A fleet of Greek gods and giants

Text and photo: Sveinung W. Jensen, Tellus Kommunikasjon

- They must be strong and therefore wear warrior names. All boats have names that begin with the first letter of the alphabet, which makes them easy to find together in digital ship searches, says John W., Nilsen, general manager of FFS.

It started already in 2010. A new tugboat was purchased, and it had to have a name.

- I DESIDED me then to give the boats a holistic profile. This was before we started using FFS in front of all the tugboat names, Nilsen says.

Partly inspired by the Norwegian Salvage Company, a Norwegian pioneer company in salvage, he chose to use names from Greek mythology.

- The first boat was named Achilles. Then the others came in turn, says Nilsen.

THE NAMES not selected at random.

- We usually look at the size and function of the boat, and try to give it a suitable name. For example, FFS Amon was chosen as the name of a boat that would work towards renewable energy. And the largest boat in our fleet is FFS Arion, named after the horse Arion, explains the FFS commander, who rejects any speculation that he is studying Greek mythology in his spare time.

- No, neither religion nor Greek mythology is something I am very interested in, Nilsen smiles.

IN MARCH 2017 he experienced his own Greek tragedy, when FFS Achilles ground support on Nordre Lamholmflua on the way to Farsund. The crew of three was rescued before the boat sank.

- I want to use the Achilles name again. But it's a little early yet. I have to wait another couple of years, says Nilsen.

Here is a guide to today's FFS fleet:

ATLAS means "the one who endures" and is a titan in Greek mythology. The Titans were immortal giants of incredible strength. Atlas participated in the Titans' battle against the gods. Zeus, the king of the gods, punished him by letting him carry the firmament on his shoulders.

ATHOS is one of the giants. He is best known for the establishment of Mount Athos, a mountain and peninsula in northern Greece, which is an important center of Eastern Orthodox monastism. There are two versions of the creation myth about the mountain.

ARION in Greek mythology is a horse with wings and human feet that could speak. It is also said that he is immortal.

AMARANTH (US) was a hunter on the island of Euboea and the son of King Abas. He clashed with the god Artemis after insulting Poseidon, and was transformed into an immortal flower - amaranth.

AMON is a storm god, who eventually becomes a national god and takes over the function of the sun god. He is then portrayed as the author of the world, maintaining and protecting. Amon means "the hidden" or "invisible".

ACHILLES is the greatest warrior and a protagonist of Homer's epic Iliad. He is the ideal of youth and beauty, manliness and chivalry. He is celebrated in poetry and is frequently depicted in art.

ARGO means fast / fast and was the ship according to Greek mythology that the hero Jason and his crew, the Argonauts, used to sail from Iolkos in Thessaly and to Kolkis to claim the golden skin. The ship was named after the shipbuilder Argos.

ATHENA is a goddess of war who was associated with wisdom, strategy and knowledge. According to myths, she is the daughter of the supreme god Zeus.