S'way,
Granted I don't know the definition of 'neocon', obviously not as well as you do. It's not generally something I would read a book on. Frankly I miss-used the term as I tend to call extreme one side or the other talking heads names by generic names.
I get the reference now to Will's article, we are I think on the same page, singing the same song on that issue - sorry I found the reference obscure.
Re: super tankers, I followed your link - it had nothing relating to dwt, just pictures of a tanker being built. Seen 'em before.
I've been in the Gulf many times (3 deployments), seen the tankers before (leaving full, coming back empty) during the first gulf war ( Desert Storm etc..).
Yep, them boats were in fact big. I was on the USS America at the time, CV 66 - which while only a little under 1000 ft long weighed in at a paltry 90k tons or so. Size however is comparable.
I'll stand by my wikipedia reference as I've not been able to find a single reference, anywhere, to ANY single ship over 600,000 tons DWT. I include looking here:
http://supertankers.topcities.com/id19.htm
The Gobtik tankers you refer to were in the 484,000 dwt range and as far as I can tell none are currently in the tanker business.
I did find these referred to:
Battilus 553,662 dwt 1976 - 1985
Bellamya 553,662 dwt 1976 - 1986
Pierre Guillaumat 555,051 dwt 1977 - 1983 largest ship ever constructed as designed
Esso Atlantic 516,000 dwt 1977 - 2002
Esso Pacific 516 dwt 1977 - 2002
Prairial 554,974 dwt 1979 - 2003
Note none are in service at this time.
so googled the name of the biggest and got (in part) this history:
http://www.shipsonstamps.org/Topics/html/tanker.htm
* 1980 Hong Kong ship owner C.Y.Tung’s ‘Seawise Giant’ with 564,839 DWT is the largest tanker and the largest man-made structure in the world. After just two voyages goes into layup and serves as storage vessel later on. Sold to Norway and re-named ‘Jahre Viking’. Specs: Length 1,504’, beam 226’, draft 98’, 260,851 GRT, 13 knots.
* 1980-88 Gulf War between Iran and Iraq, tankers under attack.
* 1984 210 tankers are in layup, representing 43% of the world’s tanker fleet. ULCCs have become uneconomical.
* 1986 To this date 283 VLCCs have been sold for scrap.
* 1987 Supply and demand for tankers have found their balance; oil prices and freight rates are on the increase.
* 1992 Again a surplus of VLCCs on the market. Freight rates sinking again.
* 1996 The 1,000th VLCC is being delivered, the ‘Meridian Lion’. Altogether six vessels with more than 500,000 DWT have been constructed over the last 20 years.
The history went on to say that ULCC's are pretty much not in fashion anymore. It was dated through 2003.
You got something that says since 2003 they not only came back in fashion but are in fact getting even bigger?