Weigh, heigh, up she rises...

On January 26, 2018, it was announced that the Canadian Government had contributed $3.5 million to the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust (CNMT) for repairs to HMCS SACKVILLE, the last remaining Flower-class corvette. These once numerous ships escorted convoys across the North Atlantic during in the Battle of the Atlantic, attempting to keep them safe from German U-boats. Now, only SACKVILLE remains, and she is showing her age.

The work will be carried out by the Navy's own forces, using the Syncrolift hoisting platform and the new Captain Bernard Leitch Johnson submarine maintenance building (part of Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Scott) within HMC Dockyard. Wasting no time, the Navy and the CNMT had SACKVILLE reballasted and ready to move on the morning of Sunday, February 12, on a "Fine Navy Day" (1). I was dressed in rain gear, and had to use a combination of an umbrella and several rain covers to keep my cameras dry. The tugs arrived at 6:40am.

Tugs Merrickville (foreground) and Glenside (background) approach SACKVILLE.

SACKVILLE was tied up near the south end of HMC Dockyard, and needed to be moved north to the Syncrolift.

Lines were quickly made fast to the tugs, and things were quickly underway.

SACKVILLE pulls away from the jetty. Her mast has been cut off because it would have hit the top of the sub shed when she is moved inside for her refit.

The keel line of Flower-class corvettes slopes deeper as it goes aft, and on a properly trimmed corvette the keel is not horizontal.

This cutaway view of S.S. Sudbury, a salvage tug converted from a Flower-class corvette, nicely illustrates the sloping keel. (Courtesy SeaSpan.)

The keel blocks on the Syncrolift, however, are horizontal. In the days before the move, SACKVILLE's mast was removed (to allow her to move into the submarine shed) and she was retrimmed fore-and-aft to lower the bow and raise the stern, to level out the keel line.

This is a good view of the retrimming required to prepare SACKVILLE for the Syncrolift.

The tow proceeds around the bow of HMCS MONTREAL.

At about this point in time, I ran north to catch SACKVILLE as she rounded the end of the Syncrolift piers. A product line currently owned by Rolls Royce, a Syncrolift is a hoisting platform slung between two fixed piers by a series of winches and cables, and the winches can be operated in synchronization (hence the name - minus the "h") with each other to lift and lower the platform on an even keel.

Tugs easing SACKVILLE in between the Syncrolift piers of Jetty ND.

The HMC Dockyard lift was originally constructed in 1967 to hoist OBERON class submarines out of the water for maintenance, and in 1970 a shed was constructed at the inshore end of the Syncrolift to allow these submarines to be moved ashore and into the shed so they could be maintained and refitted out of the weather. The old submarine shed wasn't perfect - the sliding doors had to actually be removed from their rails to allow an O-boat to enter, and it was fairly tight quarters. The old shed was replaced with new building during the 2000s, which I will cover in the next post.

Starting in the 1984, the Syncrolift was lengthened by 33 metres and modified to lift a ship of "NATO frigate" size - this included the Navy's IROQUOIS-class destroyers and the then-future HALIFAX-class frigates which displaced in the range of 4500-5000 tons (but I have seen one source indicating the upgrade would allow the Syncrolift to hoist up to a 6,000 ton ship). This also involved strengthening the lifting beams under the ship's machinery spaces (the heaviest portion of the ship), and upsizing the associated winches.

A wider angle version of the image above. The blue objects lining the piers are the covers over the Syncrolift winches.

There is enough room for the tugs to remain alongside SACKVILLE as they bring her in.

The water surface over the Syncrolift platform was smooth and provided a nice reflection of the hull.

SACKVILLE is almost in position, but needs to be straightened out and aligned with the support blocking. The first positioning line can be seen running off the bow.

SACKVILLE now straightened out, with more positioning lines running to the piers. I love the reflection in this shot!

Once SACKVILLE was judged to be in position, the lift platform was brought up a bit, and divers were put into the water.

The view from inside the Submarine Maintenance Building, during a break while the divers checked on SACKVILLE's positioning over the support blocking. The rails run from the platform all the way into the shed, to allow submarines and other small vessels to be brought in for maintenance. Though they can be hoisted on the lift itself, major surface warships, and even the smaller MCDVs, need not apply.

Three divers in the water.

The divers were operating from a RHIB (Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boat). This shot shows some of the ropes holding SACKVILLE in position over the blocking.

The end of the line - until the platform comes up anyway, and then the rails will continue out onto the platform. The yellow bollard in the foreground is an anchor point for the tow motor inside the shed (details of which I will save for another post).

Divers have confirmed SACKVILLE's positioning over the support blocking, and the Syncrolift platform has started to rise and lift SACKVILLE out of the water. SACKVILLE is sitting on the blocking in this photo.

While doing their inspection, the divers noticed that the ship was still trimmed with the bow down a bit as compared to the blocking, Correction: Once the divers confirmed SACKVILLE was firmly on the blocking, a pump was rigged to empty the approximately 45-50 tonnes of water from the forepeak that was used to trim the bow down. You can see a hose discharging water from the port bow.

The Syncrolift is hoisting SACKVILLE and the tops of the bogeys on which the blocking is installed are starting to emerge from the water. 

Flower-class corvettes were known for two things in particular: they were very lively ships in a sea (and were reputed to "roll on wet grass"), and they were the only escort ship that could turn inside of a U-boat. I think SACKVILLE's poise in the above photo speaks to both attributes.

The Syncrolift platform is almost all the way up, and the wood decking of the platform is fully visible. The weight of the ship rests on the blocking, which in turn sits on the rail bogeys, which in turn sits on the four rails that run from the platform into the building.

The workers standing on the platform provide some scale to the image - the corvettes may have been small, but they still look big when they are towering over you on the Syncrolift.

SACKVILLE on the lift, with the Captain Bernard Leitch Johnson submarine maintenance building in the background with the doors slightly open.

The raised blocking under the forefoot, and the bogeys upon which it rests, was wheeled out after the lift was brought all the way up. 

SACKVILLE's propeller was removed years ago, and only the shaft remains in place outside the hull. The single rudder seems fairly large to me, and placed immediately aft of the single propeller, would have contributed to the corvette's tight turning circle. 

The starboard bilge keel and some of the remaining marine growth. In addition to barnacles, starfish, and mussels, the orange things hanging from the hull in this picture were plentiful and have apparently only appeared in the harbour since the end of the Harbour Cleanup project - I'm not sure what they are. The fin in this photo is the bilge keel, which was pretty much the only thing fitted to combat the legendary corvette roll. Based on the corvette's reputation, it was insufficient. The bilge keep is lined with anodes, which are fitted to prevent underwater corrosion of the ship's hull - SACKVILLE has many more of these fitted now that she would have had while in service.

A look along the hull from the after starboard side, better showing the some of the marine growth, bilge keel, and blocking. The blocking itself is laid out based on plans of the ship. A couple of us came up with the brilliant theory that the orange growth was primarily around the engine and boiler rooms, and perhaps these spaces were warmer and encouraged the growth - only to be informed that divers had removed much of the growth prior to being put on the lift. 

To my mind, this starfish can only be described as "lounging". In fact, I think it is kinda creepy.

The bogeys and blocking under the forefoot were wheeled into place after the ship came out of the water. The stair tower is on wheels, and was towed out by a forklift.

The two sets of rails upon which the bogeys ride. Bogeys can (and do) straddle either of the sets of rails on the left or right, or the set in the middle.

The view from the stair tower. The end of the wooden-decked platform can be seen where it transitions to the concrete surrounding the rails in front of the shed.

A crane has placed the brow from the stair tower to the foc'st'le.

SACKVILLE prior to cleaning.

Before SACKVILLE is brought into the maintenance building, her hull needed cleaning, and workers used high-pressure water to blast the marine life from the hull. It is preferable to do this while on the lift, rather than inside the building, for obvious (and smelly) reasons.

SACKVILLE after cleaning.

Exterior lights on the Syncrolift piers illuminate SACKVILLE while the sun sets in the background.

SACKVILLE was moved into the maintenance building on the morning of Thursday, February 15, which I will cover in a separate post.

A complete gallery of my processed images of SACKVILLE's lift and transfer is linked here.

Notes:

(1) As these things are usually planned well in advance, and it is not possible to reschedule the complicated array of resources required to make it happen, it is inevitable that sometimes these events happen in the rain. In the cold of February. I'm told this is "Fine Navy Weather", to which I respond "If the Navy likes it so much, they should keep it to themselves, and not inflict it upon others." That said, I only had to take photos, and didn't have to handle lines, insert blocking, or dive under the ship to make sure it was in the correct location. So I shouldn't complain too much.

(2) For those that wonder about the title that I chose for this blog post, I am unaware of any actual drunken sailors being involved in the docking of SACKVILLE.

Sources:

Some of the Syncrolift data and upgrade information and dates are from the 1985 edition of "Canada's Navy Annual", in an article named "Changing Face of the Dockyard" by Thomas Lynch.

HMCS CHARLOTTETOWN on the Syncrolift

Earlier this month, HMCS CHARLOTTETOWN went on the Syncrolift at HMC Dockyard for some cleaning and maintenance. CHARLOTTETOWN returned from an extended deployment earlier this year, so she was probably in need of some TLC. Her hull below the waterline definitely needed a cleaning.

March 14 - newly on the lift, and looking kind of dirty. © Sandy McClearn.

I managed to take these two photos from almost exactly the same angle, and cropped them down almost identically. It is somewhat entertaining if you go to the Smugmug site where they are hosted, and use the arrow keys on your keyboard to go back and forth between the two images to see the difference (if you click on the image above or below, it will take you there). 

March 24 - the bright blue anti-fouling paint is nice and clean. © Sandy McClearn.

The Syncrolift platform has seen many changes over the years. The original Syncrolift concept was developed by a firm in Florida, and the company was eventually purchased by Rolls Royce. The original Halifax Syncrolift was powered by a total of 34 180-ton winches, with 17 on each side (these are the blue boxes on either side of the lift platform). It was originally constructed in 1967 to allow annual maintenance of the then-new Oberon-class submarines (ONONDAGA, OKANAGAN, and OJIBWA). The platform is nested between two narrow jetties on piles, upon which the winches are installed. The platform can be lowered down into the water to float ships on, and then raised again to lift them out of the water.

In 1970, the original submarine maintenance shed was constructed on the shore side of the platform, and the O-boats could be rolled in and out of the shed to allow maintenance inside a heated shelter. The rails upon which the doors slid open and closed weren't actually long enough to allow the submarine to enter or depart, and the doors had to be removed altogether as shown in the image below to allow the submarine in.

HMCS/M OKANAGAN backing out of the Syncrolift shed in 1985 at the mid-point of her SOUP (Submarine Operational UPgrade) refit. The O-boat's hull design was heavily influenced by Second World War German U-boats, and this is reflected in the continued use of twin propellers and the tail arrangement. At the stern can be seen the indentations from the stern torpedo tubes, which were originally fitted to fire short unguided torpedoes, but by the time the photo was taken were re-purposed to accommodate a towed array sonar (and reportedly cold beer storage).  DND photo, courtesy Corvus Publishing Group.

The Syncrolift worked a treat for the RCN's submarines, but it didn't provide the Navy with the ability to perform basic maintenance on their larger vessels. After the near-bankruptcy of Halifax Dartmouth Industries Limited (HDIL) in the 1970s, the RCN got nervous, and looked for a way to achieve some redundancy for HDIL's facilities. A local engineering firm, CBCL, suggested lengthening the platform from 307 metres to 413 metres and upgrading the winch capacity to allow larger vessels to be lifted out of the water. The Syncrolift was actually used during the construction work, as it was used to lower the new caissons into the water (the new caissons may even have been formed and poured on the platform prior to being floated out). The complement of winches were now made up of 26 180-ton winches, and 20 280-ton winches under the heavier middle portion of the ships (e.g. the engine room). The winches were split with 13 180-ton and 10 280-ton winches on each side of the platform. I have seen somewhere this rendered the Syncrolift capable of hoisting a 6,000 tonne "NATO" frigate, but can't find the reference at the moment. It can certainly handle the 5,235 ton Canadian Patrol Frigate and 5,100 ton IROQUOIS class destroyer (those are their full load numbers, and I'm not sure how heavy the ships normally are when they are hauled out).

HMCS IROQUOIS was the first destroyer lifted by the newly refurbished Syncrolift, on Nov. 1, 1986. The larger winches (the blue "boxes") are of 280 ton capacity each, while the smaller winches are of 180 ton capacity. The 280 ton winches are placed around the machinery spaces of the ship, which weigh more than other portions of the ship. Also seen here are CORMORANT, a Saint class tug, SKEENA, and ATHABASKAN. DND photo, Courtesy of Corvus Publishing Group. 

This meant that one can occasionally get a glimpse of things like the housing for the SQS 510 sonar found under the hull of these ships.

A view of HMCS VILLE DE QUEBEC in the early 2000s from close up. The SQS 510 housing can be seen under the ship, not far back from the ship's forefoot (the bottom of the bow). Canadian Patrol Frigates have bilge keels mounted midships to reduce rolling at sea, also visible here. In the background, the old maintenance shed is still standing. The bright blue anti-fouling paint colour is a relatively new feature. © Sandy McClearn.

HMCS ATHABASKAN. The SQS-510 Hull Outfit C3 sonar dome is removed for maintenance. The fairing itself is seen at bottom left, and is facing backwards. The covers are removed from the winches in this photo.

SACKVILLE was a Syncrolift customer both before and after her restoration to her original appearance as a corvette. Seen here in 2008, she is showing a considerable amount of marine growth. © Sandy McClearn.

A slightly different angle on SACKVILLE. © Sandy McClearn.

The blocking under SACKVILLE is better visible in this image from directly aft. In this photo the old submarine maintenance shed has been torn down, and in its place is a temporary tent structure shielding one of the new VICTORIA class submarines from view and the weather during a refit. © Sandy McClearn.

Although the upgraded Syncrolift could handle the newer and heavier VICTORIA class submarines, there was still a problem. Not only are the VICTORIA class heavier than the older OBERON class submarines, but that heavier load is spread out over a shorter length, and that greater load density meant that the inshore winches and platform support beams were not rated to support the new submarines when they were being transferred inshore for extended refit periods. In the photo above, the submarine in the temporary shelter had to be stripped down to reduce the weight and avoid overloading the inshore 180-ton winches and support beams. The old submarine maintenance shed was also too small for the new submarines, which were beamier than their predecessors.

VICTORIA on the Syncrolift in 2002. Submarine propellers are carefully guarded secrets, and although it would have been tarped at the time I took the photo, I decided to play it safe and not capture it at all. Either that, or my lens simply wasn't wide enough. The old shed seems to be standing in this photo. © Sandy McClearn.

CORNER BROOK in 2008. You can see the difference in size between the 180-ton (left) and 280-ton (right) winches.
© Sandy McClearn.

During the mid-2000s, the old submarine maintenance shed was torn down, and at least one submarine underwent an extended maintenance and refit period under a temporary tent structure on the site of the old shed. After the submarine finished her refit, and was returned to the Syncrolift, construction began on a new submarine maintenance building that could accommodate the newer VICTORIA class. The Syncrolift platform and winches were again upgraded to allow the heavier submarines to be transferred into the new building without stripping them of excess weight. The same bollard and tow motor that were used to haul submarines into the old shed are still used in the new building.

WINDSOR in 2012. To the left of the photo is the control cabin, from where the winches of the Syncrolift are controlled and monitored during operation. © Sandy McClearn.

HMCS ST. JOHN'S has also recently been a Syncrolift customer - she is shown here in September, 2016. This photo catches a lift in progress, with the ropes that held the ship in position over the blocking now falling slack towards the jetty on either side.I'm guessing these ropes would have been taut until the ship started to bear weight on the blocking. © Sandy McClearn.

Clean once again, HMCS ST. JOHN'S is pictured being lowered once again into Halifax Harbour. The new maintenance shed isn't big enough to take a frigate, but could accommodate a smaller vessel like SACKVILLE. © Sandy McClearn.

The utility of the Syncrolift is especially important in recent years, as both floating drydocks at the Halifax Shipyard (the older Scotiadock and the newer Novadock) have both been allowed to decay and have been removed from service and/or scrapped. The only remaining drydock at Halifax Shipyard, the original graving dock that survived the Halifax Explosion, has been almost continuously filled with HALIFAX class frigates during their recent FELEX refits (in fact, the current resident (HMCS HALIFAX) is in her first refit post-FELEX).

In order to write this post, I relied partly on articles in old issues of "Canada's Navy Annual" published by Corvus Publishing Group Ltd. In all, they published 6 issues, plus the original special commemorative issue for the Navy's 75th anniversary in 1985. They have since gone out of business, but were still active in the mid-1990s when I wrote them (while in university) to ask them for permission to reproduce the photos contained therein (which they kindly gave me). I managed to purchase all 7 issues used, probably at J.W. Doull.