THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS Operating Experience of the Jeff (A) in the Arctic

• Main Author: PH.D. Director, Jack J Edwards
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arctic; Beaufort Sea; Alaska
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.1087.9723; http://proceedings.asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/data/Conferences/ASMEP/83723/V001T02A003-85-GT-127.pdf

ABSTRACT During the winter of 1983-84, the JEFF (A), a selfpropelled air cushion vehicle owned by the U.S. Navy and leased to RMI, operated under a time charter to Sohio Alaska Petroleum Company in the arctic region contiguous to the Beaufort Sea. The purpose of the JEFF (A) operation was to gather engineering data to expand the data base for arctic-use air cushion vehicle design and to provide additional insight into the relationship between air cushion vehicles and the indigenous logistic network. In the process of the data gathering, the JEFF (A) operated for more than three hundred hours from two distinct operational sites, hauled in excess of 1.8 million pounds of oil field support cargo, and participated in the conduct of three discrete engineering test programs. This paper will cover the operational experience of the JEFF (A) during the period, the modification made to the craft to perform in the arctic environment and the lessons learned from the experience. BACKGROUND