Research Charters

The Western Flyer Foundation operates the iconic R/V Western Flyer, a 77’ historic wooden purse seiner that has been beautifully restored as a state-of-the-art research vessel. The Western Flyer is a comfortable and capable platform available to charter for marine research and science education in Monterey Bay and surrounding areas. 

The vessel offers 300’ of deck space, an oceanographic winch with 600 meters of line, a boom and cargo winch capable of 2400 lbs safe working load, and a davit with a Kolstrand 10’’ hydraulic line hauler. Indoor spaces include a deck house with a galley, 11 berths, two toilets, 1 shower, and a dry lab space below deck. 

Research tools onboard include a Seabird flow-through surface seawater system with sensors for temperature, salinity, turbidity, and fluorescence; a Seabird profiling CTD with sensors for salinity, temperature, pressure, oxygen, pH, and fluorescence; a meteorological array  with sensors for visibility, air temperature, humidity, wind characteristics, light characteristics, and more (see spec sheet below), and a Simrad scientific echosounder with a split-beam transducer at 38 Hz & 200Hz. 

For day trips, capacity is 24 people including crew. Number of crew will depend on the operations proposed for the charter. 

For information on pricing, booking, or scheduling, please reach out to charters@westernflyer.org. 

Specifications

PRINCIPAL PARTICULARS
Year Built:	1937 (Rebuilt 2023)	Vessel Type:	Purse Seiner
Built in:	Tacoma, Washington, U.S.	Material:	Wood
Port of Registry:	Monterey, California, U.S.	Hull Planking:	Mahogany
U.S. Coastguard Vessel ID:	236142	Hull Framing:	White Oak
Vessel Call Sign:	WDN9028	Decking:	Douglas Fir
Length:	77 feet	Hull Fasteners:	Non-magnetic Bronze
Gross Tons:	93 GT	Beam Max:	20 feet
Net Tons:	63 N.T.	Draft Max:	8 feet 6 inches
Flag:	U.S.	Bridge Clearance Max:	45 feet
Classification:	Oceanographic Research Vessel (ORV)

PERFORMANCE
Max Speed Diesel:	10 knots	Fuel:	Diesel
Max Speed Hybrid:	8 knots	Fuel Consumption:	8 gal/hour @ 8 knots
Economical Speed:	8 knots	Hybrid Range:	50 nm @ 5 knots10 nm @ 10 knots

MAIN ENGINE/HYBRID & SYSTEMS
Main Engine:	6135 John Deere	Hybrid Drive System:	Transfluid
Main Engine Horsepower:	425 hp	Maximum Hybrid Output:	100 kw
Reduction Gear Box:	6:1	Maximum Hybrid Generation:	100 kw
Fuel Capacity:	2000 gal in 4 tanks	Hybrid Battery Bank:	400 ah/288 volts
Fresh Water:	1200 gal in 2 stainless tanks	Auxiliary Generator:	28 kw
Water Maker:	FCI 1200 gal/24 hr	Steering System:	Kobelt Hydraulic
Hot Water Heater:	30 gal	Main Steering Station:	Hydraulic helm pump + FFU
		Flying Bridge Station	Electronic helm pump + FFU

NAVIGATION & ELECTRONICS
Radar:	48-mile Furuno	Main VHF:	Furuno FM-4850
Chart Plotter:	Furuno TZTL12F (x2)	Second VHF:	Furuno FM-4850
GPS Compass Antenna:	Furuno SCX-21	Handheld VHF:	Icom ICM73
Satellite communicator	Garmin Inreach	AIS vessels tracking:	Furuno FA-170
Autopilot:	Furuno NAVPILOT-711C	Emergency vessel tracking:	Epirb ACR

FIRE FIGHTING & SAFETY
Engine Room:	Halon Fire Boy	Life Rafts:	2 16-person offshore Zodiac
Handheld Fire Extinguishers:	10 total	Life Jackets:	30 USCG type 1
On Deck Fire Fighting:	1 high-output saltwater pump	EPIRB:	ACR
Bilge Pumps:	5 @ 2000 gal/minute	Second Anchor:	85 lb Fortress
Main Anchor	350 lb Forfjord anchor	Second Anchor Scope:	50 feet ½” chain/300 feet ¾” rode
Main Anchor Winch	Kolstrand Drum	Main Anchor Scope	100 feet 1” chain/300 feet ½” cable

ACCOMMODATIONS
Main Cabin:	6 bunk bed style berths1 captain’s stateroom2 sinks & 1 toilet	Below Deck:	4 bunk bed style berths1 sink, 1 toilet & 1 shower
Total Accommodation:	11 persons	Refrigerators:	1 Vitrifrigo on main deck2 Vitrifirigo below deck

RIGGING MAST & BOOM
Mast:	10-inch schedule 40 aluminum	Standing Wire:	¾” 7 x 19 galvanized
Boom:	8-inch schedule 40 aluminum	Cargo Winch:	P.L. 8 wire
Boom Sliding Winch:	P.L. 5 wire	Boom Vang Winch:	P.L. wire
Boom Topping Winch:	P.L. 5 wire

DECK EQUIPMENT  & CAPACITIES
Winch, reel, and cable:	Hydraulic oceanographic winch with 600m line	Deck area	300 square feet
Crane capacity	Main boom and cargo winch – 2,400 lb Safe Working Load

SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENT
Flow-through system	Seabird SBE21 SeaCAT TSG with vortex de-bubbler, SBE38 remote digital oceanographic thermometer, C-Star transmissometer, and WETLabs ECO-FL fluorometer
Meteorological array	Campbell Scientific CR6 datal logger with CS125 Present Weather and Visibility Sensor, ClimaVUE50 weather sensor, IRGASON open-path gas analyzer, Heitronics CT15 IR pyrometer, Vaisala HUMICAP humidity and temperature probe, Apogee SN-500 net radiometer, and VectorNav VN-300 dual GNSS/INS.
Profiling CTD	Seabird SBE19 Plus V2 SeaCAT profiler with 40’’ titanium cage and PDIM/SBE33 Carousel Deck Unit. Includes SBE 43 Dissolved Oxygen sensor, SBE18 pH sensor, WETLabs ECO-FL fluorometer. 1200m depth rating.
Scientific Echosounder	Simrad EK80 Portable Echosounder with ES38-18/200-18C transducer
Observation-Class ROV	Poseidon Robotics Lanai Pro ROV with SPU and hand reel with 250m tether