BACKGROUND AND OPERATIONS OF THE HUNGARIAN-DANUBE SEA NAVIGATION COMPANY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T00246A001100350001-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 11, 2007
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: March 29, 1957
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100350001-0
SEE BOTTOM OF PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL SPECIAL CONTROLS, IF ANY -1 1
C-O }' -I -D E-N T-I A-L
INFORMATION REPORT
This material contains information affecting the
National Defense of the United States within the.
meaning of the Espionage Laws, Title 18, U.S.C.
PREPARED AND DISSEMINATED BY
Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation
of which in any manner to an unauthorized per.
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
son is prohibited by law.
COUNTRY
Hungary
SUBJECT
DATE DISTRIBUTED
Mar 57
Background and Operations of the Hungarian-
NO. OF PAGES
NO. OF EAIG 1
LL_1~
Danube Sea Navigation Company
SUPPLEMENT TO REPORT # 25X1
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
1.
Following the conclusion of World War II the shipping company knowp 3
as Magyar-Szovjet Hautozasi Rt (Meszhart) was originated as a
Hungarian-Soviet combine. On 1 Jan 52 (possibly 1 Jan 53) the
Danube Sea Navigation Company (Detert) and the Hungarian River
Navigation Company (Mahart) were founded from Meszhart, which then
went out of existence. The major difference between Detert and
Mahart is that ships of Mahart travel from Austrian river ports and
from Budapest down the Danube river as far as Izmail and Reni and do
not go into the high seas. Detert, on the other hand, operates
ships directly from Budapest and, in some cases from Czechoslovakian
Danube River ports, to the Eastern Mediterranean and to areas such
as Albania. Detert ships carry no local Danube river cargo, but
cargo from Hungary to various foreign ports is transported by them.
Mahart, on the other hand, carries only local Danube River cargo.
2.
Detert's history as an operating company dates back to before World
War II. It was first organized about 1936 as an operating company and
it then had more ships than today. Its first ship was the "Budapest"
and eventually a total of seven vessels was acquired before World War
II. Due to the war-time acquisition of its ships by the German military
services, Detert went out of existence about 19k2.H When Meszhart was
organized after the war Detert was not then in existence as a private
company and al.1 of its assets had been taken over by the government
under Hungary's nationalization laws.
3.
At the present time Detert is not a private shipping company but
operates seagoing vessels as an agent for Mahart. Mahart is the
general name applied to all of Hungary's shipping activities, including
water transportation on lakes, rivers and seas. Thus, a part of
Mahart is Detert which is engaged in deep-sea navigation as compared
to river shipping. The head of Mahart is superior to Detert's chief
although Detert's personnel are usually left alone to direct its
activities. As of November 1956, Detert operated deep-sea vessels,
as indicated below:
-O-Nr_iDTN-T=I-AdL I
STATE ARMY NAVY
FBI
Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100350001-0
 Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100350001-0
Name Year Built Weft Tons Horsepower
MS Debrecen 1939 1,226
MS Budapest 1933 or 526
1934
MS Tisza 1938 1,220
MS Balaton 1956 1,250
MS Beke 1955 1,250
MS Szeged 1936 61.,
800
500
800
800
800
360
All of the above vessels were built in Budapest by the Ganz and
Company (Gheorghiu Dej) shipyard and all are diesel-powered except
the MS Szeged which is diesel-electric. The MS FAlaton and the
MS Bake, the two newest ships, were built as special seagoing vessels
and were not designed to travel upriver to Budapest; instead, Braila,
Rumania, is considered to be their farthest up-river port of call.
5. Hungarian river tugs are all oprated by Mahart although before
Mabart's existence tugs were under Meszbart's supervision. About
the only area on the Danube where tugs are used to assist river travel
is the Iron Gate area. Here, tugs are used between Turnu Severin and
Drenkova, although occasionally tugs assist vessels as far upstream
as Moldova Nova. Through the Iron Gate the current of the Danube is
quite fast and somet,ijss reaches speeds of 12 to 14 miles per hour so
that the service of tugs is often required.
6. Mahart e 1 s about two thousand
in Mahart's head office at Budapest there are dbout 160 employees.
Mahart has many other offices and has shore-based personnel in each
port served by it so the total number of employees ashore is difficult
to estimate. Detert has a total of 130 personnel aboard its various
ships, averaging from 20 to 22 aboard each vessel, including the
captain. Shore-based personnel for Detert numbers but 16; all are at
Budapest where Detert's only office is located. Monthly salaries
paid Detert's employees afloat are as follows: captains, 1,600
forints; officers and engineers, 1,300 forints; under-officers, one
thousand forints; sailors, AB's, cooks and others, 700 to 800 forints.
The director of Detert received two thousand forints monthly and the
average salary of shore-based personnel is about one thousand forints
per month.
7. the general condition of Detert's fleet, excepting
or ? 5 Balaton and the MS Beke, the last vessels built, is that
each ship is from 65% to 70% of the operating efficiency of a new
vessel. Every year some repairs are made to each of its various ships.
On the average, each Detert ship spends one month per year in a ship-
yard for repairs although on occasion some vessels might spend as long
as three months in shipyards due to heavy work loads and slow repair
facilities.
8. Vessels under Detert on a usual outbound voyage require an average of
4-ffl to five days to travel from Budapest to Istanbul, where they remain
for from two to three days. From Istanbul to Izmir, also in Turkey,
requires about 32 hours time underway. After a one day's stay in Izmir
vessels proceed to Beirut, requiring from 22 to three days for this
voyage. Following a stopover of one to two days at Beirut Detert's
ships then head for Alexandria which is reached in 12 days. Alexandria
is usually the voyage?s terminal point and vessels remain there from
three to four days. From Alexandria the ships usually return directly
to Budapest, requiring about two weeks for the trip home. Turn-around
time in Budapest varies between seven and 10 days. Based on this
C -O-N F-I D E T-I.A-L
25X1
25X1
Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100350001-0
 Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80T00246A001100350001-0
schedule, the shortest voyage, if all goes well, requires about five
weeks during the summer while an average voyage takes between six and
seven weeks, assuming that there is a sufficient height of water on
the Danube. During the summer months of July,. August and September
the Danube is at low water and Detert's vessels go either to Constants
or to Braila where Budapest cargo is transhipped.
9. The rate of loading and unloading cargo for Datert's ships depends to
a great deal on the cargo and the type of cranes of derricks employed.
On a usual outbound voyage from Budapest general cargo is carried and
it is loaded by shore cranes at an average loading-rate of about 22
tone per hour. Unloading of general cargo by the ship's derricks is
done at an average rate of 10 tons per hour. Cotton, which is usually
loaded at Alexandria for the return voyage, is normally handled by two
gangs and can be loaded by them at the rapid rate of 50 tons per hour.
Unloading of cotton is normally performed at Budapest by shore cranes
and is done very fast.
10. The MS Balaton was built for Detert as an addition to Detert's fleet;
I I In addition to the Balaton the Ganz and Company shipyard at 25X1
Budapest bas built 74 ships similar to it, plus 56 other vessels,
including to boats and ats, which were given to the USSR as 25X1
reparations. I I all of the Balaton-type vessels which
were given to the Soviets were routed via the Suez to the For Best
where they are based at Vladivostok and the Sa lin Islands. 25X1
25X1
an engineer for the Ganz shipyard had made two 25X1
trips aboard ilaton-type vessels to Vladivostok when the vessels were
delivered to the Soviets and he had then flown back to Budapest.
25X1
3.1. Vessels of one thousand and over gross tons do not always terminate
their voyages at Budapest; the determining factor is the amount of
water in the Danube river. Icing conditions are such that the last
voyage on the Danube is made about Christmas and voyages are resumed
about the middle of February. One reason for suspending travel on the
Danube In winter is that many buoys and river markers, particularly
near the Iron Pate, are removed before the river ice damages them.
During the summer months when the Danube is at low water stage, or if
a very heavy cargo is being shipped, transhipment to large vessels is
made at Braila or at Galati. Of the two ports, Braila is used about
95% of the time. During the winter Constants is used as a river
transhipment port but, during the past year (1956), Detert began to
tranship during the winter months, particularly with the MS Balaton
and other large seagoing ships, at Trieste or Fiume (Rijeka). Apparently,
transhipment to these ports will increase in the future.
12. Detert's ships have carried cargo for Hungary, Rumania and Czechoslovakia
and, more lately, for West Germany. If there is sufficient water in
the Danube its vessels can travel up as far -+s Komarno, Czechoslovakia.
Generally, though, most Czech cargo is transhipped at Braila from Detert's
ships into Czech lighters which are then towed up the Danube by tugs.
The usual tow consists of from five to six lighters, each of a thousand
tons, and the voyage from Braila to Kcmarno requires about one month.
The best tow time between these two ports is about three weeks. - 25X1
13-
JOutbound vessels from Budapest are always fully 25X1
loaded and never leave in ballast. But many times Detert's vessels
travel in ballast between Beirut and Alexandria, or from Alexandria to
various Turkish ports. As most Detert vessels have no ballast tanks
sand ballast is usually loaded at Beirut for the voyage to Alexandria
Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80T00246A001100350001-0
 Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100350001-0
4
and from there to the various Turkish ports.
14. there are no tramp vessels nor is there
tramp service under the Hungarian flag. Detert itself operates on a
regularly scheduled service.
 Approved For Release 2007/05/11 : CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100 1-0
ApproTed For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-RDP80T00246AO01100350001-0
 all
Ei
EE o
'" r? ov a
A
O
o.
~.
ni
D
t4 qb 2% Qr%
a
a
ao
t
Q4
1
t.
f
r
Aooroyed_For Release 2007/0,5,(.11: CIA-RDP80TOO246AO01100350001-0
Approved For Release 2007/05/11: CIA-