Ady Gil

The Southern Ocean prang this week that put the Ady Gil out of action, drew attention not only to escalating tensions in the whale waters, but also to the trimaran’s design.

The Sea Shepherd Society is now sending a nearby salvage ship to pick up the floundering batboat. From the looks of its construction, it will not be repaired at sea.

The Ady Gil was built as the oceanic speed racer Earthrace a few years back, is registered in New Zealand, and runs on biodiesel. Its shape allows it to prierce straight through huge waves rather than bob up and down on them.

CLD

CLD

Its hull needed to be strong but light, so Auckland naval architects Lomocean specified layers of carbon fibre and toughened epoxy resins and 40mm of foam. The boat was coated in black radar-deflecting paint by Sea Shepherd.

The rebranded boat was launched last October at a ceremony in Los Angeles. Since late December it has been helping the Steve Irwin to shake off the Japanese research ship Shonan Maru 2, which has been radioing the Irwin’s position to the rest of the whaling fleet.

From December, the Ady Gil, Steve Irwin and Shonan Maru 2 had been battling one another using photonic disrupters , water cannons, long range acoustic devices, and a derivative of rancid butter. Sounds like something out of a bat episode.

WABASH COLLEGE

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Posted by Peter on 07.01.10 in naval architects