Blue Marlin is the world's largest semi-submersible vessel. Such sea ​​vessels fairly narrow specialization. Semi-submersible transport vessels are designed to move large, extremely heavy cargo, such as sections of offshore and oil platforms, submarines, cranes, ships, berths, etc.

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1. When the need arises to transport a large number of ships, move a giant oil platform, or bring a damaged warship home, the giant Blue Marlin will become an indispensable assistant.

2. When it is necessary to load some oversized cargo onto a transport ship, first through 16 kingstons the ballast tanks are filled with sea water and the ship is immersed to a depth of 26 meters. This takes about 12 hours, and during this time up to 77,000 tons of water are poured into the tanks.

3. Using tugs, the cargo is pushed and held above deck level until the semi-submersible vessel is raised to its normal position.

4. A team of welders then secures the load to the metal deck. The placement of the cargo is checked by divers. Then the water is slowly pumped out and the transport vessel takes on the floating cargo. This is where the type of vessel comes from, which translates as “elevator”. The sea vessel is built from dense materials and has a very durable hull, which allows it to make ocean crossings.

5. The weight of the ship is 76,000 tons, the area is 11,000 square meters. meters.

6. The ship is equipped with 38 cabins to accommodate 60 people, a warm-up room, a sauna and special floatation facilities.

7. Blue Marlin and her twin Black Marlin are part of the heavy lift class. They belong to a company from Oslo - Offshore Heavy Transport. Built in April 2000 and November 1999, respectively.

It is difficult to surprise ordinary people today with automotive technology, but most people have no idea what incredible machines are in the service of humanity today. Rocket technology is very far from everyday life, personal aircraft are not yet widespread, and people know even less about ships. Meanwhile, among them there are more than interesting specimens. One of them is the semi-submersible cargo ship Blue Marlin, which was created in the Netherlands.

The first floating giants Marlin appeared back in 2001, and two years later the ships were seriously modernized and adapted for large cargoes.

The Blue Marlin has everything for a comfortable stay: a gym, a sauna, a swimming pool, and at the same time the ship can transport drilling platforms and destroyers.

In order to load an object onto the deck, Blue Marlin goes under water, turning its own deck into a kind of “floating dock” that itself fits the cargo.

The characteristics of the vessel are impressive. The ship's displacement is 91,238 tons. The width of the vessel is 79 meters, length - 275 meters, and draft - 9.5 meters. The Blue Marlin's cruising speed is 12.9 knots.

Photographer Doug Perrin, who is the winner of the Photographer of the Year award Wildlife British Museum of Natural History, took some wonderful underwater photos off the coast of Baja California in Mexico.

The first photo is amazing in how the photographer managed to get close to the blue marlin as he baits the poor sardine onto his nose before popping it into his mouth.


Blue marlin (Pacific Blue Marlin) was first described in 1802 as a separate species belonging to the billfish family. There is still debate in scientific circles about the membership of some subspecies in the class of blue marlin, mainly based on some small distinctive features. But this is unlikely to be of great importance for the sports fisherman.

Regarding big fishing - blue or blue marlin, this is one of the largest bony fish known to science, having an elongated upper jaw in the form of a pike. In the Latin name Makaira nigricans, the first word comes from machaera, which means "sword". Indeed, this long sword or spear, very durable, sharp and round in diameter, is used by him when hunting, and also serves to cut through water when moving, increasing his speed characteristics.

Marlins are predators that feed in surface waters and are capable of making long migrations in search of food in a short period of time. Blue marlin is a passionate hunter. Its prey is mainly small tuna and squid. Its menu is also complemented by other marine animals, such as lobsters, crabs and sea turtles. Many professional hunters have repeatedly noted the fact that, even without being hungry, blue marlin attacks its prey simply for the sake of the hunting process. Therefore, if a marlin suddenly appears near the boat, in most cases it will attack the offered bait.

Its habitat is not tied to the coast. Marlins are found both in the shelf zone of continents and islands, and in the open ocean thousands of kilometers from the coast.

The body structure of the blue marlin allows it to gain incredible speed in the water, which gives it the ability to hunt even flying fish that are inaccessible to most predators. The elongated upper jaw and folding fins create a hydrodynamic body shape that allows it to accelerate to 100 km/h or more, which, combined with the size and strength of the blue marlin, puts it at the very top of the ocean food chain. It is not without reason that some nationalities use the word “king” in defining this fish. By appearance It is probably difficult to find a more beautiful fish. A bright blue or light blue back, a shiny silver belly, a sickle-shaped tail and lower fins that look like airplane fenders - all this creates a unique, elite image of this fast and very strong fish.

Blue marlin can reach a length of more than 4 meters and weigh about a ton. In the book of records of the International Fishermen's Association IGFA specimens of 636 kg are registered in Atlantic Ocean and 624 kg in Tikhoy. The rules for entering caught fish into this book are very strict, so not all records are included in official reports.

In the press and fishing analytics, you can find evidence of the capture of trophies that exceed in weight those appearing in official statistics, supported only by eyewitness accounts and photographs. But this information can also be trusted, because due to the huge range of its habitat, we most likely have no idea what size a blue marlin can reach somewhere in the middle Pacific Ocean, where fishing boats and large fishing vessels simply do not go.

In most countries, blue marlin fishing is governed by local laws that govern the release of all fish caught. The fisherman usually only has a photo or video clip to remember this trophy. At the same time, if marlin is nevertheless taken as a catch, many fishermen manage to try dishes prepared according to local recipes. Basically, it is cooked on the grill and the gastronomic value of its meat in terms of the balance of proteins and fats, as well as its special taste, is highly appreciated by gourmets.


Marlin hunting has become a special class of fishing that has thousands of fans around the world. For this, people sometimes fly thousands of kilometers and sail the oceans on fishing boats for weeks. Among the famous fans of this fishing are the writer E. Hemingway, who dedicated his famous novel “The Old Man and the Sea” to the blue marlin, as well as the Cuban leader Fidel Castro. According to rumors, in Cuban waters no one has yet defeated the famous “Commandante” in terms of the number and weight of marlin caught.


Among trophy fishermen there is a concept called “Grand Slam”. This is a kind of fishing gradation, akin to the assignment of a “black belt” in karate. In order to get it, you need to catch a certain set of fish at a time specified by the rules and record your catch in one of the specialized clubs of the International Fishing Association IGFA. So, in order to get this gradation in the Offshore Grand Slam club, you need to catch blue marlin, black marlin and sailfish in one day of fishing at sea.

In different clubs, gravitating to certain geographical latitudes and different seas and oceans, the set of fish species may differ, but blue marlin will always be in the first place, as a symbol of real sea fishing. And this is no coincidence. The culmination of the hunt for blue marlin is a spectacular fishing with jumps, mind-blowing “candles” and other acrobatic somersaults. The fight can last for hours and its ending can never be known in advance. A beautiful and powerful fish always fights to the last, allowing the angler to fully experience all the delights and excitement of sea fishing in the Big Game class.




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When it becomes necessary to transport a large number of ships (provided that they themselves are not yet ready for launching), move a giant oil platform (for example, owned by the company British Petroleum Thunder Horse PDQ) or deliver a damaged military missile ship (such as the USS Cole) to port, to help will come unique vessel “MV Blue Marlin”.


1. The Blue Marlin is a semi-submersible transport ship.


2. Such sea vessels have a fairly limited specialization.


3. Semi-submersible transport ships are designed to move large-sized cargo with significant weight, for example, they can transport sections of offshore platforms and oil platforms, submarines, cranes, ships, berths and so on. The Blue Marlin is equipped with 38 cabins that can easily accommodate 60 people, a gym, a sauna and a swimming pool.


4. The Blue Marlin has its own twin, the MV Black Marlin. Both vessels have been owned by offshore heavy transport company, headquartered in Oslo, Norway, since they were built in April 2000 and November 1999, respectively. On July 6, 2001, both vessels were purchased by Dockwise Shipping from the Netherlands.


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7. HISTORY

The US Navy used the Blue Marlin to transport the destroyer USS Cole back to the United States after the ship was damaged in an al-Qaeda suicide attack in Aden, one of the ports. In the second half of 2003, the Blue Marlin underwent a refurbishment that increased capacity and added two retractable thrusters to improve maneuverability.


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9. The ship re-entered service in January 2004. Following the improvements, Blue Marlin delivered the 60,000 ton Thunder Horse PDQ oil platform to Corpus Christi, Texas.
In July 2005, the Blue Marlin transported the Snohvit oil refinery from the construction site in Cadiz to Hammerfest, a journey that lasted eleven days. This transportation became the basis of one of the plots of the television show "Extreme Engineering" on the Discovery Channel television channel, as well as the TV show "Mega Movers", which aired on the History Channel.
In November 2005, the Blue Marlin departed Corpus Christi, Texas to move a sea-based X-band radar to Adak, Alaska, via the southern tip South America and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The ship arrived at Pearl Harbor on January 9, 2006, having traveled 15,000 miles. In January 2007, the Blue Marlin was hired to transport two jack-up drilling rigs, Rowan Gorilla VI and GlobalSantaFe Galaxy II, from Halifax to the North Sea.


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12. Specifications of the Blue Marlin vessel:
Initial specifications.
Length: 217 meters (712 ft);
Length between perpendiculars: 206.5 meters (677 ft);
Maximum width: 42 meters (138 ft);
Side height: 13.3 meters (44 ft);
Summer load line draft: 10 m (33 ft);
Load capacity: 56,000 metric tons;
Dive depth on deck: 10 meters (33 ft);
Free deck length: 178.2 and 157.2 meters (585 or 516 ft);
Free deck area: more than 7215 square meters (77660 square feet);
Main engine power: 12640 kW;
Thruster power: 2000 kW;
Cruising speed: 14.5 knots
Cruising range: 25,000 nm
Occupancy: 55 people
Place of construction: CSBC, Kaohsiung


13. After 2004 (after improvements)
Depth: 13.3 meters (44 ft);
Maximum draft when leaving port: 10 meters (33 ft);
Maximum dive draft: 29.3 meters (96 ft);
Deck area: 63 × 178.2 meters (207 × 584.6 ft);
Total deck area: 11,227 square meters (120,850 sq ft);
Propulsion output: 4500 kW each.

When the need arises to transport a large number of ships, move a giant oil platform, or bring a damaged warship home, the giant Blue Marlin will become an indispensable assistant.

We have already mentioned it in the selection of the largest ships. The Blue Marlin is a semi-submersible heavy lift vessel designed to transport very large drilling rigs, ships and other cargo. The ship is equipped with 38 cabins to accommodate 60 people, a warm-up room, a sauna and special floatation facilities.


The Blue Marlin and her twin the Black Marlin are part of the heavy lift class. They belong to a company from Oslo - Offshore Heavy Transport. Built in April 2000 and November 1999 respectively.


The US Navy hired Blue Marlin to bring the USS Cole Wuyekschnuk to the United States after it was damaged by an Al Qaeda suicide attack while anchored in the port of Aden, Yemen. During the last revision in 2003, the vessel's load-bearing capacity was increased, as well as maneuverability and stability.


The vessel re-entered service in January 2004. Following these improvements, Blue Marlin delivered the 60,000 ton Thunder Horse PDQ oil platform to Corpus Christi, Texas.


In July 2005, Blue Marlin moved the Snehvit gas refinery from its construction site in Cadiz in 11 days. This transport was featured on the Extreme Engineering TV Show on the Discovery Channel, as well as on the Mega Movers program on the History Channel.


In November 2005, the ship left Corpus Christi, Texas, to move the massive X-Group maritime radar to Adak, Alaska. The ship reached Pearl Harbor on January 9, 2006, having covered 15,000 miles. In January 2007, Marlin was hired to move two drilling rigs from Halifax Harbor to the North Sea.