Cable layer

of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1873, renamed CS Silvertown in 1881 A cable layer or cable ship is a deep-sea vessel designed and used to lay underwater cables for telecommunications, for electric power transmission, military, or other purposes. Cable ships are distinguished by large cable sheaves for guiding cable over bow or stern or both. Bow sheaves, some very large, were characteristic of all cable ships in the past, but newer ships are tending toward having stern sheaves only, as seen in the photo of CS Cable Innovator at the Port of Astoria on this page. The names of cable ships are often preceded by "C.S." as in CS Long Lines. The first transatlantic telegraph cable was laid by cable layers in 1857 to 1858. It briefly enabled telecommunication between Europe and North America before misuse resulted in failure of the line. In 1866 the successfully laid two transatlantic cables, securing future communication between the continents.

of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1873, renamed CS Silvertown in 1881]] A cable layer or cable ship is a deep-sea vessel designed and used to lay underwater cables for telecommunications, for electric power transmission, military, or other purposes. Cable ships are distinguished by large cable sheaves for guiding cable over bow or stern or both. Bow sheaves, some very large, were characteristic of all cable ships in the past, but newer ships are tending toward having stern sheaves only, as seen in the photo of CS Cable Innovator at the Port of Astoria on this page. The names of cable ships are often preceded by "C.S." as in CS Long Lines. The first transatlantic telegraph cable was laid by cable layers in 1857 to 1858. It briefly enabled telecommunication between Europe and North America before misuse resulted in failure of the line. In 1866 the successfully laid two transatlantic cables, securing future communication between the continents. ==List of cable ships== , Alaska, June 1911]] Princess Clementine was a passenger ferry, in 1849, installed of cable from the coast of Folkestone to the shoreline of railway telegraph lines. Charles Vincent Walker of the South Eastern Railway Company conceived this cable for to have ship to shore telegraph messages communications. Goliath, the first ship to lay an ocean cable in 1850. Done for the Submarine Telegraph Company across the English Channel. Blazer, the hulk vessel laid the South Foreland and Sangatte cable by Submarine Telegraph Company in 1851. Red Rover in 1851, a steam tug, worked on the South Foreland and Sangatte replacement cable with new section of armored cable. HMS Widgeon in 1851, the vessel provided a slice at sea on the new section cable of South Foreland and Sangatte with the failed rendezvous with Red Rover. (1830–1883), first ship to be permanently fitted out as a cable ship (1852–1870) a converted British warship, involved in the first Ireland and US cabling of 1857. Cable laying began off Ireland's Ballycarbery Castle in County Kerry. During this operation, of cable were stored on each ship, but of cable was lost over a region known as Telegraph Plateau in the North Atlantic with depths nearly . Attempts with USS Niagara failed twice that year and work was abandoned, until next year, both ships met in the mid-Atlantic for spicing of their cables and HMS Agamemnon traveled east towards Valentia Island. Additional breakage in the cable occurred and another attempts to lay the cabling were sort of successful. A failure occurred in the installed cable after a month due to engineer mishandling causing damage. (1855–1885) a converted American warship, worked with HMS Agamemnon on the first US and Ireland cable run attempt failed route of 1857. In 1858, another attempt was done with middle Atlantic splicing meet by both ships, and USS Niagara laying cable as traveled westward towards Newfoundland. Three attempts were done due to further breaks in the cable. After a month of service, the cable became useless when damage was done by an engineer handling. , worked as a cable ship from 1865 to 1870. This paddle wheel steamship vessel was originally made as a passenger ship and performed duties during the interim until being re-fitted as a liner, showboat, and advertising vessel. In 1890, she was scrapped. (1901–1902) custom built-ship used on the 1901–1902, first trans-Pacific telegraph cable by Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company (Telcon.) , built in Newcastle, launched 29 March 1873 for Hooper's Telegraph Works, first cable ship designed to lay trans Atlantic cable, renamed CS Silvertown in 1881. In 1901–1902, operated under CS Silvertown for the first trans-Pacific telegraph cable laying. The cable was from San Francisco, California along Hawaii, Midway, and Guam to Manila, Philippines, and continued undersea along China and Japan. A collaborated effort between two other vessels, CS Anglia and CS Colonia, and the two operating companies of the vessels: India Rubber, Gutta Percha and Telegraph Works Company with Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company. (1901–1902) custom-built ship used on the first trans-Pacific telegraph cable of 1901–1902. The vessels' operator, Telegraph Construction and Maintenance Company (Telcon) collaborated with India Rubber, Gutta Percha, and Telegraph Works Company on the CS Silverton. CS H. C. Oersted, named for Hans Christian Ørsted (1872–1922) built for The Great Northern Telegraph Company 1872, was the first ship specifically designed for cable repair. Scrapped in 1922. CS Seine, maiden voyage 1873 , built in 1874 for Siemens Brothers , the first cable ship ever to be sunk; she was rammed by another ship in the 1870s while laying a cable for the Brazilian Submarine Telegraph Company. , chartered by Siemens Brothers Ltd. from W.T. Henley's Telegraph Works Co. to lay cable between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Chuy, Uruguay to complete work after CS Gomos sunk. Foundered 29 November 1874 in the Bay of Biscay with loss of 58 crew and the cable. during the laying of Brazil and Uruguay cable route for the Brazilian Submarine Telegraph Company, its partner ship, CS Gomos was sunk in the operations by a ramming ship. Afterwards, the CS La Plata was partnered with the CS Ambassador with cable but sunk in Bay of Biscay before working on the completion of the route. The CS Ambassador was able to finish the laying. CS Burnside (1882–1924) British/Spanish/American ship. Built for W. Lund of London and named Yeoman. Ship was planned for an Australian cable laying route and initially named Yeoman. Sold to Spain in 1891, as Rita, and captured by US, renaming as Burnside. Completed work in laying cable in the Philippines after CS Hooker sunk. In 1903, laid the US-Alaska cable from Sitka to Juneau. Scrapped in 1924. CS Monarch (1883–1915) British ship. Second cable ship with the name. Sunk in 1915. CS Mackay-Bennett, in service from 1884 until 1922, and best known for recovering the bodies of the victims of the disaster in 1912 CS Alert (1890–1915), cut important German cables in World War I CS Cambria (1905), sank in Montevideo harbour, Uruguay, in 1945 HMTS Monarch (1916–1945) British ship. Third cable ship with the name. Sunk in 1945. Was to be the second CS Alert. HMTS Alert (1918–1945) Second cable ship with the name. Sunk in 1945. CS Faraday (1923) CS Telconia, in service from 1910 until 1934 HMTS Alert (1945–1960) Third cable ship with the name. Scrapped in 1960. HMTS Monarch/CS Sentinel (1945–1977) British ship. Chartered by AT&T Corp. for operations until CS Long Lines was commissioned for company use. The TAT-1, submarine transatlantic telephone cable system was laid in the 1950s between Clarenville, Newfoundland and Oban, Scotland. Fourth cable ship with the name. Operated in 1956 on TAT-2. Renamed in 1970 as the second CS Sentinel when sold to Cable & Wireless plc. CS Lidiv (Decommissioned 1955) Built for AT&T Corp. for New York Telephone Company use. Decommissioned in 1955 and the CS Cable Queen was the replacement. CS Cable Queen (Built 1951–1952) Built for AT&T Corp. for the Bell System usage by New York Telephone Company. A 65-foot small-scale underwater telephone cable-laying vessel. Decommissioned after 1989 with over 100,000 miles of cable laying. CS Salernum/Charles L. Brown (Built 1954) Built in Italy and named CS Salernum. Dimensions were length as 339.6 ft, breadth as 41.0 ft, depth as 18.5 ft, and gross tonnage at 2,789. Purchased by AT&T Corp. through its subsidiary, Transoceanic Cableship Co., in 1984. Sold by AT&T in 1997 to Tyco International in the AT&T Submarine Systems fleet purchases. The wreck became an artificial reef in the Dutch Caribbean island, Sint Eustatius. CS Long Lines (Built 1961–1963) Built for AT&T Corp. for the 1961 launching, but cable laying assignments began in 1963. The $19 million vessel was 511 feet length and 11,300 tons. Performed the laying of the first trans-Pacific telephone cable, known as TRANSPAC-1 (TPC-1) in 1964. and the first trans-Pacific fiber cable, known as TPC 3. Sold in 1997 to Tyco International. Scrapped in 2003. HMTS Alert (1961) In 1988, was owned by British Telecom when it worked a joint operation with CS Long Lines and CS Vercors on the first transatlantic fiber optic cable, TAT-8. The three cable laying points originated from three telephone companies owned vessels in three countries. Britain was Widemouth Bay, England. CS Mercury (1962–1997) by Cammell Laird & Company, Birkenhead. Built for Cable & Wireless, laid the COMPAC and SEACOM cable systems. CS KDD Maru (1967) Owned by Kokusai Denshin Denwa Company Participated in the joint cable laying of TPC-3 with CS Long Lines. HMTS Monarch (1973–2003) British ship. Fifth cable ship with the name. CS Vercors/Chamarel (1974) In 1988, was owned by France Telecom when it worked a joint operation with CS Alert and CS Long Lines on the first transatlantic fiber optic cable, TAT-8. The three cable laying points originated from three countries and three different telephone company vessels. France was Penmarch, France. Later operated by Orange. The United States point was Tuckerton, New Jersey. The communications transmission capacity reached in 18 months beyond expectations that other lines would be needed within a decade. CS Tyco Provider/Provider 1 (1978) Built in Finland, named, Stakhanovets Yermolenko until March 1998. Became the Tyco Provider until 2003. The vessel was in service in May 2004 and was not docked at a port, according to a log. The renamed ship, as Provider 1, was operated by Allseas Marine Contractors S.A. in the log until June 2005 showed the name of Calamity Jane. Listed in 2019 as Tyco property, under the Marshall Islands. CS Raymond Croze (1982) Used by Orange UK, the vessel was 40 years old in 2022 when a replacement was being planned by Orange Marine, the subsidiary of Orange. New ship launching was planned for 2023 after new vessel would be completed. CS Global Link (Built 1990s) Owned by Transoceanic Cable Ship Co., a subsidiary of the United States–based telephone company, AT&T Corp.. It was a sister ship and identical to CS Global Sentinel. CS Global Sentinel (Built 1992) Maiden voyage from shipyard to Honolulu was February 1992. The 479-foot vessel equipped with bow thrusters, began cable laying operations in early 1992. Owned by Transoceanic Cable Ship Co., a subsidiary of the United States telephone company, AT&T Corp.. CS Global Mariner (Built 1992) Built in Singapore. The vessel was equipped with bow and stern thrusters only and had storage space for up to 4100 nautical miles of cable. Seafaring was done in December 1992 by Seafarers International Union crew. A SIU publication, Seafarers Log, indicated in January 1993 the vessel was the fifth cable ship of the AT&T Corp. fleet. Owned by Transoceanic Cable Ship Co., the subsidiary of the United States AT&T telephone company. CS Cable Innovator (Built 1995) This vessel was built in Kvaerner Masa Shipyard, Turku, Finland for the United Kingdom. The ship was part of Cable & Wireless plc (Marine) Ltd. The C&W fleet was transferred to Global Marine. The length is 476 feet (145 meters) and has a gross tonnage of 14,277. The ship can carry 8,000 tons of cable. CS Responder (2000–2020) Built for Maersk and TYCOM. The vessel was in service on April 24, 2004, when arrived at Hovensa port of the American Virgin Islands, according to a log. In 2016, belonged to KT Submarine. In September 2020, while operating on cable laying off South Korea, the ship caught on fire and sunk. Listed in 2019 as one of the six ships belonging Tyco Telecommunications (TYCOM). The vessel is part of the Reliance-class fleet. CS Reliance (2002) Built in 2002. The vessel is part of the Reliance-class fleet and was in service on May 1, 2004, as was docked at Bristol port, according to a log. Listed in 2019 as one of the six ships belonging Tyco Telecommunications (TYCOM). In 2020, provided the first half of the commercial cable from Perth, Australia, to the middle of the Indian Ocean for Subcom. CS Resolute (2002) The vessel is part of the Reliance-class fleet and was in service in May 2004 and was not docked at a port, according to a log. Listed in 2019 as one of the six ships belonging Tyco Telecommunications (TYCOM) with Marshall Islands. The vessel operates at speed of 14 knots with 40 meters length and has a 21 meters beam. Tonnage is 12,184. There are five main diesel engines on board and cable laying capacity is about 5,465.5 metric tons. CS Dependable (2002) The vessel was in service in May 2004 and was not docked at a port, according to a log. Listed in 2019 as one of the six ships belonging to Tyco Telecommunications (TYCOM). In 2018, Tyco sold, the cable unit subsidiary, TE SubCom, for $325 million to a New York–based private equity firm with the ship assets. Currently used by Subcom, a New Jersey–based company contracted by the U.S. military in laying internet or surveillance cables. In 2021, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded a $10 million-a-year contract to provide undersea cable security with two ships. Subcom selected this ship with the CS Decisive for clandestine operations for laying cables for partnership with the Department of Defense in national security. In 2022, provided the second half of a commercial cable from the middle of the Indian Ocean to Diego Garcia that was started by CS Reliance. Continued to lay the rest of the main cable to Oman. The vessel is part of the Reliance Class fleet. CS Decisive (2003) The vessel is part of the Reliance-class fleet and was in service on May 12, 2004, when arrived at Baltimore port, according to a log. Listed in 2019 as one of the six ships belonging to Tyco Telecommunications (TYCOM). This vessel is part of the U.S. government's first Cable Security Fleet with additionally, CS Dependable, under Subcom ownership. In 2021, U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded a $10 million-a-year contract to provide undersea cable security with two ships. Subcom selected this ship with the CS Dependable for responsibility for maintaining or repairing cables for economic interests with the U.S. Department of Defense partnership. In 2020, provided the first half of the commercial cable from Perth, Australia, to the middle of the Indian Ocean for Subcom. CS Durable (2003) The vessel was in service on May 8, 2004, and set sail from Singapore port, according to a log. Listed in 2019 as one of the six ships belonging Tyco Telecommunications (TYCOM). The vessel is part of the Reliance Class fleet. CS Fu Tai (Built 2007) Built in Spain for offshore construction purposes. Purchased by Chinese S.B.Submarine Systems (SBSS) in 2021 for a retrofit conversion as a cable ship. Launched in 2022 for those cable ship purposes. CS Pierre de Fermat (2014) Used by Orange UK, the vessel was the first new ship built by Orange Marine, since the CS Raymond Croze was launched in 1983 for cable laying. CS MV Lida (Still operating in 2022) South Africa's Mertech Marine owns this cable retrieval ship as of 2022 and planned a retirement of the vessel with an unforeseen replacement date. MV Maasvliet (Built 2023/2024) Launched on January 11, 2024, from Nantong, China shipyards. This cable recovery vessel is a 89.43 metres (293.4 feet) length ship, registered in Netherlands as built, owned, and operated by Netherland companies. Subsea Environmental Services chartered this cargo vessel with diesel-electric engines for cable recovery use. This is one of five designed ships by Conoship International, a Dutch naval architecture firm. By August 2025, the ship had recovered 1,012 kilometers of cable from the defunct TAT-8 fiber undersea communications cable. The cable is being transported to Leixoes port in Portugal, and recycling done in South Africa by Mertech Marine of the cables two metals and two types of polyethylene. ===Royal Navy=== , fifth-rate frigate used in 1845 as a cable ship , 91-gun steam line-of-battle ship used as a cable ship in 1857 as part of the effort to lay the first transatlantic telegraph cable , composite gunboat used briefly as a cable ship in 1915 , coast guard vessel used as a cable ship in 1917 ===US Navy=== 1951–1959 1973–1992 1973–1985 USS Thor (ARC-4) 3 January 1956 to 2 July 1973 USS Yamacraw (ARC-5) 1959–1965 USNS Albert J. Myer (T-ARC-6) 1963–1994 1984–present, only ship in class ==See also== List of auxiliaries of the United States Navy § Cable Repair Ships (ARC) List of ships of the United States Army § Cable laying ships List of international submarine communications cables Optical fiber Submarine communications cable Submarine power cable Pipe-laying ship ==References== ==External links== International Cable Protection Committee Cableships of the World Photos of commercial cable layers C.S. Long Lines History of the Atlantic Cable & Undersea Communications The World's Submarine Telephone Systems (Extensive glossary, review of systems with discussion of ship equipment) South American Cables 1891-1892 Example of detailed description of cable and cable laying late 19th century. "Laying the New Ocean Cable" (Popular Science Dec. 1928, CS Dominia) "Cable Laying Ship Is Floating Wonderland" (Popular Mechanics July 1932) United States Army Signal Corps Scrapbook Related to U.S. cable ship Burnside at Dartmouth College Library "Video: Vessel MV Maasvliet offloading cable recovery (TAT-8 and SMW-3)" Port of Leixões, Portugal in November 2025

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