Urho is a Finnish 1975-built icebreaker operated by the state-owned company Arctia.
Urho has a 1976-built sister ship Sisu. In addition, Sweden operates three similar icebreakers: Atle, Frej and Ymer.
Design
Urho is long overall and has a beam of . Fully laden, the icebreaker draws of of water and has a displacement of . When built, the icebreaker had 13 officers and 32 crew with accommodation in the large deckhouse,Auvinen (1980), pp. 204–205. but today operates with a crew of just 23. In addition to its icebreaking duties, Urho was built as a state ship with one accommodation deck dedicated solely for passengers with six large staterooms and a dining room featuring a long 26-person table.
Urho has a diesel-electric power plant consisting of five twelve-cylinder Wärtsilä-SEMT Pielstick 12PC2.5V400 main engines rated at each. Like all Finnish icebreakers built in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, it has four electrically-driven propellers — two in the stern and two in the bow — which have a combined propulsion power of with a stern-biased 60:40 power split. This gives Urho a bollard pull of and ability to break thick ice at a continuous speed of .
History
Development and construction
Urho-class icebreakers were developed together with the Swedish Maritime Administration and Wärtsilä Helsinki Shipyard. The icebreakers were considerably bigger and more powerful than their predecessors to be able to assist even the largest ships expected on both sides of the Gulf of Bothnia during the winter months as well keep the northernmost ports in the Bothnian Bay open through the winter.Kaukiainen (1992), pp. 319–330.
Urho was laid down on 19 December 1973, launched on 30 May 1974, and delivered to the Finnish Board of Navigation on 5 March 1975. It is named after the Finnish president Urho Kekkonen who was also the ship's sponsor.Jääsalo (1980), pp. 204–205.
Career
Notes
References
Bibliography