The Little Giant? Is there a meaning with this phrase … OK! Don’t worry about that for now.
Can you remember an army parade? When the army vehicles and equipment show their colors, we can see threatening tanks with huge badass turrets, smooth and sharp planes like eagles with homing missiles, and gigantic navy ships with more firepower than targets to shoot.
When it’s coming to a battle or something related to the armed forces activities like missions, they need backup like supplies and support when it’s going over and at the beginning. It means the armed forces need both fire and non-firepower. When both sides get together it is easier to make victories.
If we talk about the Navy, they work with actually gargantuan navy ships. And here comes the tugboats for the support. Tugboats pull and guide larger vessels through narrow passages. They might assist other ships in navigating canals, channels or entering a port. Tugboats often work with barges, helping them sometimes dock or leave port.
When it comes to the US Navy, they have a tiny thing, but making real support in the form of a tugboat. And this thing is the smallest tugboat in the US Navy. Also, this is adorable.
Nowadays, on the World Wide Web, this little kiddo could be an attraction about his journey because people are curious to find, who might be the smallest boat currently working in the US Navy. You can ask anyone…
Who might be the tiniest boat currently working in the US Navy?
The answer will be Dozer Boat or Boomin’ Beaver depending on who you ask.
When talk about the size of that tiny ship, it is around 16–19 feet long (though some of its kin can be as big as 40 feet long), making it roughly the size of a Ford F-150, except a bit more powerful than a Ford F-150
As Marine Link says, this particular mini-tug aka Dozer Boat was built by the company Chuck’s Boat and Drive. It was commissioned by the US Navy to build a bit shy of 40 of these small tugboats to help move ships and submarines and to perform other security duties.
Initially constructed for the logging industry, these tugs were primarily tasked with transporting substantial loads of 30,000 pounds of logs along rivers. Interestingly, their design later proved to be a valuable asset for the US Navy, serving as versatile support vessels.
Whatever the size, doesn’t matter for this kid. It has Cummins QSM 11, a 10.7-liter turbocharged inline 6-cylinder diesel engine. It is enough to reach around 425 horsepower and 1,800 lb-ft of torque. It could be able to pull a submarine or a vessel that is hundreds of times its weight.
Reportedly constructed with a 1/4 inch steel hull, the thickness increases to 3/4 inch in specific regions of the tugboat. This reinforced design stems from its original purpose of log pulling, where the risk of potential damage to the hull from logs necessitated an additional protective measure.
Also, those tugboats requires low maintains and fewer resources and don’t need a lot of crew to handle. And that isn’t the only reason why the US Navy decided to recruit these ships for work, because they are more cost-effective than traditional tugs.
In addition to guiding submarines and ships, it also has the task of pulling protective barriers around the water part of the navy base. Think about that it’s just like opening a gate for cattle to move in and out. Doesn’t matter the size of it, don’t underestimate its importance, it plays a huge role in towing and steering nuclear submarines.
If you are interested on tugboats, you have to be on the lookout for one in one of these auctions…
Unfortunately, the US Navy is going to say goodbye to these tugboats. There’s one quite recently. It was sold to the highest bidder through an auction for US $100,025.
And, Now you know the meaning of The Little Giant. Someone can say it is a tragedy or some kind of sad story about this little kiddo. Actually it’s depend on you!
The US Navy’s smallest tugboat, affectionately known as the “Dozer Boat” or “Boomin’ Beaver,” may be tiny, but it plays a crucial role in supporting larger vessels and submarines. Originally designed for the logging industry, these nimble tugboats have proven to be versatile assets for the Navy, efficiently guiding ships through narrow passages and performing various security duties. Despite their size, these mini-tugs boast a powerful Cummins engine, capable of towing vessels hundreds of times their weight. The reinforced steel hull, designed for log pulling, reflects their resilient nature. Not only are these tugboats cost-effective with low maintenance requirements, but they also require minimal crew to operate. However, the US Navy is bidding farewell to these reliable workhorses, with recent auctions marking the end of their service.
