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Thread: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

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    Default Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Life on Board a Mega Ship in 1981. Sir Alexander Glen was a Ore-Bulk-Oil Carrier 169,044 dwt
    and I joined in Antwerp in May 1981 and flew home from Japan the following August.
    She was sister ship to the ill-fated Derbyshire which sank south of Japan in 1980 during a Typhoon.
    We were on the same route with the same Iron Ore Cargo and also heading into a Typhoon.
    Highlights of the film are Drydock and leaving Antwerp, BBQ, Crossing the Line Ceremony,
    Cape Town, Relaxing on Board, Typhoon Thad and arriving in Kashima.
    Refer to description for full details about the Ship and Trip



    https://youtu.be/umc5qN67_Rg

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Quote Originally Posted by Christopher Wicks View Post
    Life on Board a Mega Ship in 1981. Sir Alexander Glen was a Ore-Bulk-Oil Carrier 169,044 dwt
    and I joined in Antwerp in May 1981 and flew home from Japan the following August.
    She was sister ship to the ill-fated Derbyshire which sank south of Japan in 1980 during a Typhoon.
    We were on the same route with the same Iron Ore Cargo and also heading into a Typhoon.
    Highlights of the film are Drydock and leaving Antwerp, BBQ, Crossing the Line Ceremony,
    Cape Town, Relaxing on Board, Typhoon Thad and arriving in Kashima.
    Refer to description for full details about the Ship and Trip



    https://youtu.be/umc5qN67_Rg
    Hi my name is Paul Lambert and I was wondering if you had any photos of the Sir Alexander Glen or of any of her sister ships or of the Crew of the MV Derbyshire please I lost my 19 year old brother Peter on the MV Derbyshire,,I am Chairman of the MV Derbyshire Family Association,,, also I run a Group Page on Facebook about the MV Derbyshire go to. MV Derbyshire charity trust fund. Thank you Paul. My Email Address is. paullambertdfa@yahoo.com.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Hi good video of your trip. You must have been on the "Glen" same time as me. I was 2nd Engineer during the Antwerp docking and paid off in Sept Isles in June 1981. Old man was Ferrier. Were you a Radio Officer ?.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Hi All. Only vid I have seen of the Glen. I joined her as 2nd Engineer in July '82 in Oita, Japan, after she had completed a similar voyage as before from Sept Isle with iron ore concentrate. As I joined, the partial discharge had been stopped as there was a repair squad down No 9 hold setting up scaffolding and burning gear at each side of Bulkhead#65 to access the join of the longitudinal stiffener/ballast topside tank. We sailed to the next part discharge port,Nagoya, and had to frequently inspect the propagating crack on B#65. Attempts were being made to stop the crack growing by drilling holes but it kept growing with the added strain of sailing part discharged. The location of the cracks were difficult to access as they were in a narrow coffer dam three levels up from a staging board slung over the void of the pump room and between the aft end of top tank and B#65. Many tons of steel were cut out and new steel was scarfed into the longitudinal stiffener and B#65 made good. During the repair, 'Typhoon Bess' came up the South China Sea and hit the Japan mainland. We were sent off the berth to anchor and sat with the engine at half ahead for over twenty four hours. I was onboard for only a short time with this defect but it was a bit scary. Thoughts were with the rest of the crew who had endured many days with knowledge of the faults after the ship had been alerted after the Cast Kittiwake had reported that there was a problem aboard her. Jan Kusinski was the old man, and fellow Dundonian, Cpt Ferrier joined in Nagoya. I will never be convinced that the 'official' report on the loss of the Derbyshire told the 'proper' story. Convinced that stern twisted off at Bulkhead#65.
    Ralph
    Last edited by Ralph Knowles; 3rd March 2021 at 06:16 PM.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Little story to add to this thread.
    The "Glen" was built at Swan Hunters Haverton Hill in Middlesborough 1974/75.they built 6 large OBO's the first of which was Houlder Bros "Furness Bridge" ( an engineers nightmare) I was R/O with Houlder Bros ( best ever company) and went up to Boro to stand by the finishing off as she was due to sail in spring 1975. the job was tortuous, a constant daily grind of listing faults to be righted at each morning conference on board. The "Derbyshire" was next door, and I went on board to view Bibby's idea of accommodation compared to ours , considering the ships were identical in all other ways. I was gobsmacked at the palatial layout. Even a section abaft the bridge where officers carrying families with them had separate cabins. Bibby's sure looked after their own.
    I dont know who's decision it was , but the "Glen" was sent to Hamburg to be finished off, much to the annoyance of the Swan's workforce. I was seconded to Swan's sailing officers as they just couldn't find any spare R/O's. Once in Hamburg, we were put in Hotels there, and reported for work each day. Houlders had a few attending officers, and Swans had a load of their workforce as "advisors".
    As a Swan man I was put in the "Europaischerhof" Hotel. a luxurious establishment, whilst the Houlders officers went downmarket in the equivalent of a Premier Inn a couple of blocks away.
    I dined at the hotel, drank wine with my dinner, coffee and cognac afterwards, all on the bill as did the geordies. Poor old Houlders guys were limited to "food only" restrictions which applied to all hotels stays.
    I noticed that the geordies were drinking heavily in the hotel bar each night, and was surprised to be summoned to a conference meeting of Swan people to discuss this.
    It seemed the hotel prices were astronomical compared to the local bars round the corner . The management were asking (nicely) that the men drank outside and didn't put their beers on the company's bill. I thought this quite reasonable, as I felt privileged already dining like an aristocrat whilst my poor 'shipmates to be' were slumming it two blocks away.
    Imagine my surprise when the Geordies starting haranguing the management supt and shouting the odds about being away from their families etc etc etc with Easter coming up , how downtrodden they were , ...talk about sea-lawyers, . I was aghast. There was no respect for their employers at all, and it finished with the supt begging them to just drink in outside bars and they ( Swans) would pick up the tab.
    Again , I was appalled. I had never seen this side of worker - management confrontation before in my life. Needless to say, I did enjoy my dinners, but went out at night with the Houlders Offs and paid my own way. Is it any wonder that by 1978 Swans were bankrupt and the yard saved by a consortium.

    As a adjunct to this story , a couple of days before sailing on the maiden voyage , I asked when my wife could join (I had been told this was Ok before initially going up to Boro) , and was told ..." No wives on Maiden Voyages". Ok...no Frank Ralph R/O. on the maiden voyage, boy, did the Geordie mentality rub off huh.
    Dear old Capt Parkin with H.Batchelor, back in Leadenhall St sent someone else ( are you out there now?) up to relieve me and I flew home, and waited for the gas carrier "Cavendish" to be ready for R/O change. Greatest ship I ever sailed on, whilst someone else had the pleasure of the "Sir Alexander Glen".
    A sad tale , but true

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Quote Originally Posted by Ralph Knowles View Post
    Hi All. Only vid I have seen of the Glen. I will never be convinced that the 'official' report on the loss of the Derbyshire told the 'proper' story. Convinced that stern twisted off at Bulkhead#65.
    Ralph
    Ralph, a very good friend of mine (Terry Wright) was Ch. Off. on one of the sister ships, he told me that they had the same problem and they were forever carrying out inspections and repairs as you describe. I cant get an update as he died twenty odd years ago from cancer.
    Last edited by Doc Vernon; 12th March 2021 at 08:36 AM.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Was on the Orotava ( Bridge) Sept Isles to Immingham Jan 1975. Same old story. Repair gang called in to repair stiffeners , and other cracked joints and bulkheads. I left in Immingham, (to join the Sir A.Glen), but a conversation with repairers on board said , they wouldn't be happy sailing up to Narvik which was next trip. in winter N A conditions. But....nothing went wrong so foreboding was unfounded. You just never knew.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Let's get one thing very clear here although the Haverton Hill Shipyard was indeed owned by Swan Hunter's after Swans were pressurised by the government of the time to take over the yard which was failing, the shipbuilding workers employed there WERE NOT Geordies. They were Teesiders, a different breed of North Easterner altogether who identify themselves as such. Therefore it is totally unfair and erroneous to state that the Geordies built the ship - didn't. The ONLY input Tyneside had which is the true home of the Geordies was the design which was carried out at Wallsend and considered by some as flawed but never proven and the Electrical Installation work undertaken by the Tyneside firm of Campbell & Isherwood who incidentally carried out similar installations at Smith's Docks at South Bank, Middlesbrough and several of the shipyards on the Wear.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    Quote Originally Posted by Colin James Young View Post
    Let's get one thing very clear here and the Electrical Installation work undertaken by the Tyneside firm of Campbell & Isherwood who incidentally carried out similar installations at Smith's Docks at South Bank, Middlesbrough and several of the shipyards on the Wear.
    Aye, the Smoggies would be put out if you called them Geordies.
    Last edited by Doc Vernon; 12th March 2021 at 08:36 AM.

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    Default Re: Life Onboard a Mega Ship - Sir Alexander Glen - 1981

    #9 Could that come under the banner of racism ? I am still trying to get my head round that male and female are the same. I think everyone should go back to the cabbage patch dolls when children ask where do babies come from. Maybe Santa Claus is an escaped bearded lady from the circus after all. Woman to my way of thinking have always had more than equality, no one ever opened a door for me until I got to 80 . This should maybe be in another post heading but is that far back can’t find it. Colin was in that Southbank shipyard in 1964 , there was a clipper ship in at the time ( Israeli) and there was an expected terrorist attack going to happen , police sharpshooters all ove the place. Cheers JS.
    Last edited by j.sabourn; 11th March 2021 at 09:56 AM.
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