Replies to post #74114 on Koil Energy Solutions Inc. (KLNG)

[JoeSmith]

Here is some quick history of the Nekton Alpha

With the help of nephew Craig De Weese and Jim Vernon of General Oceanographics, Doug built the Nekton. In 1968, it was tested to 1,500 feet at the US Navy engineering facility in Port Hueneme. Nekton began diving off California, Hawaii, Alaska and Michigan including in the investigation of the Santa Barbara oil spill and in the rescue of the sub Deep Quest off San Diego.

Following its success, Doug launched Nekton Beta and Nekton Gamma in 1970 and renamed his original Nekton, Nekton Alpha.
http://www.deltaoceanographics.com/dougbio.html

Nekton Alpha manned submersible in Gulf of Mexico 1978
http://www.lostspacecraft.com/work/Underwater-Exploration/uw-%20Exploration_1.html
http://www.lostspacecraft.com/work/Underwater-Exploration/uw-%20Exploration.html

http://busby.psubs.org/html/page-160.html
http://busby.psubs.org/html/page-161.html
http://busby.psubs.org/subs/index.html

For a three year period, he piloted the SCORPIO, TROV, and TREC Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) as well as the Nekton Alpha manned submersible on various underwater missions including coral harvesting (Taiwan), pipeline inspections (Gulf of Mexico), oil production platform inspections (North Sea), and bottom surveys (Mediterranean Sea), and the closure of the Ixtoc I blowout (in the Gulf of Mexico with famed oilwell fire fighter Red Adair).
http://www.lostspacecraft.com/author-long.html

http://freenet-homepage.de/unterseeboot/delta.htm

The caption says gamma, but the sub says beta.
http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/htmls/nur07512.htm

http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/brs/nuind43.htm

Submersible Accidents - Stories of Other Dangers
"Here's a bizarre one. The Nekton Alpha and Nekton Beta with a surface ship were raising a sunken powerboat near Catalina Island, California in 1970. They attached a line to an existing bowline on the boat and moved about 100 yards off to watch the lift. When the powerboat was lifted almost to the surface the bowline broke and the boat glided shallowly and rapidly towards the Nekton Beta, with a steel skeg striking the conning tower of the submersible. The impact shattered an observation port and dazed the pilot Rich Slater. The Beta sank to the bottom and filled with water up to a level where the internal pressure matched the ocean pressure and in a semi-concious state Slater managed to swim to the surface. He was luckily picked up and rushed to shore. His copilot Larry Headlee was found dead on the bottom. Slater survived with ruptured eardrums, cuts and a concussion."
http://sub-log.com/articles/sub-log_articles

http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=5069&page=93