THINk

DeltaV · Post by **DeltaV** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 8:56 pm

Looks like aiming two or three segments to the left would've worked...

Skipjack · Post by **Skipjack** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 9:14 pm

Thats the ship transporting the ULA rocket parts, right?
In the defense of the captain, steering and/breaking a ship like this required a lot of space and foresight. Still, he should have familiarized himself with the location beforehand.

ladajo · Post by **ladajo** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 9:20 pm

I am guessing that it was not his first trip. If not so, then there would have been a pilot.

Voyage planning normally requires checking draft and tides for under passages. Plus, the bridges always have depth marks on them on the channel.

Judging by the markings visible on the supports, he was completely off the marked channel.

DeltaV · Post by **DeltaV** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 9:33 pm

Captain bribed by SpaceX?

Skipjack · Post by **Skipjack** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 9:50 pm

Captain bribed by SpaceX?

Unlikely, SpaceX has other goals.
Since they are now planning to initially launch Orion on a Delta rocket, this could hurt ATKs position in regards to the necessity of the SLS.
So maybe it was them?
I would say though the most likely explanation is DUI, or a sleepy captain, or a captain watching pron instead of his maps

GIThruster · Post by **GIThruster** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 9:59 pm

I'd bet the Captain is just used to remembering "2nd span from the end" and screwed up as to which end. IIUC, he makes the trip often up and down that river.

KitemanSA · Post by **KitemanSA** » Sat Jan 28, 2012 12:54 am

Back when I lived in Portland Oregon, there was a captain who, while coming up the Willamette ran his ship into a railroad bridge. Disrupted AMTRAK for quite a few months between Portland and Seattle. Well, that ship was towed up-river and repaired at a local shipyard.

You guessed it. On the way back to the sea, that exact same captain ran that exact same ship into the exact same railroad bridge.

Ok, I may have embellished with the the captain part, (not quite sure) but the ship and bridge was true.

hanelyp · Post by **hanelyp** » Sat Jan 28, 2012 3:53 am

DeltaV wrote:Captain bribed by SpaceX?

If SpaceX can deliver anywhere close to their public projections they won't need dirty tricks to clobber the competition.

KitemanSA · Post by **KitemanSA** » Sat Jan 28, 2012 12:16 pm

Dumb question. Where did the "rocket parts" speculation come from?

Ivy Matt · Post by **Ivy Matt** » Sat Jan 28, 2012 12:23 pm

It's in the news. For example, in this article:

The voyage of a cargo boat that carries space rocket components to Florida's coast for NASA and the Air Force has stalled in a western Kentucky river after it slammed into an aging traffic bridge.

KitemanSA · Post by **KitemanSA** » Sat Jan 28, 2012 9:32 pm

Thanks

Normally, the first poster would include that kind of info.

DeltaV · Post by **DeltaV** » Sun Jan 29, 2012 5:46 pm

I didn't know about the ULA connection until it was mentioned above.

Odd connection, given the increasingly disgusting state of the US space program (excluding potential future success by commercial players). Death of a thousand stings?