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annnnnnd that's a wrap. Last night AIVIQ plotted a course to the first waypoint and at 2330 h turned off DP. We radioed through to Happy Diamond to let them know we were passing to their stern and the third mate took control to take us out of Newcomb Bay.
Refuelling Casey was the main objective of Voyage 4 and it was done without so much as a minor hiccup. Weather may have delayed us for a few days but once it cleared, operations were back in full swing.
Pumping ceased at 1335 h on Mon, 02 Jan 23, however, this was not the end of the operations and is certainly not the end of the higher risk period. Immediately after pumping ceased the Refuelling Supervisor (RS) was busy preparing to pig the line.
Pigging the line is a process whereby a foam bullet is loaded into the hose and is pushed from the start to the end in order to clear the hose of all fuel. Prior to commencing the process, the RS coordinates with all personnel to ensure valves are in the right positions and the pig catcher is fitted at the end of the hose. Once all checks have been complete the pig is sent down the line.
We pig our lines using air; however, another method for pigging is to pig the line with nitrogen. Using nitrogen removes oxygen from the fire triangle (oxygen, fuel and heat) and the removal of oxygen allows for a non-combustible atmosphere which makes it a safer propellant for pigging.
The use of nitrogen as an alternate propellant for pigging was raised as part of our ongoing post activity reporting activities. This activity is an excellent way to ensure we focus on continuous improvements to both our methods and our safety practices.
V4 Fun Fact #3. Some early cleaning "pigs" were made from straw bales wrapped in barbed wire while others used leather. Both made a squealing noise while traveling through the pipe, sounding to some like a pig squealing, which gave pigs their name.
After the pigging was complete from ship-to-shore the team commenced hose retrieval over the water while shore-side pers commenced pack up of the LFF. Once the over water hose was retrieved the RS travelled to shore to assist pigging the line from the UFF to the LFF.
Pack-up was in full swing and going well from 1335 h until about 1800 h when wind picked up above our safe threshold. This was quite frustrating with only six loads to go. A short phone call with BOM indicated the wind was expected to calm down around 2100 h. With the weather not playing the game several times already this trip we didn't take any chances and organised accommodation on Casey for our staff. Our decision point to cease ops for the night was 2130 h, but thankfully the winds dropped below 25 knots at approx. 2045 h and were well below 15 knots shortly after.
A quick shift change took place and by 2200 h the final loads and IRB were back on AIVIQ. Preparation for sea were complete by 2315 h and we set course for home, via our whale mooring locations.
Today will be a quiet day for the team and tomorrow we will commence an after activity review.
Regards,
Trent and Cam
Map
A map showing Australia and Antarctica. The map shows the journey of one voyage that has occured in the season, with each route highlighted in a distinct colour.