A larger and more seaworthy ship with better gas mileage and equipment placement is in the works for the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
The $8 million boat would replace Bay Eagle, the boat researchers currently use to catch, identify, weight and then release fish to add to survey data that goes back more than 50 years. VIMS is planning on using the boat to meet current and future needs of the marine science school’s fisheries research, said John Wells, VIMS dean and director.
That information is reported to the Atlantic State Marine Fisheries Commission and eventually determines catch limits for different species of fish in the state. The institute wants a new research ship because the old one is not doing the job anymore, Wells said.
Bay Eagle was built in 1981 as a crew ship that taxied oil rig workers back and forth in the Gulf of Mexico. The college bought Bay Eagle in 1986 for $400,000 and retrofitted it to convert it to a fisheries research craft. Workers installed a fish trawl, crab dredge and winches, bolting the equipment down wherever it would fit. It made for a crowded ship.
“It was just never meant for research,” Wells said.
Wells said the new boat will be between 77 feet and 88 feet long, 26 feet wide and carry a crew of 11 to 14 people. Planners hope the craft will be able to stay on the water for up to 10 days without refueling and move in a depth of 6 to 7 feet.
The new boat will be a little slower than Bay Eagle but could take longer trips, moving at a top speed of 11 knots and traveling as far as 1,500 nautical miles and use a hybrid diesel-electric engine.
Bay Eagle is almost 65 feet long , carries a crew of seven, moves in 5 feet of water, travels at a speed of up to 18 knots and has a range of 400 nautical miles.
Wells said the diesel-electric motor on the new ship would be an upgrade over Bay Eagle, which has twin diesel motors. Diesel motors are noisy for both the crew sleeping inside the ship and the fish, which can disrupt research.
In addition to providing a quieter hull, more space for crews and more convenient placement of equipment, the new ship might also provide some opportunities for future research, Wells said. Right now, Bay Eagle is limited to mostly work in the Chesapeake Bay because it is not a very safe ocean-going craft, as it has trouble in large storms.
Since the new ship would be larger and use modern materials, it would be much safer for open ocean travel and research.
Still in the planning phase, there are not any drawings for the Eagle’s replacement or “anything that yet looks like a real ship,” said Dave Malmquist, VIMS director of communication.
A Connecticut-based engineering company, JMS Naval Architects Salvage Engineers, came up with five lists of possible boat features. A committee charged with reviewing the plans is expected to narrow down the set to a single option by the end of February.
After a single plan is chosen, it will be refined over the next two months through talks with the committee expected to yield a final concept in April. The concept will next be put out for bid to contractors and architects who will further refine the plans, draft a design and build the ship.
The new boat is expected to be built by late summer 2016. Bay Eagle will be subsequently sold as surplus.
