected icebergs near the Tail of Banks. From 1913 

 until after World War II, the Ice Patrol Vessel attempted to guard 

 the southeast, south, and southwest limits of icebergs in the vicinity 

 of the Grand Banks and to observe and study ice conditions without 

 the benefit of radar and loran. When one considers the poor weather 

 conditions almost constantly encountered in the relatively large area 

 that had to be scouted by vessels poorly equipped, by modem stand- 

 ards, to navigate, and unable to locate icebergs except by visual sight- 

 ings, the enormousness of the assigned task becomes apparent. In 

 retrospect, it can hardly be claimed that the Ice Patrol Vessel was 

 capable of guarding the iceberg limits. The International Ice Patrol 

 annual bulletins contain many indications of the frustration and feel- 

 ings of futility on the part of Ice Patrol officials who were doing the 

 best they could with the tools available. It is true that were an addi- 

 tional cutter assigned to patrol simultaneously, the effectiveness would 

 have been increased, but the cost would have been doubled. The 

 International Ice Patrol has constantly been guided by the principle 

 of keeping costs of operation commensurate with the services rendered. 



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