_aboard.jpg) Blue Marlin carrying theSea-Based X-Band Radar | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Blue Marlin |
| Owner | Dockwise Limited |
| Operator | Dockwise Limited |
| Port of registry | |
| Builder | CSBC Corporation,Kaohsiung,Taiwan |
| Laid down | 8 April 1999 |
| Launched | 23 December 1999 |
| Completed | 25 April 2000 |
| Identification | |
| Status | in active service |
| Notes | [1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | A1 General Cargo Carrier E0 DK(+) PWDK TMON |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 224.8 m (737 ft 6 in) |
| Beam | 63.1 m (207 ft 0 in) |
| Draught | 13.3 m (43 ft 8 in) |
| Depth | 13.3 m (44 ft) |
| Decks | 11,227 m2 (120,850 sq ft) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 14.5 knots (26.9 km/h; 16.7 mph) cruising |
| Range | 25,000 nautical miles (46,000 km; 29,000 mi) |
| Crew | 55 people |
| Notes | [1] |
Blue Marlin and hersister shipMV Black Marlin compose theMarlin class ofsemisubmersible heavy-lift ships operated byDockwise Shipping of the Netherlands. Designed to transport very large, semisubmersibledrilling rigs above the transport ship's deck, she is equipped with 38 cabins to accommodate 60 people, a workout room, sauna and swimming facilities, and a secure citadel for protection against pirate attacks.
Blue Marlin and her sister ship were owned byOffshore Heavy Transport ofOslo, Norway, from their construction, in April 2000 and November 1999, respectively, until 6 July 2001, when they were purchased by Dockwise. TheU.S. Navy hiredBlue Marlin from Offshore Heavy Transport to move the destroyerUSS Cole back to the United States after thewarship was damaged byAl-Qaeda[2][3] suicide bombers while anchored in the port ofAden,Yemen. During the latter part of 2003, work done onBlue Marlin boosted her capacity and added two retractablepropulsors to improve maneuverability. The ship re-entered service in January 2004. Following these improvements,Blue Marlin delivered the oil platformThunder Horse PDQ, weighing 60,000 tons, toCorpus Christi, Texas, for completion.
In July 2005Blue Marlin moved thegas refinery Snøhvit from its construction site inCádiz toHammerfest, an 11-day trip.[4] This transport was filmed for the TV showExtreme Engineering on theDiscovery Channel, and also the TV showMega Movers on theHistory Channel.[citation needed]
In November 2005,Blue Marlin left Corpus Christi to move the massivesea-based X-band Radar toAdak,Alaska, via the southern tip of South America andPearl Harbor,Hawaii. It arrived at Pearl Harbor on 9 January 2006, having travelled 15,000 miles. In January 2007, theBlue Marlin was employed to move twojackup rigs, theRowan Gorilla VI and theGlobalSantaFeGalaxy II, fromHalifax Harbour to theNorth Sea.
On 16 June 2012, the ship arrived inFerrol Harbour in preparation for transporting the incomplete amphibious warshipHMAS Canberra toMelbourne.[5] The Australian ship was lifted ontoBlue Marlin on 4 August 2012 and was scheduled to sail on 12 August, bound for Australia BAE Systems shipyard inWilliamstown.[6][7] The ship passed thePort Phillip Heads and arrived at Melbourne on 17 October 2012.[8]
On 5 May 2019,Blue Marlin was briefly hijacked off the coast ofEquatorial Guinea. The crew took shelter in the ship'scitadel, while pirates shot up thebridge in frustration. The pirates fled before the arrival of the Equatorial Guinean frigateWele Nzas and Spanish patrol boatServiola.[9][10]
