Greenpeace Ships

Greenpeace began on the sea. It earned its first fame by sailing into the US atomic test site in the North Pacific and through the fights to save the seals and the whales. The sea -- with its vast expanses and murky depths, home of leviathan, burial ground for atomic reactors and toxic wastes, its very immensity a cloak for the unscrupulous, belonging to everyone but no one, and so to be seized and used at the will of the mighty -- the deep sea and its inhabitants have no neighbours and no witnesses to protest what is happening to them.

The Greenpeace fleet attempts to be that witness and good neighbour, checking to see that agreements are observed, to protest and when possible prevent destruction of marine life and resources. Greenpeace's eight ships - and some 30 of the fast and manoeuvrable inflatable dinghies that have proved so effective in Greenpeace protest actions - are the organization's unique contribution to the environmental movement. The larger ships are all equipped with complete satellite communications facilities.

• The name Rainbow Warrior was inspired by a North American Indian legend which prophesies that when man has destroyed the world through his greed, the Warriors of the Rainbow will arise to save it again. The new Rainbow Warrior replaces the original sunk by the French secret service in 1985. The three mast schooner was rebuilt on the hull of the former fishing vessel "Grampian Fame", and launched on July 10, 1989, the anniversary of the sinking of her predecessor. Equipped with the latest in electronic navigation, sailing and communication equipment, she is an oceangoing vessel intended for assignments in the Pacific.
• The Sirius is named for the star Sirius, the brightest star in the firmament and a positive potent since ancient times. The Sirius was built to naval specifications at "Boele" shipyard in the Netherlands in 1950 as one of 7 pilot vessels. In early May of 1981, the ship was dry-docked in Scheveningen, where a handful of volunteers cleaned the hull below the waterline and applied fresh coats of anti-fouling paint. The following week, in Amsterdam, the former pilot ship began to be transformed into a Greenpeace vessel. The former owners - the Royal Dutch Navy - had maintained the ship well and the engine room appeared to be in good condition, but getting the ship ready for her first campaign in just 10 weeks was a haunting task. During this period volunteers of all ages and from many countries came on board for a few days or a few weeks to help out. The ship's colour scheme was soon changed to a green hull and rainbow colours and a white dove of peace with an olive branch was painted on the bow. Many companies and suppliers contributed their advice and goodwill to help the transformation take place. The galley was equipped; additional navigation and communication equipment was installed on the bridge; and inflatables, life rafts and fire- extinguishers were put in place. One of the pantries was transformed into an outboard-engine workshop; the forward mess room was changed into a store-room for campaign equipment and inflatables, when not in use; and the wash room midships was made into a fresh food store. On July 13, the Sirius left the berth in Amsterdam and the volunteers, who had made the maiden voyage possible, wished it 'bon voyage' at the locks to the North Sea. In 1985 the aft mast was removed and the hydraulic system renovated, so that the old cranes could be scrapped and replaced by one new one. In 1986, to prepare the ship for a long campaign in the Mediterranean, the midships food stores were changed into a chill room, a satellite communications system was purchased and the small mess room was converted into a campaign office with a computer. Since that time the vessel has operated almost continuously in the Mediterranean, with occasional campaigns in the North Sea. Over the course of the years, the engine room wasn't forgotten: apart from normal maintenance and upgrading, the old auxiliary engines were replaced by new ones and an oily-water-separator and sewage treating plant were installed. Since starting with Greenpeace in 1981, the Sirius has built up its own reputation as an action and information ship. It is well known all from Iceland to Italy. Even the Soviet harbour of Leningrad had the pleasure of a visit.
• The Greenpeace, a Dutch-built former deep sea salvage tug, was bought by Greenpeace in 1985. Built in 1959, 58 metres long, 905 tons and with 32 berths, the vessel was strengthened against ice and equipped with a helicopter pad and satellite communications system in preparation for the Antarctic expedition. A veteran of three voyages to the Antarctic and disablement through ramming by US Navy ships while protesting the Trident missile program in 1989, the Greenpeace now sails primarily in the North Atlantic.

  The MV Greenpeace was originally build as an ocean-going tug and salvage vessel, owned and operated by Smit Internationale in the Netherlands. In 1977, Smit sold the ship to the Association of Maryland Pilots in the USA; it was converted from a tugboat in Verolme dockyard, Cork, Ireland, newly equipped and provided with additional accommodation. It operated as a Pilot Station vessel in Maryland, USA until 1985. When the Association of Maryland Pilots became an ashore-based operation and no longer needed the ship, Greenpeace acquired it. At this time Greenpeace was planning an expedition to the Antarctic to establish a base camp and have the continent declared a "World Park" to preserve it from exploitation. In May the MV Greenpeace sailed to London for a press conference on the campaign and then on to the Amsterdam shipyard. In consultation with a naval architect and after research into the conditions,the ship might meet in the Ross Sea by Antarctica, the hull was ice strengthened and the ship was refitted and equipped for polar conditions. The deck was rearranged to allow for more storage space above as well as below decks and was fitted with hatches, lifting beams and a crane. Satellite communications and sophisticated communication and navigational aids were added.

  In 1986, a helicopter pad was built in New Zealand. The ship has been continually upgraded since and has completed 3 voyages to the Antarctic. Further campaigns of the MV Greenpeace include some of Greenpeace's most successful and daring. In late 1989 the ship was rammed by the US Navy, while protesting the test firing of Trident missiles on the high seas. Perilously damaged, with a large hole just above the waterline, the ship nevertheless made it to port and crossed the Atlantic for permanent repairs in Hamburg. In October 1990 the MV Greenpeace sailed to Novaya Zemlya, the nuclear test island north of the USSR, where it successfully set four activists on the top secret test site for 10 hours, where they measured radioactivity. Though boarded by armed KGB agents, who destroyed its communications equipment, the ship and crew were quickly released. In 1991 the Greenpeace to the Arabian Gulf to conduct measurements of environmental damage caused by the Gulf War. She departed Singapore in November for the Antarctic whaling grounds. This very successful action was the longest voyage ever attempted by a Greenpeace ship. After a nine month lay-up in Fremantle, Australia, the Greenpeace departed in November 1992 for the Antarctic in support of a campaign to have a whale sanctuary declared in the Southern Ocean. She returned to New Zealand in March, 1993. After refitting the mv Greenpeace went left New Zealand for a tour around SE Asia and Russia, followed by campaigns in Alaska, the West Coast of the USA and on via the Panama Canal to Central America, the Amazone River and Argentinia. The end of 1994 the MV Greenpeace went once again into the Antarctic waters for the Whaling Campaign. In June 1995 the mv Greenpeace arrived in the Mediterranean.

• The Solo, a 8,600-horsepower Dutch tugboat built in 1977, was purchased in 1990 . Greenpeace refitted her with a helicopter deck, an animal hospital, a laboratory, a darkroom and an exhibition room. The initial task of the Solo was to perform a watchdog position in the North Sea, one of the busiest seas on the globe. Over the years the Solo got more and more involved with other campaigns both inside the North Sea as outside. Campaigns to Nova Zemblaya against radioactive dumping, and to Japan against Nuclair Wast Trade, changed the Solo's original assignment.
• The Moby Dick was built in the Netherlands in 1959 and spent 27 years as a fishing vessel before joining Greenpeace. Greenpeace bought her in 1986. In just two weeks Greenpeace converted the ship to a Greenpeace ship. The trawler winch was removed, additional berths were put in up forward, the fish-hold was re-ballasted, communication equipment was installed and cradles were welded on deck to carry the indispensable Greenpeace inflatable dinghies. With a fresh coat of green paint on the hull, the rainbow and white whale on the bow, the Moby Dick left Hamburg for its first campaign on 31 May 1986. Moby Dick operates mainly in the North Sea and in the Baltic although she also spend a long time in the USA, campaigning on the Great Lakes, the Mississippi and in the Gulf of Mexico.
• The Beluga, a river ship, is named for the small white whales that used to appear in European rivers before pollution. The Beluga was built in 1960 and purchased from the city of Bremen in 1984. Greenpeace workers and some 40 volunteers spent over 10,000 hours converting the former in-shore fire-fighting patrol boat into a laboratory ship for work in rivers, estuaries, harbours and coastal waters. They removed service pipes and fire-fighting apparatus and strengthened the aft part of the cabin so that the deck can support a rigid-hull inflatable. They built in a hydraulic crane to lift the inflatable in and out of the water and made improvements in the ship's communications and steerage systems. Twin propellers make the ship particularly manoeuvrable and ideally suited for river work. The mess area for the crew doubles as a reception room where the press and public are informed about protest actions and research. Her territory has been the Rhine, Elbe, Schelde, Weser, Thames, Humber, Tyne, Tees, Mersey, Meuse, and Seine rivers; the Westerschelde and the Waddensee; the coasts of England, Sweden, and Denmark; the Great Lakes and the Mississippi. The Beluga, being an inshore vessel, is usually berthed overnight. Only on rare occasions, like crossing the North Sea, will it sail all night. In heavy weather the Beluga stays in rivers and canals or in port.
• The Vega is the ship that has been with Greenpeace the longest. Vega is a 38-foot ketch built in 1948 in Whangarei, New Zealand. Alan Orams, one of New Zealand's finest boat builders,constructed the yacht without the aid of any power tools entirely of native timbers. Vega is a very strong, seaworthy yacht, a classic "blue water cruiser," with an 11' 9" beam and a 6'6" draft. It's design is derived from a Colin Archer Norwegian Pilot Cutter. With large diesel fuel and water tanks and plenty of storage space, it can cross any of the world's oceans. In trips to Mururoa, circumnavigation of Australia, Pacific Peace voyage and involvement in the North Pacific whaling campaigns, Vega covered over 50,000 sea miles for peace and the environment. The Vega was purchased by David Mc Taggart, former Chairman of Greenpeace International, in 1969, before he became involved in Greenpeace. Vega was later sold and remained privately owned until 1981 when Greenpeace repurchased it and prepared to sail to Mururoa. Recently the boat has been handed over to David McTaggart, upon his resignation. Vega will be based in the Mediterranean, and is still available for Greenpeace work.
• The Altair is the latest addition to the Greenpeace fleet. In the early spring of 1995 it became clear that an extra vessel was needed on short notice in the North Sea. For that purpose the mv Altair, a former Pilot vessel from the Dutch Government that had been converted to a yacht, was chartered for the summer. The vessel became well known in the months to come campaigning against in the dumping of the Brent Spar. After she had accompanied the Spar back to Norway, the Altair took up a new task and sailed south to start campaigning the Mediterranean.

In addition to the ships, Greenpeace maintains a helicopter, an "action bus," and a hot-air balloon called the "Earth Balloon".

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