Carrier Ship

a fishing vessel that processes and transports to port the catch (fish or other marine products, for example, shrimp or squid). The fish and other marine products are caught by catching vessels, which remain on board the carrier ship en route to the fishing grounds. Such a piggyback arrangement cuts down on the time needed to move the fleet to the fishing grounds and to deliver the catching vessels to distant areas. In the fishing grounds, the carrier ship launches the catching vessels, which are equipped for independent fishing. It directs the operations of the vessels and provides fish-finding services. If fishing is poor, the carrier ship can lift the fishing vessels on board in a comparatively short period of time and move to other grounds.

In contrast to factory ships, carrier ships have fish-finding equipment and special devices for carrying, launching, and lifting the catching vessels. The ships can remain at sea for three or four months. In 1972 the USSR built the world’s largest carrier ship, the Vostok, which was designed for independent operation in fishing grounds 10,000–12,000 km away from the base ports. The displacement of the Vostok is 43,400 tons, the overall length is 224 m, the power of the main gas turbine is 19 megawatts, and the speed is 18.5 knots (about 34 km per hour). The crew of the ship is 500 men. The Vostok carries 14 catching vessels, each with five-man crews. The catching vessels are outfitted for bottom and midwater trawling and for purse seining. They also have equipment for fishing with light. A carrier ship can process as much as 300 tons of fish a day.