NEWPORT, R.I. – The Super Servant 4, one of Dockwise Yacht Transport’s (DYT) fleet of four semi-submersible ships, arrived in port Nov. 1.
When she leaves on Nov. 3, the 556-foot float-on, float-off yacht carrier will be packed stem to stern with a record load of 50 recreational cruising and racing boats, worth upward of $41 million.
The semi-submersible Super Servant 4 will be loaded with a record cargo. (Photos by Tom Shevlin)
The ship is heading to Freeport, Bahamas, where it will unload eight of the vessels (six motor yachts, one sport fishing boat and one sailboat), then carry on to St. Thomas, USVI, where the remaining vessels (17 motor boats and 25 sailboats) will disembark in time for the Caribbean boating season.
“We are maxed out on this trip; not one inch of room to spare,” said Ann Souder, DYT’s sales agent for the East Coast and Caribbean, explaining that while the recession may have temporarily subdued demand, it has not reversed the long-term upward trend in yacht transportation between cruising destinations that DYT specializes in. The company’s unique float-on/float-off method for yachts up to 200 feet in length is accommodated by its ships, such as the Super Servant 4, which partially “sink” to allow their cargoes of boats to load and unload under their own power rather than be lifted by cranes.
The Super Servant 4 is bound for Freeport, Bahamas and St. Thomas.
“It’s a huge operation to make it all happen, especially with a shipment of this size,” Souder continued. “Before the boats are loaded, our draftsmen have to determine the placement of each vessel based on its volume and its weight distribution relative to others on the ship. Then DYT Loading Masters oversee every minute of the loading process, which includes water ballasting the ship so it sinks to a level where the boats can be guided into the dock bays, positioning of temporary supports by specially trained scuba divers, welding the supports in place after the deck is dry, securing each boat’s sea fastenings, and the de-ballasting process after which the boats are high and dry and ready for their trip.”
After arriving in Freeport, the process will be reversed for the partial unloading. The ship is expected to arrive in St. Thomas mid-November.
DYT’s global routes currently include the U.S. East Coast (Newport; Port Everglades, Fla.) Freeport, Bahamas, the Mediterranean (Toulon, France; Genoa, Taranto and Olbia, Italy; Marmaris, Turkey; and Palma de Mallorca, Spain), Northern Europe (La Rochelle and Cherbourg, France), the Caribbean (St. Thomas and Martinique); the Pacific West Coast (Golfito, Costa Rica; La Paz and Ensenada, Mexico; and Vancouver, B.C., Canada) and the South Pacific (Papeete, Tahiti; Auckland, New Zealand; and Brisbane, Australia).
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Newport, RI
