CLEATS A cleat is a device consisting of a double-ended pair of projecting horns used for belaying a line or wire. BITTS Bitts are heavy vertical cylinders, usually arranged in pairs, used for making fast lines that have been led through chocks. The upper end of a bitt is either larger than the lower end or is fitted with a lip to keep lines from slipping off accidentally. As bitts are required to take very heavy loads, extra frames are worked into their foundations to distribute the strain. Usually there is a set of bitts forward and aft of each chock When constructed in pairs, each bitt is sometimes called a barrel. CHOCKS A  chock is a heavy fitting with smooth surfaces through  which  mooring  lines  are  led.  Mooring  lines  are run from bitts on deck through chocks to bollards on a pier when the ship is moored. There are three types of chocks: An open chock is a mooring chock that is open at the top. A closed chock is a mooring chock, closed by an arch of metal across the top. A roller chock is a mooring chock that contains a roller for reducing friction. PAD EYES A pad eye is a plate with an eye attached, welded to the deck to distribute the strain over a large area and to which a block can be hooked or shackled. A pad eye is also  used  in  towing  operations. BOLLARDS A bollard is a strong cylindrical upright on a pier, over which the eye (or bight) of a ship’s mooring line is placed. ACCOMODATION  LADDERS LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Define accommo- dation ladder. Identify the construction and use of  the  accommodation  ladder. Ships are fitted with accommodation ladders that can be rigged and lowered over the side. These ladders provide a convenient means for boarding or leaving an anchored vessel. Some accommodation ladders can be modified for use on a pier or barge. Large   Navy   ships   have   forward   and   after accommodation ladders, two on the starboard side and two on the port. If more than one ladder is rigged, the forward accommodation ladder is the quarterdeck and reserved for officers and ceremonies. The after ladder is used by work details and crew liberty parties. Some aircraft carriers are fitted with an accommodation ladder in their transom (on the stern of the ship). The  accommodation  ladder,  figure  4-18,  has  an upper and lower platform that is connected by the ladder and supported by either a chain or wire bridle and bail hanging by a pendant. Another method is the use of a metal bail shaped like an elongated upside down letter U which holds the ladder by a pendant rigged to the side of the ship or from a J-Bar davit. The lower platform of the accommodation ladder has additional parts that must be rigged. An H-Frame equipped with fenders is rigged to the outboard side of the lower platform. This H-Frame is where boats can come alongside to pick up or discharge passengers. The inboard side of the lower platform is fitted with ports called shoes, that when rigged hold the ladder in the proper position off the side of the ship. The shoes have pads attached to their ends to help prevent damage to the ship  or  the  ladder.  The  lower  platform  also  has turnbuckles,  and  in  some  cases,  pendants  to  restrict  the fore and aft movement of the ladder. The upper platform is supported by a brace known as a wishbone. A single-sheave block is attached to the underside of the forward outboard comer of the upper platform. A line is rigged through this block which acts as a sea painter to keep a boat alongside in position with the accommodation ladder. A toggle between the strands of the line prevents the line from running up into the block and becoming inaccessible to a boat. There may be some accommodation ladders made of steel still in service, but for ease of handling, the Navy  has  changed  to  aluminum. When  an  accommodation  ladder  is  secured  for  sea, everything is rigged in, disassembled in most cases, and stowed in brackets either on the rail or along a section of the superstructure. All of the smaller portable parts are stowed in a gear locker close to where the ladder is rigged. Care must be taken so that this essential gear is not carried off for other purposes. When an accommodation ladder is rigged, the first you must do is follow the ship's plans. You should make 4-18