The Latest Photo Mystery
See the odd-looking vessel in the background? Fred Fry at Maritime Monday 183 and EagleSpeak pass along requests for help with a mystery ship, AERIA.
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If M.E. readers want more information or can help solve the following questions, please refer to the links provided above:
.A) Who knows more about the history and the purpose of this odd-looking vessel?
B) Who knows the where-abouts of this odd-looking vessel?
C) Who can shine a light on the future of this odd-looking vessel?
Why the doctored photo above? M.E. checked the German film industry (E. German past and current) for possible connection to the whale shaped craft. Although my search was fruitless, it did suggest a way to attract your attention with one curiosity,
.Oct. 3, 2009 - Variety - Germans take on 'Moby Dick'
Tele Munchen TV prod toplines William Hurt, Donald Sutherland, Ethan Hawke, Gillian Anderson , and Billy Boyd. At $25.5 million, the TV two-parter is the most expensive production in Tele Munchen’s 40-year history. Unpaid harbor fees for the mystery ship obviously pale in comparison.
Tele Munchen TV prod toplines William Hurt, Donald Sutherland, Ethan Hawke, Gillian Anderson , and Billy Boyd. At $25.5 million, the TV two-parter is the most expensive production in Tele Munchen’s 40-year history. Unpaid harbor fees for the mystery ship obviously pale in comparison.
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Now, the final question is whether the German director will use a mechanical whale or computer-generated animation.
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The always silent and strange way submariners see the juicy mystery ship, of course, is through an imaginary periscope.
Labels: AERIA
posted by Vigilis @ 7:15 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
I'm pretty sure that the hull is originally that of an ice breaker. Look at the shape of the hull forward, obviously that type used to cut through heavy ice.
It appears to me that the hull once belonged to some other type of ship and the top design looks "stealthy" to me.
It certainly has me thinking.
Time will tell, John. We will have to check later.
The best intel I could find was that it allegedly was an experimental East German spy ship, named Aeria. It was acquired by the Russians after Germany reunited, and its now in Torku, Finland.
From other photos of the aft end of the vessel, it has two large bays, and what looks to be a large oval-shaped exhaust port.
Don't know what's going to happen to it. Somebody said something about turning it into a floating casino. Maybe. I don't know. My pessimistic prognostication is that it'll sit there for another 10 years, and then scrapped.
If I had to bet, SonarMan, I think your guesses would be right.
Not a spy ship. Simply attracts too much attention and speculation, the very reasons it was not a successful prototype.
Compare the general shape and dimensions to the 'humpbacks' on Russia's Delta class missile subs.
The attempt to violate strategic arms treaties with arctic-pre-positioned vertical launch tubes was unconvincing, and strategic arms issues rarely get detailed publicity.
The concept had merit - cheaper to build and operate than missile subs, but it failed to ever obtain a credible cover story, so the VTS tubes were never installed.
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