Lulu Launch and Recovery

Launching and recovering Alvin on the Lulu, was a choreography of line handling. There were three tag lines per side, the bow line, the mid line and the aft line. They are used to hold Alvin centered between the hulls after the cradle has been lowered to point that Alvin is floating free.

When Alvin is lowered to the water the hatch is sealed with the three people inside. A launch pilot will get in the sail at water level to drive the sub out using the motor controls in the sail.

The launch pilot will be calling out the commands to walk the sub back between the hulls. All along the pontoons were cleats in strategic positions to make the lines fast. The first call out would be “Bow lines aft!” and the port and starboard bow lines would move to the next cleat aft. Then it was “Mid lines aft!” Then the stern lines. This kept up for 4 or 5 iterations till Alvin was just aft of Lulu and clear of the pontoons. At this point the swimmers would begin detaching the tag lines starting with the aft ones.

Once clear of the ship the swimmers would remove the basket safeties and along with the Launch pilot climb aboard the whaler. Back in those days we used to do something that would probably get you fired now. We would have the coxswain running the Whaler to radio that we were all clear while we were still standing on the sub. Grabbing a hand hold we would hang on as the pilot opened the vents on the ballast tanks and Alvin submerged. I did this a few times but the last time I hung on a bit too long. I have no idea how deep I went before I let go but I do know I was in almost total panic before my head broke the surface and I could draw air into my burning lungs. That was very, very close. Never again. There’s a good reason why this is not allowed any more.

Recovery is trickier, it always is. On launch you’re going from a controlled situation into the variable. Recovery is the opposite and that can lead to surprises. The captain would quarter the Lulu into the seas for stability. There’s a word you usually don’t hear when talking about the Lulu. You had to take those seas at a 45 degree angle on the bow. You didn’t want the waves barreling through the tubes like they would if you headed directly into them and you didn’t want to take then abeam because it would make the ship roll heavily. This angle on the bow really got the corkscrew motion going, big time.

Jon Borden and I manned the bow lines. Because we would be the first to throw our lines we stood all the way aft on each pontoon separated by the 20” gap between the hulls.

This was a wild ride if the seas were up. Dressed in shorts down south or in full foul weather gear up north you found yourself on the pontoons chest deep in foamy seas that could sweep you off your feet. Standing across from Jon, each time the ship would roll to my side his propeller would come out of the water. As big around as he is tall Jon is standing about 8 ft. from it. The prop makes 4 or 5 whooshing sounds as it turns and is plunged back into the seas as the ship rolls the other way. As soon as the prop hits the water I hear a bell ring briefly above me on the bridge. It’s the low oil pressure alarm going off as the prop bites into the sea. This would repeat with every roll of the ship. Seconds later Jon is watching me and the prop on my side come clear of the water.

I have to say at this point that the “AAAARRRRR!!!” factor is just not coming out of my pen. Standing there, ready to throw my line with the seas foaming waist deep, I felt I was right up there with Quequake, ready to throw his harpoon into the great white whale. It was thrilling being in harm's potential way, Mas Macho!! And the camaraderie was huge. Most of us were about 25 years old and thought of ourselves as lusty, macho sailors. Still at that age where you feel a bit indestructible.

On recovery the pilot of the day would open the hatch on the surface and be the recovery pilot. It was never clear to me why this was the opposite of launch. I think it was because Ralph didn’t want to wait for a smoke. Lighting up was the second thing he did after cracking the hatch, the first was turn around in the sail and let out the piss he’d been holding all day all over the sail J box. Ralph could be a class act. 

With the swimmers on either side of the sail, the pilot would drive Alvin between the hulls only after the captain had positioned the Lulu correctly. The first call as the sub approached the stern was “Bow lines out!” and we would throw the swimmers the lines. You had to throw that line across the swimmers path, not at them. We were using inch and a half nylon line with a 5-pound steel hook at the end. Larry Costello took one of these hooks right through the face mask from a rookie who threw it to him. Larry’s OK, but you learn the hard way sometimes.

From there it was the opposite of launch. We would walk the sub forward from cleat to cleat with the pilot calling the cadence till the sub was at the marks and the cradle was raised bringing Alvin up to deck level.

Another exiting thing in this process is the launch and recovery of the whaler before and after each Alvin evolution. The whaler hung from 2 motorized davits aft of the bridge so that it hung athwart ships. It was lowered that 20 ft. to the water with the coxswain aboard so that he was right there to unhook the lift cables as soon as the boat was floating. One person on each pontoon manned a bow and stern line. The Whaler was not in a good position tied sideways between the pontoons and you wanted to cast off as soon as possible. On recovery you wanted to get in there and hook up the lift cable right away and get the boat out of the water. When stepping into or out of the boat you had to make a decisive leap and not fool around. The Whaler could do quite a dance in a good sea.

I never saw anyone hurt but on the trip before I came aboard the Lulu was out working and the University of Miami‘s ship, the R/V Researcher, was there as a hotel for the people who wanted to dive as room on Lulu was limited. One scientist, a man in his 40’s made the big mistake of having on foot on the Whaler and one on the ship. When the Whaler went down on a wave it split his pelvis like a wishbone. They said you could hear him scream back on the Researcher. He never got out of the Whaler and they brought him back to the Researcher who then beat it for port and a hospital.

Once Alvin is secured on deck the scientists will take their samples away and work will begin on the sub. There is always some thing to do into the night. First there are post-dive inspections that often will reveal some thing amiss. Anytime you put a piece of equipment into a hostile environment and, make no mistake, the bottom of the ocean is a hostile environment, there is a lot of care and feeding to maintain that equipment especially if you want to use it every day. Think of sending your television into the salt water 8 hours a day and then wanting to watch it at night. It’s always an up hill battle.