What is missing in the advertising of the specs for the USCGC POLAR STAR is that it is a maintenance hardship. She is in dry dock and year-long maintenance stints more than she is underway lately. We’ll see how she holds up.
Those stats of “handling” 6.5 meters of ice means that it takes a running start, runs atop the ice, the weight of the ship cracks it down, then ship applies astern propulsion to set up to take another 50 meter bite. That takes a very, very long time to go a few kilometers.
I’m with you guys, since 1971 and again tomorrow.
Building 10.