He could easily take on board the Empire State Building and the Eiffel Tower. But its cargo is $195 million worth of oil. He survived several owners and is already the fourth name. He was hit with rockets and cut in half. And yet - for more than 20 years, it remains the largest ship on the planet.

The history of this ship began in Japan in 1976 (some sources indicate 1975 for some reason) at the shipyards of Sumitomo Heavy Industries.

Then our hero was born under the modest serial number "1016" and was transferred to a certain Greek shipowner, who gave the tanker its first real name "Seawise Giant".

Interestingly, at that time the tanker was not yet so big. Almost. Its carrying capacity was 480,000 tons (typical modern supertankers hold 280,000 tons).

He sailed for three years, and very soon the ship was sold to a new owner, who ordered its increase. Japanese shipbuilders cut and built up the ship, which took a lot of time.

Finally, in 1981, the tanker was ready for operation again. Welded additional sections of the hull increased its deadweight (capacity) to 564 thousand 763 tons of oil, otherwise - up to 658 thousand 362 cubic meters.

One of the latest shots of Knock Nevis. For the scale of the oil titan - pay attention to the sea freighter, visible on the left in the background (photo from supertankers.topcities.com).

By the way, only one steel board 3.5 centimeters thick separates this oil from the sea.

The total displacement of the monster after the reconstruction reached 825 thousand 614 tons, which, along with its size, made it the largest ship ever to sail on Earth.

Some idea of ​​the scale of the monster can be given by people on its deck (photo from dxman.com).

Dimensions. This must be imagined, because there are no such suitable shots that allow you to feel the scale of the supertanker.

Its length is 458.45 meters, width - 68.86 meters (for others sea ​​vessels length is less), draft under load - 24.61 meters.

Not only the Titanic, but also modern cruise giants, surpassing the Titanic in all sizes, are simply not impressive against the background of this tanker. Turbines with a capacity of 50 thousand horsepower accelerate the tanker with a full load to 13 knots (about 24 kilometers per hour).

Interestingly, the crew of the ship has only 40 people.

To put a supertanker at the terminal, you need several powerful tugs at once (photo from supertankers.topcities.com).

Obviously, a tanker of this size provides an opportunity to deliver black gold to its destination in a very economical way (per ton of oil).

True, that's bad luck - with a full load, this tanker cannot pass through the English Channel, the Suez and Panama Canals, as well as moor in most major ports in the world.

It would seem that due to its geometric dimensions, it could do this trick. But safety plays an important role here.

A million-ton tanker at full speed is a terrible force (photo from supertankers.topcities.com).

Think about it: the braking distance of the giant is 10.2 kilometers, and the turning circle exceeds 3.7 kilometers! So, among other ships scurrying around these waters, this supertanker is like an elephant in a china shop.

When the tanker needs to be brought to the oil terminal, it is taken in tow and pulled very, very slowly. It is easy to imagine what can happen if a ship weighing almost a million tons is mistaken in maneuvering.

During its life, the supergiant tanker changed several owners and changed its name more than once - first to Happy Giant, then to Jahre Viking.

Comparison of the largest ships on the planet (by length and gross register tons (a generalized characteristic of geometric dimensions). It is a pity that most of our hero megatanker (it is drawn last) is hidden under water (illustration from dxman.com).

This year, the tanker was dry docked in Dubai, received new equipment and turned into a so-called "floating storage unit" (Floating Storage and Offloading Unit) for oil. At the same time, the ship was renamed Knock Nevis. The vessel belongs to the Norwegians, and operates in the waters of Qatar.

The history of the Titanic did not cut short the man's dream of majesty and grandeur. The huge ships of our time are already breaking our limits of thinking. The 450-meter supertanker "Knock Nevis" is called the largest ship in the world. It is about him and will be discussed.

Information about the largest ship in the world

. Carrying capacity - 565 thousand tons
. Length - 458.45 m
. Width - 68.86 m
. At maximum load, it settles at 24.611 m
. Steam turbine power - 50,000 horsepower
. Speed ​​- 16 knots (30 km/h)
. Braking distance - about 10 km
. Crew - 40 people

The largest ship in the world is the Knock Nevis supertanker. Photo: Gerard Ne/aukevisser.nl

. Due to its impressive size, the tanker could not go through the Suez, Panama canals, as well as the English Channel. In addition, not every port is able to moor a vessel of this size.
. To turn around, the ship needs a space of at least 3.7 kilometers.
. Compared to this supertanker, the famous Titanic is quite small - Knock Nevis is 189 m longer than it.
. Knock Nevis has been dubbed ULCC (Ultra Large Raw Material Carrier) in technical circles.
. The ship changed its name five times: Seawise Giant, Happy Giant, Jahre Viking, Knock Nevis, Mont. However, the common name is Knock Nevis.
. Despite the problems associated with dimensions, the transportation of oil in such huge quantities turned out to be more economical than transporting it in conventional tankers.
. The total cost of all oil transported by the ship is about $200 million
. During the repair, shipyard workers needed to replace 3,700 tons of damaged skin.
. It is noteworthy that 565 thousand tons of transported oil is separated from the sea by only 3.5 centimeters of steel (board thickness).
. It took a whole year to dispose of the ship.
. The 36-ton Knock Nevis anchor was preserved and sent as an exhibit to the Hong Kong Maritime Museum.

The largest ship in the world "Knock Nevis". Photo: Gerard Ne/aukevisser.nl

History of the largest ship in the world

The Knock Nevis was built by a Japanese company (Built by a Japanese company) Sumitomo Heavy Industries in 1979. But even before the ship went to sea, its owner went bankrupt.

A few years later, the new owner ordered the ship to be enlarged. And so a rather impressive carrying capacity of 480,000 tons (for comparison, modern tankers can handle 280,000 tons) has been increased. To do this, the tanker was cut in half and added cargo compartments. So "Knock Nevis" was able to transport 565,000 tons of cargo and became out of competition.

In 1981, the tanker was ready. At first, he transported oil from the countries of the Middle East to the shores of the United States.

In 1986, during the Iran-Iraq war, he was on a mission to reload and store Iranian oil. However, the tanker was not spared the evil fate of the war: when the ship was in the waters Persian Gulf, it was fired upon by an Iraqi fighter, and Knock Nevis received significant damage.

After the war, the tanker was bought by a Norwegian company. It was towed to the Keppel shipyard in Singapore for repairs.

The largest ship in the world is the Knock Nevis supertanker. Photo: Roland Grard/aukevisser.nl

In 2004 the most big ship in the world was converted into a floating oil train. The reason for this was the law prohibiting the transportation of oil by single-hull tankers.

The supertanker ended its life in 2010 off the coast of the Indian city of Alang, where it was disposed of.

"Knock Nevis" went down in history not only as the largest ship in the world, but also as the largest self-propelled man-made object that has ever been built.

Knock Nevis (formerly known as the Seawise Giant, Happy Giant and Jahre Viking) is the largest ship ever built on Earth.

Oil has long been the most sensitive nerve of the entire world industry. Often, "black gold" is best transported not by land, but by water. The path followed by ships of this type is called "oil". Already in the 19th century, when coal was the main raw material, crude oil was transported in wooden and zinc barrels in special holds. sailing ships intended for the transport of oil.

The very first offshore tanker to transport oil in a tank with hulled walls was the sailing ship Atlantic, built in 1863. This type of tanker, the tank for liquid cargo is the hull, which has survived to this day. By the beginning of the First World War, sea tankers already accounted for 3% of the world merchant fleet.

Every year the demand for oil is growing. This process is associated with the continuous development of heavy industry and the emergence of an increasing number of motor vehicles. Accordingly, the scale of oil production is increasing and the requirements for its transportation are being tightened. I doubt that there will be ships and vessels whose size and displacement would have the same rapid development trend as tankers.

The development of shipbuilding of oil tankers takes place taking into account the features and advantages of supertankers, since when transporting oil to sea ​​vessel which can hold more than 100,000 tons of oil, transport costs are not much higher than using a tanker with a carrying capacity of 16,000 tons. Today, large tankers and supertankers are fully automated and operated by relatively small crews. Even the longest transportation of valuable cargo is much cheaper than the operation of a conventional vessel. And one of these is Knock Nevis.

The history of this sea vessel began in Japan in 1976 (some sources indicate 1975) at the shipyards of Sumitomo Heavy Industries. Then the oil tanker "Knock Nevis" was "born" under the modest serial number 1016 and was not so big. Soon the cargo ship was sold to a certain Greek shipowner, who gave the oil tanker its first real name "Seawise Giant". Its carrying capacity was 480,000 tons (typical modern oil tankers hold 280,000 tons). Three years later, the freighter was sold to a new owner who ordered an enlargement. Japanese shipbuilders cut and built up the tanker, which took a lot of time. Finally, in 1981, the supertanker was ready to go again. Welded additional sections of the hull increased its deadweight to 564,763 tons.

The supertanker Knock Nevis could easily take on board the Empire State Building and the Eiffel Tower. But its cargo is $195 million worth of oil. The huge ship survived several owners and is already the fourth name "Knock Nevis". He was shot with rockets and cut in half. And yet - for more than 20 years, it remains the largest ship on the planet.

"Braking distance" of the supertanker "Knock Nevis" 5000 meters.

Specifications oil tanker "Knock Nevis":

Length - 458.4 m;
Width - 68.8 m;
Draft (full) - 24.6 m;
Design displacement - 657,018 tons;
Deadweight - 564763 tons;
Power plant - steam turbines;
Power - 50000 l. with.;
Speed ​​- 13 knots;
Crew - 40 people.

Its dimensions were: 458.45 meters long and 69 meters wide, which in the past made it the largest ship in the world. Even after the commissioning of the Prelude FLNG supertanker gas plant, it will remain the largest vessel in history with a displacement of 657,018 tons.

By 2010, the end of operation of Knock Nevis approached. It was sold to Amber Development Corporation for further disposal.

The new owner renamed Knock Nevis to Mont and raised the flag of Sierra Leone on it. In December 2009, he made his last crossing to the shores of India.

On January 4, 2010, Mont was washed ashore near the Indian city of Alang (Gujarat), where its hull was cut into metal for a year.

One of the giant's 36-ton anchors has been preserved and is now on display. Maritime Museum in Hong Kong.

Knock Nevis is the largest ship ever built on Earth.

Knock Nevis (also known as Seawise Giant, Happy Giant and Jahre Viking in the past) is a Norwegian-flagged supertanker. Its dimensions: 458 meters long and 69 meters wide make it the largest ship in the world.

Built between 1979 and 1981, today it is used as a floating oil storage. Specifications Knock Nevis has a deadweight of 564,763 tons, which is 658,362 m³ (4.1 million barrels) of oil.

The length of the tanker is 458.45 meters, width - 68.86 meters, draft in cargo - 24.61 meters. Max speed is 13 knots, the crew of the ship is 40 people. The braking distance of the ship is 10.2 kilometers, and the circulation diameter is more than 3.7 kilometers.

Draft at full load does not allow the vessel to pass not only the Suez and Panama canals, but also the English Channel.

Story

The supertanker was built in Japan in the city of Yokosuka by Sumitomo Corporation by order of a Greek shipowner. However, the unfinished ship was purchased by Hong Kong shipowner Tung Chao Yung.
It was built under the number 1016, and the owner was given the name Seawise Giant. The new owner ordered an enlargement of the vessel. The ship was cut and extended, and additional hull sections were added to increase the deadweight from the original 480,000 tons to a record 564,763 tons.

Initially, the ship sailed between the Middle East and the United States, but in 1986 it began to be used as a floating terminal for the storage and transshipment of Iranian oil during the Iran-Iraq war. In May 1988, the ship was attacked and heavily damaged by Iraqi aircraft. After the end of the war, the ship, towed to Brunei, was bought by the Norwegian company KS-company.

The ship was repaired in Singapore and renamed the Happy Giant (Happy Giant). However, in 1991, even before the repair was completed, KS-company came under the control of the Norwegian ship-owning company Jørgen Jahre, so the tanker left the shipyard under the name Jahre Viking. KS-company was later bought by Norwegian shipowner Fred Olsen for his company First Olsen Tankers.

Following the adoption of laws in the US and Europe prohibiting the use of single-sided tankers, the so-called single-hull tankers (the thickness of the side of Knock Nevis is only 3.5 centimeters), in March 2004, the ship at the Dubai docks was converted into a "floating storage unit".
Then he once again changed his name to the modern Knock Nevis. Now the ship is permanently located in the area of ​​the Al Shahim oil field in Qatar as an oil storage facility.

Vessel characteristics

Tanker type.

The flag state of Norway.

Launched 1976.

Current status Floating storage unit.

Displacement 825,614 tons.

Length 458 m.

Width 68.86 m.

Power plant Turbines with a total capacity of 50,000 liters. with.

Speed ​​13 knots.

Crew of 40 people.

Cargo capacity 564,763 tons.

The tanker best known as Knock Nevis was the most big ship ever built by mankind. During its existence, this supergiant has changed several names: Seawise Giant, Happy Giant, Jahre Viking, Knock Nevis, Mont. Moreover, he managed to change not only the name, but also the dimensions, as well as the scope of its application.

In 1974, Japanese shipyards received an order to build the largest tanker in the world. And five years later, in 1979, a giant ship was launched into the water, striking in its size. But the Greek shipowner, apparently, thought this was not enough. And he ordered an increase in the size of the tanker. After that, Seawise Giant (as it was then called) was cut in half, and additional sections were added to the middle.

As a result, the dimensions of the largest ship in the world took the following values: length - 458.45 meters, width - 68.86 meters, weight of the transported cargo - 564763 tons, weight of the ship itself - 81879 tons, rudder weight - 230 tons, propeller weight - 50 tons.

As it turned out later, it was these figures that became not only a plus, but also a minus of this giant. When fully loaded, the tanker submerged 29.8 meters under water (approximately the height of a nine-story building). Just compare the two photos, the first one is loaded, the second one is empty.

AT good weather the ship could accelerate to 30 km / h, but in this case it would take about 9 kilometers to stop completely. And it was not easy to just make a U-turn for a ship of such gigantic dimensions, the turning radius without the help of tugboats was 3.2 km.

In 1981, after completing all the work to increase the size, Seawise Giant finally began to work off the money invested in it. His route ran from the oil fields of the Middle East to the United States and back. However, the Iran-Iraq war that was taking place at that time made its own adjustments to the life of the tanker. Since 1986, the ship has been used as a floating terminal for the storage and further reloading of Iranian oil. But this did not save the ship, on May 14, 1988, an Iraqi fighter attacked the Seawise Giant. The tanker received significant damage, lost all the oil on board (it should be noted that the thickness of the sides giant ship was only 3.5 cm, nothing else separated thousands of tons of oil from the surrounding marine world) and was out of order for three years.

During repairs, the ship was replaced with 3,700 tons of damaged steel and changed its name for the first time. Seawise Giant has become Happy Giant. However, even before the completion of the restoration work, the owner of the tanker changed, for 39 million dollars it was bought by Norwegian company. Therefore, the docks of Singapore (where the repair actually took place) the ship left under the name Jahre Viking.
The next changes in the life of the giant ship happened in 2004. In the United States and Europe, laws were passed prohibiting the use of single-walled oil tankers and the largest ship in the world was out of work. Jahre Viking is renamed Knock Nevis and has since been used as a floating oil storage facility.