Stern launching ramp
The stern launching ramp is a technology that allows patrol vessels to launch and retrieve smaller boats without requiring the mother vessel to come to a halt.[1][2] Boats propelled by high-powered water-jets can drive themselves back on board their mother vessel's ramp, even when their mother vessel is traveling at noteworthy speed.
Some modern patrol vessels are equipped with a stern launching ramp, for deploying smaller rescue or pursuit boats without requiring the parent ship to first come to a halt.[1][3] Typically the smaller craft are powered by water-jets, and can drive themselves up the ramp by their own power.
The stern launching ramps on the United States Coast Guard's Marine Protector cutters require only a single crewmember to remain on deck when its short range prosecutor boat is deployed or retrieved.[4]
When the brand new USCGC John F. McCormick visited Astoria, Oregon, the station of its namesake John F. McCormick, Jeff Heffernan, of the Daily Astorian described how a stern launching ramp allowed a parent vessel to launch her boat in larger swells.[5]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Austal launches Malta patrol boats, Marine Log, 2009-10-05. “A stern launching ramp allows the safe deployment and retrieval of a rigid hull inflatable boat and dive operations are also supported via low-to-the-water platforms located aft.”
- ↑ Austal patrol boats show their capabilities, Marine log, 2009-11-27. Retrieved on 2011-12-02. “A stern launching ramp allows the safe deployment and retrieval of a rigid hull inflatable boat and dive operations are also supported via low-to-the-water platforms located aft.”
- ↑ Alix Wood (2013). Serving in the Coast Guard. The Rosen Publishing Group. ISBN 9781477714089. “Boarding parties can be launched while the vessel is underway using the cutter's stern launching ramp.”
- ↑ Jeff Heffernan. New cutter makes a stop in Astoria, Daily Astorian, 2017-03-10. “The cutter also holds a 26-foot stern launch boat that can glide from a lowered platform on the back of the vessel into the water. Its ability to slide into the water as opposed to being lowered allows crew members to use it on larger swells. 'We can get there farther and faster and once we’re at a scene, it makes it much easier to do law enforcement,' said Lt. Mike Moyseowicz, the cutter’s commanding officer.”