Seattle, USA: Kvichak Marine Industries has recently constructed and delivered the 'Bay Hydro II', a 16-metre foil-assisted catamaran, to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
NOAA will deploy the all-aluminum, 16-metre by six-metre vesel as their work platform for an ongoing, three-part mission. 'Bay Hydro II" will firstly be used to conduct hydrographic surveys to update nautical charts and improve navigation on the Chesapeake Bay. The vessel can serve as a test platform for NOAA's charting efforts; it will also be used as a tool for educational outreach to schools from elementary to university level.
The catamaran is fitted with a moon pool that is closed by a sliding structural hatch in the bottom of the tunnel and a top-mounted deck grate when not in use. NOAA will mount their sonar equipment on a retractable strut that is fabricated and installed by Kvichak.
Additional sonar equipment includes two hull-mounted Airmar M42 dual-frequency transducers and an Interocean survey winch for towing side-scan sonar equipment.
Obtaining a top speed of about 30 knots, the catamaran is powered by twin MTU 6062 HK31 engines each rated 550kW at 2,300rpm. The engines are coupled to ZF 360A transmissions that drive Michigan Wheel five-blade propellers.
