Batillus class supertankers

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The Batillus oil tanker at the end of its construction in Saint-Nazaire, being refueled by the Port-Vendres

The biggest ships by gross tonnage ever constructed as a class were four Batillus class supertankers built in France at the end of the 1970s, having 555.000 metric tons of deadweight (DWT) and a 414 meters length. They were launched from the shipyard Chantiers de l'Atlantique at Saint Nazaire. The only larger ship was the Knock Nevis (ex Jahre Viking, Happy Giant and Seawise Giant) of 1981, which was originally designed with a smaller tonnage than the Batillus class, but had its length and tonnage increased while still under construction. However, if gross tonnage can be considered as evidence of size, the Batillus and Bellamya had a gross tonnage of 275,276 tons. This is the greatest in history, including the Knock Nevis (about 260,000 gross tons).

Ships of the Batillus class included:

• Batillus, built in 1976, scrapped in 1985.^[1]
• Bellamya, built in 1976, scrapped in 1986.^[2]
• Pierre Guillaumat, built in 1977, scrapped in 1983.^[3]
• Prairial, built in 1979, renamed Hellas Fos, renamed Sea Giant, scrapped in 2003^[4]

[edit] References

1. ^ Auke Visser. Batillus. International Super Tankers.
2. ^ Auke Visser. Bellamya. International Super Tankers.
3. ^ Auke Visser. Pierre Guillaumat. International Super Tankers.
4. ^ Auke Visser. Prairial. International Super Tankers.