CCGS ''Simon Fraser'' was a

buoy tender A buoy tender is a type of vessel used to maintain and replace navigational buoys. This term can also apply to an actual person who does this work. The United States Coast Guard uses buoy tenders to accomplish one of its primary missions of main ...

operated by the

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; french: links=no, Garde côtière canadienne, GCC) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues ...

. The vessel entered service in 1960 with the

Department of Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...

's Marine Fleet, before being transferred to the newly formed Canadian Coast Guard in 1962. The buoy tender served on both coasts of Canada and was used for search and rescue duties along the

West Coast of Canada , settlement_type = Region of British Columbia , image_skyline = , nickname = "The Coast" , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = British ...

. The ship was loaned to the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...

in 2000 and transited the

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arc ...

, circumnavigating North America in the process. The ship was taken out of service in 2001 and sold to private interests. In 2006, the vessel reappeared as a

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

using the same name.

Design and description

''Simon Fraser'' and sister ship were long overall with a beam of and a draught of . The vessel had a fully loaded displacement of and a gross register tonnage (GRT) of 1,358. The vessels were powered by a diesel-electric system (DC/DC) driving two fixed-pitch screws creating . This gave the vessels a maximum speed of . The ship carried of

diesel fuel Diesel fuel , also called diesel oil, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine, a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition takes place without a spark as a result of compression of the inlet air and ...

, had a range of at and could stay at sea for up to 20 days. The ships were fitted with a

flight deck The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface from which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopte ...

and a telescopic

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

and were capable of operating one helicopter.

Service history

The vessel was constructed by

Burrard Dry Dock Burrard Dry Dock Ltd. was a Canadian shipbuilding company headquartered in North Vancouver, British Columbia. Together with the neighbouring North Van Ship Repair yard and the Yarrows Ltd. yard in Esquimalt, which were eventually absorbed, Bu ...

at their yard in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

with the

yard number __NOTOC__ M ...

306. ''Simon Fraser'' was launched on 18 August 1959, named after a Scottish explorer who charted much of what became known as British Columbia. The ship entered service with the

in February 1960. In 1962 the Department of Transport's Marine Service fleet was merged into the newly formed

and ''Simon Fraser'' was given the new prefix CCGS. The vessel was registered in Ottawa,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

. ''Simon Fraser'' was initially assigned to duties in the Western Region, working in the Pacific Ocean. In 1986, the vessel was converted for search and rescue duties and transferred to the Laurentian Region in Eastern Canada. Towards the end of her career, ''Simon Fraser'' returned to buoy tending duties in the Maritimes Region, based at Dartmouth,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. She played a role in searching for wreckage that could show the cause of the crash of Swissair Flight 111. In May 2000 ''Simon Fraser'' was loaned to a

(RCMP) support group. Travelling from

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

, the vessel transited the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...

. From there, the Coast Guard ship escorted the on a transit of the

, which was recreating the historic 1940–1942 transit of . In doing so, ''Simon Fraser'' circumnavigated North America. This was ''Simon Fraser''s last voyage prior to her decommissioning. ''Simon Fraser'' was taken out of service in 2001 and renamed ''2001–07''. In 2006 she was sold to Quay Marine Associates Inc., reverted to her original name and registered in Livorno, Italy, where she was taken for conversion to a

and charter vessel.

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

* * * *

External links

''Simon Fraser'' at Livorno in 2017
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon Fraser, CCGS Navaids tenders of the Canadian Coast Guard 1960 ships Ships built in British Columbia Ships of the Canadian Coast Guard