The series was produced from 1967 to 1970 in sixteen units. The type IV and type X ships previously used by the DSR mainly for the Asian service had proven themselves, but were to be replaced by new, more modern types of ships. In cooperation with DSR, the new building department at Warnowwerft designed the XD type, especially for liner services to the Far East, Southeast Asia and India. Later the ships were also used in global tramping . The ships of the series were all canceled after an average service life of around 25 to just over 30 years. None was lost at sea.
On March 1, 1966, construction began on the Rostock , the first ship and namesake of the series. She was launched on December 12, 1966 with hull number 201 and was handed over to the Deutsche Seereederei on June 30, 1967. On July 22, 1967, the Rostock began her maiden voyage under the leadership of Captain Gerhard Prill. The round trip around the Cape of Good Hope to India lasted 178 days and ended again in Rostock on January 10, 1968. At this point, nine other type XD freighters had already launched. After the maiden voyage, Captain Prill reported consistently positive about the ship's new remote bridge control, the design of the holds and hatches and the 60-tonne heavy lift gear. Rostock, based in Rostock , was operated by DSR until 1990 and canceled as Aqaba Express in Alang on August 3, 2000 .
The last ship in the series was the Neubrandenburg, handed over on June 22, 1970, with the hull number 216. The Neubrandenburg was first renamed in 1991 in Piti Metz and on October 26, 1999 it was broken off as Brandenburg in Alang .
technology
Type XD freighter leaving Rostock
The ships were propelled by a two-stroke diesel engine of the type K8Z 70 / 120E manufactured by the manufacturer VEB Dieselmotorenwerk Rostock under MAN license, which delivered its output of 8238 kW at a maximum speed of 140 rpm directly to a fixed propeller. They were the first ships from GDR shipyards to have an automated machine system and thus enable guard-free operation. The monitoring of the tank fill levels could also be carried out automatically. This automation enabled a crew of only 36 men, which after training could be reduced to 32 men.
The hulls, which were joined together in sectional construction, were provided with a bulbous bow on the last three ships . The accommodations were air-conditioned.
The ship type had five holds. The ships of the XD series had a hold volume of 16,342 m³ grain space and 14,943 m³ ball space. The ships had up to 330 m³ of refrigerated cargo space for the refrigerated cargo. Furthermore, two polyester-coated sweet oil tanks with a capacity of 511 m³ were available. The cargo gear of the ships consisted of six 3/5 t and four 5/8 t booms , a 3.2 / 5 t crane and a 60 t heavy lift boom.
The ships of the series
Type XD ships
Building name
Build number
IMO number
delivery
Later names and whereabouts
Rostock
201
6710633
June 30, 1967
1990 Pauline Metz , 1993 Berytus , 1995 Metz Beirut , 2000 Aqaba Express , demolition from August 3, 2000 in Alang
1991 baby , 1992 Magdeburg , demolition from October 28, 1999 in Alang
Neubrandenburg
216
7014086
June 22, 1970
1991 Piti Metz , 1993 Brandenburg , demolition from October 1999 in Alang
Lloyd's Register, Equasis, large tonnage
literature
Erhard Bensch: Partly automated liner cargo ships of the XD type . In: Yearbook of shipping . transpress Verlag, Berlin 1969, 1969, pp.92-108 .
Detlefsen, Gert Uwe: VEB Deutsche Seereederei Rostock . German shipping companies Volume 23rd 1st edition. Author collective Verlag, ISBN 3-928473-81-6 .
Neumann, Manfred; Strobel, Dietrich: From the cutter to the container ship. Ships from GDR shipyards in text and images . 1st edition. VEB Verlag Technik, Berlin 1981.
Gerhard Prill: Ships from GDR shipyards in text and images . In: Sammwerk Seeverkehr . No. 7. VEB Verlag Technik, Berlin 1981.
