fishing trip in Bermuda waters. But with a hull capable of holding some 60,000 pounds (30 tons) of fish, the trip was not exactly a resounding success.

The Miami-registered ship was given Government permission to fish within the Island's 75-mile exclusion zone in order to determine whether long-line fishing would be a viable industry for Bermudians.

Crew members, Department of Fisheries officials and several local fishermen worked quickly in the wind and rain to ready the fish for its 5 p.m. flight to Dulles Airport near Washington DC.

Each fish was weighed and tagged before being packed in layers of crushed ice in plastic-lined cartons.

The ship's skipper Capt. Junior Cross said about 2,000 pounds of swordfish and 1,000 pounds of albacore were taken during their three-day trip some 30 miles south of the Island.

"The catch was far less than we had hoped for,'' he said yesterday. "And we were surprised by the composition of the fish -- it was totally unexpected.

"None of the Fisheries officials or fishermen were expecting us to catch what we did. We found fish we didn't anticipate where we didn't expect them.'' The species being sought by the Anna C were big-eyed and blue-fin tuna, which can yield big profits in Japan, where they are a favourite in sushi dishes.

Captain Cross said the swordfish are migratory and not indigenous to Bermuda waters. If they were resident, there would have been a variation in the size and gender of the fish caught he said.

If the swordfish follow migratory patterns, females should be following the young males which were caught by the Anna C over the weekend.

"So hopefully we've got better fishing on the way,'' said Capt. Cross. Local fisherman Mr. Alan Edness, who is considering long-line fishing himself, expressed enthusiasm for the programme despite the disappointingly small catch.

"It's nice to see swordfish like that rather than just seeing them in magazines,'' he said. "And they're right here in Bermuda.'' Mr. Edness is planning to go aboard for one of the ship's future trips, to learn about the high-tech methods and skills involved in the handling of fish bound for specialty markets overseas.

TASTY CATCH -- Anna C crew member Mr. R.J. Thein is shown packing part of the vessel's first shipment to the United States yesterday.