Journal Entry  -  October 23, 1999  -  Day 42

Saturday Evening Position Report
8:00 p.m., Central Daylight Time

Latitude:

14 Degrees, 09 Minutes North

Longitude:

80 Degrees, 31 Minutes West

Days Run:

46.1 Nautical Miles

Speed:

3.84 Knots (Average)  running to meet a fixed ETA.

Total Run This Leg:  287.2 Nautical Miles
Total Average Speed:  5.1 Knots
Hours / Days This Leg:  56.3 Hours / 2.3 Days
Distance To Go This Leg:  1,809.3 Nautical Miles
Estimated Time Of Arrival:  3:00 p.m., Saturday, November 6, Cape Henlopen Sea Buoy, at the mouth of the Delaware River.
Present Course:  355 Degrees Northerly, a pre-designed course change executed by Captain Ogaard at 5:30 p.m. today, representing a slightly more Northerly trackline, 2 Degree's beyond the 353 Degree course followed for most of the voyage since Panama.
Winds:  Northwest at 8 Knots
Seas:  1 Foot
Swells:  Slight
Barometric Pressure: 1011.5 Millibars
Air Temperature: 81 Degrees
Sea Temperature: 84 Degrees
Visibility:  10 Miles
Skies: Cloudy
Sea Floor:  Ocean depths beneath the USS New Jersey at this point are 137 Meters, or 449 Feet

Panama Canal Transit:  October 16 - 21 / Balboa Pier 14 - 15, Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks, the Gaillard Cut, Gamboa, Lake Gatun, and the Gatun Locks, and Cristobal.  USS New Jersey's clearance into the Caribbean Sea / Atlantic Ocean was completed at 11:34 a.m., and her mark for the commencement of the Cristobal, Panama - Philadelphia, PA Third Leg was passed at 11:42 a.m., Thursday, October 21.

Distance Of Second Leg:   September 21 - October 15 / Long Beach, CA to Balboa Anchorage, Panama: 2,948.7 Nautical Miles, the longest leg of New Jersey's homecoming voyage.
Total Average Speed Second Leg:  5.18 Knots

Distance Of First Leg:  September 12 - 21 / Bremerton, WA to Long Beach, CA: 1,193.6 Nautical Miles from the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard to Long Beach, CA anchorage.
Total Average Speed First Leg:  5.54 Knots

Position:  The USS New Jersey is now 10 Miles Southwest of, and within visible range of a light beacon on, Southwest Cay, a part of Serrana Bank.  To New Jersey's immediate West is Quita Sueno Bank, and well beyond that, Nicaragua's off-shore points of Cayos Miskitos, Punta Gorda, and Hannibal Shoals.   The Miskito Coast still parallels New Jersey's continued Northward trackline.

BB-62 Website Visitor Questions and Answers

Captain Kaare L. Ogaard, Jr., the crew of the Sea Victory, and all those involved with the maintenance and daily posting of reports, photographs, and information on the Battleship New Jersey website at the state of New Jersey's Department of Military and Veterans Affairs appreciate the comments, questions and observations sent in by viewers.

There is simply not enough time in a day, or days in a week, or weeks left in this historic voyage to address individually all the interesting and provocative messages that have come our way.  But we will try to answer the questions that have not been addressed earlier, and re-cap some that have.

We trust everyone understands the limits of our ability to respond to each submittal, as well as our deep thanks for taking the time to tell us your thoughts.

Question:  Another Florida resident asks whether the USS New Jersey will pass close enough to the Keys for a small boat to head into the channel to see her.

Answer:  Captain Ogaard says it would be unreasonable for a small boat to venture out to the distance of the Battleship as she transits this area.

Question: I am curious as to how the passage of the Sea Victory and the New Jersey will be executed through the Panama Canal.

Answer:  Our reports of the Panama Canal transit presumably have addressed this curiosity, but for the record: Panama Canal Commission tugs took the ship from Balboa to and through the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks, where the Sea Victory connected for the 27 Mile transit through Galliard Cut into Lake Gatun.  Panamanian tugs again shifted her to and through the Gatun Locks, where Sea Victory assumed the connection for the final transit into Cristobal.

Question:  Does the ex USS New Jersey have one or more diesel generators on board which could be operated in case of an emergency where electrical power would be required?

Answer: As mentioned in earlier responses, Captain Ogaard says that "the Battleship is dry," and that everything is locked tight.  There especially are no fuels or pollutants aboard her.

Question:  Visitors have asked if the names of the New Jersey sailors aboard the USS O'kane might be available, what are CJ's fish recipes? and whence came the nickname "Jersey Bounce"?  We'll try to find out.

Question:  How much fuel does the Sea Victory carry, and what is her rate of fuel consumption with the USS New Jersey tow versus the USS Missouri tow?

Answer:  Captain Ogaard says the fuel consumption for both battleship tows is identical, as are the towing characteristics.

As a possible reference for newcomers, although this response was originally provided September 23, here's the rundown: The Sea Victory carries up to 190,000 gallons of fuel.  On part of Captain Ogaard's tow of the USS Oriskany, from Pt. Arenas, Chile to Recife, Brazil, the Sea Victory averaged 290 gallons per hour, and 47 gallons per mile.  Average gallons per day amounted to 6,962, during the longest leg of the trip, June 20 to July 13.

Question:  I'd like to know more about the Sea Victory's propulsion system, the wheels in particular ... are they variable pitch props?

Answer: Captain Ogaard says that the Sea Victory's system has 4-bladed, stainless steel, twin screw propellers that are 144-inches in diameter times 144-inches pitch (the distance traveled in 1 revolution).  Both wheels are encased in fixed Kort Nozzles which maximize thrust.  Sea Victory's Bollard Pull is certified at 106 tons while thrusting ahead.

The engines are rated at 7,200 horsepower, which are coupled to the propellers through reduction gears rated at 5.930:1 (nearly 6:1).

Submitted by Bob Wernet onboard the Sea Victory.

 

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