The above photos are from Gordon
Masse and were taken in the middle 1960's. ( Just click on the photo(s) for a larger view) The first photo shows the Moctobi burying her
bow into heavy seas on the tail end of a typhoon. The next two photos are
from 1966. They were taken from the deck of the Moctobi and show the
Liberian freighter Rockport floundering and finally sinking beneath the
waves under a load of iron ore. The Moctobi was in attendance but there
was nothing that could be done to prevent or save the stricken vessel from
her fate beneath the waves of the Pacific. The first two photos in the
second row were taken in 1965 from the boat deck of the Moctobi. The ship
in the distance is the USS Sacramento AOE-1. The Moctobi was in the
process of an UNREP (underway replenishment of supplies). The first photo
is from a distance. In the top of the photo can be seen the hull, I think
of the ships whaler (small boat) In the second photo you can see the
inhaul and outhaul lines strung across the water between the ships. This
is a rope/line pulley system that allows the vessels to transfer supplies
between the two ships while underway. It is powered by sailors pulling and
heaving on the lines. The course and speeds must be matched in order to
pull this off. The Sacramento is a GIANT when compared to the Moctobi. The
3rd photo on the second row was taken in Hong Kong in mid 1965. Note the
dress ship flags. The large vessel behind the Moctobi looks like a
converted aircraft carrier, probably British. Great photos Gordon.
