User:Trident13/SSVCC
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SSV Carolyn Chouest is the designated support vessel for the United States Navy submarine NR-1.
SSV Carolyn Chouest is all-ocean certified and can operate worldwide. Her mission is to rapidly tow NR-1 to its work site and to carry additional crew, scientists, special materials, and supplies that may be needed to successfully complete NR-1's assignment. She also serves as the land communications link when NR-1 is submerged. Placed in service in 1994, SSV Carolyn Chouest continues to support Submarine NR-1 undersea research and recovery missions and expeditions.
She was constructed by North American Shipbuilding and is owned and operated by Edison Chouest Offshore of Galliano, Louisiana. She and her crew are leased to the United States Navy under a lease contract, which in fiscal year 2000 cost the US Navy $15 million
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[edit] Facilities
The 238 foot, 1250 ton ship is powered by two 12-cylinder Caterpillar diesel engines providing a total of 10,800 horsepower to two Kort Nozzle variable pitch propellers. Maneuvering and station keeping ability are enhanced by a state-of-the-art, computer controlled 1000 horsepower, drop-down, variable speed, omni-directional thruster. The ship is capable of turning in her own length and accurately maintaining position, even in high seas. There is also a bow thruster for shallow water work and docking. Laboratory facilities onboard include a 1200-square-foot general purpose area adaptable to a wide range of studies, and a cold lab that can be used for the preservation of aquatic specimens. The large cargo hold accomodates an inventory of mission-critical spares and special equipment for NR-1. There is sufficient space for scientific aparatus that may be needed for a particular expedition. The living space available onboard Carolyn Chouest can accommodate up to 40 research personnel for extended periods in pleasant staterooms, each with its own bath.
Navigation and Communication capabilities include redundant SATNAV systems and complete marine radio equipment operating on LF, HF, VHF and UHF bands. Two Furuno 1510 radar sets are computerized in a state-of-the-art central command and control system. Telephone communication is provided via INMARSAT. A secure military communication link is also available for Navy use.
[edit] NR-1
NR 1 is 146-feet long, 12-feet wide and displaces 365 tons. Its mission is to search the ocean floor in support of geographical and oceanographical research and install and maintain underwater equipment. The sub and its support ship, SSV Carolyn Chouest are both homeported in New London, Conn.
[edit] Missions
[edit] 1997 - Mediteranean trade routes
In Summer 1997, the vessel investigated ancient trade routes in the Mediteranean, in association with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution[1]
[edit] 1999 - EgyptAir Flight 990
On October 31, 1999, EgyptAir Flight 990 from New York to Cairo crashed in the Atlantic Ocean about 60 miles south of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. All 217 passengers and crewmen were killed in the crash. EgyptAir's pilots reported no trouble before or during the airplane's plunge into the ocean. Edison Chouest Offshore's CAROLYN CHOUEST was called to the crash site, where it deployed its highly maneuverable Magnum robot to help in the recovery of the downed plane's black box. The Magnum was better suited for rougher seas than the Deep Drone, the robot submarine controlled from the Navy's salvage ship USS GRAPPLE. The Carolyn Chouest can float in a fixed spot without dropping anchor. The Carolyn Chouest is equipped with thrusters that are controlled in association with the Global Positioning System and that allow the ship to maintain its station in rough seas. Unfortunately, a fiber optic cable on the CAROLYN's Magnum was damaged by undersea wreckage, and so the Navy's Deep Drone rather than the CAROLYN's Magnun - recovered the flight data recorder.
The left and right engines and the auxiliary power unit (APU) were recovered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Smit Pioneer and Carolyn Chouest under the direction of the U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage during two separate recovery efforts. In December 1999, the Smit Pioneer recovered portions of the right engine's fan, low pressure compressor (LPC), high pressure compressor (HPC), and low pressure turbine (LPT). In March 2000, the Carolyn Chouest recovered the left engine and additional pieces of the right engine that included part of the HPC, the diffuser, and the high pressure turbine (HPT).
