U.S. Navy Towing Manual

Modern Navy towing, as we perceive it today, began at the beginning of World War Ii. Prior to Wwii, the Navy owned few salvage ships of its own and depended heavily on contracted assets to perform the duties of towing and salvage. Merritt-Chapman and Scott was one of the premier towing and salvage contractors of the day and maintained an inventory of assets. They held a contract with the Navy to perform ship salvage on an asneeded, no cure-no pay basis. As the Us watched the war in Europe develop, the need for specialized vessels and a dedicated service became apparent. The Royal Navy of Great Britain was forced into performing these tasks as German U-boats inflicted damage throughout the military and commercial fleet. Performing towing and salvage services on damaged vessels was most often a faster and cheaper way of putting the necessary tonnage back into service.