Package Freighters

The package freighter, while outwardly similar to the bulk vessel, differs in having a 'tween deck and shell doors. The lower deck, of course, allows much better stowage of diversified cargo and the shell doors allow loading by fork-lift truck or other mechanical means. The older package freighters had a shaft-and-pulley arrangement fitted for handling cargo but these have now disappeared. In these ships a continuous shaft was led from the engine room just clear of the hatches and close up to the deckhead. A friction clutch arranged at each hatch supplied power for a wire hoist for handling cargo from the hold space to the 'tween deck whence it was passed through the shell doors on skids.

Fig. 27 Package Freight City of Windsor

Fig. 27, shows a typical package freighter, the City of Windsor, which operates on a sheduled service between Hamilton and Montreal.

Most of these vessels still have cargo booms fitted although they are now rarely used, most of the freight being handled on pallets or by elevators.

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This paper was presented at a meeting of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers and is reproduced with permission.