Freedom Ship

[Admiral Piett]

I'm supposed to do a 45-minute group presentation for my (bleh) humanities class, and my group picked the Freedom Ship. It's supposed to be a "floating city" of about 40,000 residents and 15,000 crew; it's almost a mile long and 25 stories high.

I'd be very interested in hearing qualified opinions on the economic and (especially) engineering viability of this design.

The eenginering of such a thing are a nightmare.Actually nightmare is only
an euphemism.If you want a professional expert go there

http://www.ship-world.com/utbb/Forum2/HTML/000068.html

[Sea Skimmer]

Do you know how they plan to execute maintenaince of the hull?
Removing the modules which form the hull from under the ship and then towing them to a maintenance facility.I do not want to be the person in charge of that.

More likely they would have a sort of cassion which can be attached to a section of hull. That would allow access to a part of the hull at a time. However in ordered to get under all the engines, the thing would be quite huge and require very deep by shealtered waters.

But it would work.

[Sea Skimmer]

I have a new weapon for sinking it as well. For such tasks I favor mammoth missiles. However my current ultimate MiG-21 sized missile wont be able to cope with something this big with 2 shots, it might need 4! That’s unacceptable..


My new missile shall use the XB-70 as it base. Within the central airframe shall be a 35,000-pound long rod penatraitor warhead. This shall have 8000 of high explosives in it, thermal, 3-milimeter radar,, It will have a huge DU nose back up by titanium for penetration through the target. A solid fueled rocket in the rear with vectored thrust provides guidance

The missile fly as a normal B-70 to the target. When it comes within several miles of the ship it will enter a 70-degree dive. The airframe wings and engines will rip away and expose the penatraitor, which will ignite its rocket and aim for the center of the ships mass.

It will punch clear through and out the bottom, then explode in the water under the ship. The blast, equaling of 12 modern torpedoes, will snap the Freedom ship in half. The hail of mach 4+ debris and fuel from what's left of the main airframe will shred what's left.

Launching will be from a specially fitted 250,000-ton ship using an electromagnetic catapult angled up 10 degrees.

Apparently you love ineffcient way of doing things.Take a Collins class SSK
and start to pour Mark 48 torpedoes into the moster.Trust me it is much more cost effective.

Yes I do. However, try interception a 10 knot ship with a sub that when dived is 2 knots slower. Not very easy. The BGMB-70 however would be able to hit the Freedom ship at a range of 4000 miles.

[RayCav of ASVS]

I have a new weapon for sinking it as well. For such tasks I favor mammoth missiles. However my current ultimate MiG-21 sized missile wont be able to cope with something this big with 2 shots, it might need 4! That’s unacceptable..


My new missile shall use the XB-70 as it base. Within the central airframe shall be a 35,000-pound long rod penatraitor warhead. This shall have 8000 of high explosives in it, thermal, 3-milimeter radar,, It will have a huge DU nose back up by titanium for penetration through the target. A solid fueled rocket in the rear with vectored thrust provides guidance

The missile fly as a normal B-70 to the target. When it comes within several miles of the ship it will enter a 70-degree dive. The airframe wings and engines will rip away and expose the penatraitor, which will ignite its rocket and aim for the center of the ships mass.

It will punch clear through and out the bottom, then explode in the water under the ship. The blast, equaling of 12 modern torpedoes, will snap the Freedom ship in half. The hail of mach 4+ debris and fuel from what's left of the main airframe will shred what's left.

Launching will be from a specially fitted 250,000-ton ship using an electromagnetic catapult angled up 10 degrees.

Apparently you love ineffcient way of doing things.Take a Collins class SSK
and start to pour Mark 48 torpedoes into the moster.Trust me it is much more cost effective.

Yes I do. However, try interception a 10 knot ship with a sub that when dived is 2 knots slower. Not very easy. The BGMB-70 however would be able to hit the Freedom ship at a range of 4000 miles.

Or you can simply wait for one of these....

[Azeron]

From what I understand they are just taking a barge design, and building a building on it. Not too sophisticated. doesn't need to be. so they don't run into all of the problems that a reguar shaped hull would.

Batges are simple and don't require drydocks. the big problem are defenses. I hear they want to put in modern anti-missle turrets, probably line the hull with suped up versions of phalanx defense guns. Lets face it, they build it, they arem't going to take it anywhere remotely danerous where they have that kind of tech as well. So warefare is not really an issue.

I hear its going to cost $6 billion to build. that sounds about right. Its rally just a tax haven. Its all the rage these days, 2 weeks ago I had the priviiage to see one of those deals IRL.

take a look at www.chritesgreatestates.com they built a tax haven like this.

NO ONE is actually going to live on one of these things, but it it will make agerat place to headquarter a business. and the perices they are talking are cheap.

[RayCav of ASVS]

NO ONE is actually going to live on one of these things, but it it will make agerat place to headquarter a business. and the perices they are talking are cheap.

Damn, and I was hoping some beautiful teenage rich bitch would go down with it....

[Master of Ossus]

I think that they are actually stupid enough to build the thing, but it will be one of the largest financial disasters in history. Why the hell would I want to live on the thing? Rich people can just buy their own boats, and poor people usually don't have years to spend off. Plus, a ship is simply not a good place to live. It is confining and cramped. And while you're out over the oceans, there is NOTHING to look at. If I had to guess, I'd say that they will build the thing and find that the project costs are far above those expected. Then they will find out how few people actually want to live on the thing, and will realize that it was a crappy idea from day one.

[RayCav of ASVS]

I think that they are actually stupid enough to build the thing, but it will be one of the largest financial disasters in history. Why the hell would I want to live on the thing? Rich people can just buy their own boats, and poor people usually don't have years to spend off. Plus, a ship is simply not a good place to live. It is confining and cramped. And while you're out over the oceans, there is NOTHING to look at. If I had to guess, I'd say that they will build the thing and find that the project costs are far above those expected. Then they will find out how few people actually want to live on the thing, and will realize that it was a crappy idea from day one.

Or, more accurately.....

[Admiral Piett]

From what I understand they are just taking a barge design, and building a building on it. Not too sophisticated. doesn't need to be. so they don't run into all of the problems that a reguar shaped hull would.

Batges are simple and don't require drydocks. the big problem are defenses. I hear they want to put in modern anti-missle turrets, probably line the hull with suped up versions of phalanx defense guns. Lets face it, they build it, they arem't going to take it anywhere remotely danerous where they have that kind of tech as well. So warefare is not really an issue.

Mr Azeron,do you have the palest idea of the stress the hull would undergo during a storm?And do you really believe that the hull does not need painting/maintenance from time to time?Read the link I have posted.He,who is a naval architect ,clearly demonstrates that such a ship requires a massive eenginering effort.
Actually the construction tequineques proposed for the hull,watertight cells hold together by bolts is far from simple.The stress posed over the bolt is a big problem.And this is only one of the many hundreds of problems of the design.
Probably the simulation programs currently used for cruise liners do not even have the digits to simulate this monster...

[Enlightenment]

A naval engineer I'm vaguely aquainted with on Usenet is of the opinion this thing is basically unbuildable and that the 'designers' are seriously lacking a clue.

I tend to agree.

All things considered, 'Scamship' might be a much better name.

[Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi]

I seem to agree with you people now. It is a dumb idea. If people want to waste money to put people on a cramped, boring place, they should just make a fixed city in the sea. People can take a few days on such a ship, but after several years, everyone would either have gone insane, or be from the ship sinking, and billions of your tax dollars down the drain (literally). And another thing: Where would it dock? When large ships like the Queen Mary were built, they had to wait until a pier large enough to accomodate it was built, and we're talking about something 4 times as long now!

[Admiral Piett]

Well it cannot be described exactly as cramped.
No docking,the ship will be resupplied at sea.People will go aboard her by aircraft helos or small boats (she has some piers inside).
I do not think that it is unbuildable but it is a far cry from "it is just an oversized cruise ship".It would require a massive engineering effort .And I do not think that that company is up to the task.

[MKSheppard]

I think it could be done within the next 50 years if technology keeps advancing
and composite material becomes as cheap as normal steel.

Right now, it's too big.....sort of how skyscrapers were impossible
before the iron girder framework was invented....

[Raxmei]

Wouldn't it be cheaper and more practical just to build a fleet of normal cruise ships? Or buy and evacuate New Zealand?

[TrailerParkJawa]

This thing is a boondoggle. Engineering aside, who I dont see any demand to live on something like this. The whole thing feels like a .dot com plan at sea.


As to destroying the ship, I think about its fire fighting capability. A single small missle certainly wont sink it, but could a ship like that deal with the fire?

[Sea Skimmer]

All things considered, 'Scamship' might be a much better name.

Considering the Corporate HQ ideas floating around..

[Master of Ossus]

How much money are they planning to spend on this thing? And where is the demand?

[IRG CommandoJoe]

Damn, and I was hoping some beautiful teenage rich bitch would go down with it....

Why? Do you like nasty-looking teenage poor bitches better? LOL

[RayCav of ASVS]

Damn, and I was hoping some beautiful teenage rich bitch would go down with it....

Why? Do you like nasty-looking teenage poor bitches better? LOL

heh, that was actually funny for some reason

[IRG CommandoJoe]

(Finishes waving hand at RayCav's face Jedi-like.)

You will laugh at my jokes.

That's why.

[RayCav of ASVS]

(Finishes waving hand at RayCav's face Jedi-like.)

You will laugh at my jokes.

That's why.

Anyway, are there any serious plans to have ANYBODY live on this piece of floating scam shit?

[IRG CommandoJoe]

IMO, only CEOs and people like would live there, besides all of the people working aboard the ship too. I think it would be pretty cool to live on that thing. We could have our own private navy, a few fighters, and gunships to fend off pirates and terrorists. LOL Assuming it could hold up against a storm, it'd be prety cool to live on.

[RayCav of ASVS]

IMO, only CEOs and people like would live there, besides all of the people working aboard the ship too. I think it would be pretty cool to live on that thing. We could have our own private navy, a few fighters, and gunships to fend off pirates and terrorists. LOL Assuming it could hold up against a storm, it'd be prety cool to live on.

Sounds like someone best listen to their own sig

[IRG CommandoJoe]

lol