AMCs

The big subsidised liners made very poor AMCs, they were huge and had
horrendous fuel consumption rates. Most of the ones converted into AMCs
were quickly converted back.

The oil drum flotation device scares me, pack the holds with empty oil
drums and keep her afloat even if torpedoed - apparently it worked quite
well, I think the Americans tried something similar in Viet Nam or Korea
to clear mines - an old merchant packed with polystrene (styrofoam?),
conned from a sprung platform and powered by 'outboard engines'.

The topic verges into Q-Ships, it looks like a merchant but when it
lights up a good radar system you know the missiles cannot be far behind
- we need FT 3 and its sensor rules badly.

Michael