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10 Year Anniversary - The Tow Out Of Suisun Bay: Mike Getscher Part 1. Today - October 27, 2021 - marks the TENTH ANNIVERSARY of the day we freed Battleship IOWA from the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet. You've seen the epic videos and photos. Now, COO Mike Getscher takes you behind the scenes and shares some of the little-known technical details involved in a process those videos make look so easy.
#battleshipiowa #surfacenavymuseum #tenyearanniversary #usnavy #bathymetry
Special day here at Battleship IOWA. We're celebrating ten years since we freed the ship from the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet.
Definitely feeling the emotion of this morning: we did the impossible and we continue to do it. This ship is so much more than a museum. Come join us and experience it for yourself.
#battleshipiowa #tenyearanniversary #SurfaceNavyMuseum #usnavy #GhostFleet
CEO Jonathan Williams shares highlights from our Freedom of the Seas weekend in his latest update. (Find the link in our Weekly Updates highlight.)
#battleshipiowa #SurfaceNavyMuseum #freedomoftheseas
Coming to our Halloween STEMebration this Saturday? We’ve got treats. Boy, do we have treats! Thanks a ton to @cabrillomarineaquarium for sharing their candy with us.
Event starts at 6 PM. Be here for all the fun!
#battleshipiowa #halloween #halloween2021
Ambassador Rob O’Brien Speech Part 3. Final part of Ambassador O’Brien’s speech.
#surfacenavymuseum #battleshipiowa #freedomofthseas
Ambassador Rob O’Brien Speech Part 2. Part 2 of Ambassador Rob O’Brien’s speech on #freedomoftheseas
#surfacenavymuseum #battleshipiowa
Ambassador Rob O’Brien Speech Part 1. Our final honoree at last night’s celebration was Freedom of the Seas award winner Ambassador Rob O’Brien. He gave an insightful and fascinating speech of the state of safety on the world’s oceans today. Here is part 1.
The National Museum of the Surface Navy would like to thank our honorees and guests for attending and spending time with us, our generous sponsors for making this incredible evening possible, and the phenomenal staff, crew, and board of Battleship IOWA who dedicated hard work and heart to make this event spectacular. Semper Gumby, BB-61!
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa #freedomoftheseas
Finishing the evening, Freedom of the Seas award winner Ambassador Rob O’Brien.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa #freedomoftheseas
Global Trade and Communications Award. Global Trade and Communications Award recipient UPS acceptance by Bruce MacRae.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa #freedomoftheseas
The Battle of Leyte Gulf. RADM Samuel J. Cox, USN (Ret) describes the Battle of Leyte Gulf, whose anniversary is part of what we’re honoring this evening.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa #LeyteGulf #NavalHistory #freedomoftheseas
Humanitarian Service Award winner LosAngeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. #FreedomoftheSeas Humanitarian Service Award winner Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa
Admiral Michelle Howard at the Freedom of the Seas awards. Live from the #FreedomoftheSeas awards, Gravely Award winner Admiral Michelle Howard, USN (Ret).
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa
Freedom of the Seas gala underway on #BattleshipIOWA. Stay tuned through the evening as we bring you highlights.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #freedomoftheseas
Here we go! Kicking off FREEDOM OF THE SEAS weekend with the Surface Navy Association awards luncheon.
Excited to host this event. Congratulations to all the winners for their impressive accomplishments and inspiring service.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #battleshipiowa #freedomoftheseas #usnavy #surfacefleet
Who's joining us for our Halloween STEMebration? We've got fun lined up! Saturday, Oct. 30 from 6-9 PM. We'll see you here!
#battleshipiowa #SurfaceNavyMuseum #Halloween #stemforkids
Nautical geek-out warning! In our last post, we mentioned the bathymetry data we acquired in preparation for towing Battleship IOWA out of the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet. Bathymetry is the measurement of the depth of an ocean, sea, or lake, and those numbers were a make-or-break factor in whether or not we would succeed.
Our team needed the highest flood tide possible to maneuver the ship out of the bay. Hugging the northwest side of it was the only direction they could go because the middle was super shallow - feet in the teens and single digits in places. IOWA at that time and currently is ballasted to draw 32.3 feet aft. There was a point in the bay where there would be less than an inch of water under her keel.
Beyond that, we only had two windows during which the tide would be high enough for us to accomplish the tow: one at the end of October, and one not quite as high at the end of November. October 27th was predicted as the most optimal tide, so we committed and went for it. (Spoiler alert: we made it.)
Two of these photos show the bathymetry data on the area. The third is a nautical chart showing depth in feet and the actual route the ship took that day.
Loving this history? Help us keep it alive: hit the link tree in our bio and donate today!
#BattleshipIOWA #SurfaceNavyMuseum #nauticalheritage #history #nauticalhistory
We've been talking ten year anniversary memories, and we have a fun one for you today. COO Mike Getscher describes what was happening at this time in 2011:
"Revisiting the basics, the first tow for IOWA was a two-day effort on the 27th and 28th of October in 2011. The dates were driven by the tidal cycle of the region, which was a critical issue given our max draft of nearly 33 feet and the shallow water in the area. We had bathymetry or echo soundings of the tow path performed about a week before the tow which showed that we had inches of clearance under our rudders or perhaps even less. So at this point in time, we were scrambling to prepare the ship for tow, while simultaneously convincing the various jurisdictions that we were ready, making final contract arrangements with the tow company and port pilots, and assuring everyone that the bathymetry was ok.
"During this time, we were also busy recovering at least one anchor, pulling mooring lines out of the sail locker, and convincing the marine surveyors and Coast Guard that we were ready to go. The anchor evolutions were especially exciting as we started up machinery which hadn’t been used in ten years. After a little smoke and flame in the anchor windlass room, we were able to recover our port anchor along with 8 shots of chain. (Do we remember what a shot is?) But the starboard anchor had to come later due to a crane barge problem at the MARAD facility."
Here's a short compilation of footage from the day we raised the Mighty I's port anchor.
You can follow our ten year anniversary journey on our YouTube channel (Battleship USS IOWA Museum) and if you'd like to support our next ten years, hit up the donate link in our bio.
#SurfaceNavyMuseum #anchor #GhostFleet
BB-61 charging across the Atlantic at something over 30 knots back in 1987 is about how your battleship crew is feeling as we prep for our Freedom of the Seas gala this coming weekend. Full speed ahead - let's go!
We'll be at full dress ship for the weekend. Come check out our girl sporting all her finery. Check the link tree in our bio for tickets.
đź“· from Michael McEnteggart
#battleshipiowa #SurfaceNavyMuseum #freedomoftheseas #monday
What has it been like on this battleship journey for CEO Jonathan Williams’ family and what is Chief Moser up to? Hit our Weekly Updates highlight to find out!
#battleshipiowa #surfacenavymuseum #museumupdate
Looky what we got! Congrats to Chef Cesar and his team. Fantastic to see their hard work paying off!
#battleshipiowa #surfacenavymuseum #vickysdoghouse #eatatvickys
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