On June 5, 2019, the offshore supply boat Princess Janice was operating from a Nigerian oil terminal when suddenly the AIS (Automatic Identification System) an automatic tracking system showed the vessel a continent away, circling above Point Reyes, CA, eventually … Continue reading
Rick Spilman
As protests over the death of George Floyd and against racism and police brutality continue across the nation and parts of the globe, the leadership of U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa/U.S. Sixth Fleet has issued a letter titled “Respect, … Continue reading
On May 24th, a fire in a warehouse on Pier 45 on San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf came very close to the engulfing the World War II Liberty ship SS Jeremiah O’Brien and the USS Pampanito, a Balao class fleet submarine museum … Continue reading
General Order 99 One hundred and six years ago next month, on July 1, 1914, Secretary of the US Navy Josephus Daniels issued General Order 99, banning “the use or introduction for drinking purposes of alcoholic liquors on board any … Continue reading
The Seattle-based factory trawler, American Dynasty, cut short its fishing season off the Washington coast after most of the 126 crew tested positive for COVID-19. A statement by American Seafoods, which owns the ship, reported that a crew member tested … Continue reading
On June 1, 1813, two hundred and seven years ago today, the British frigate HMS Shannon defeated and captured the USS Chesapeake in single-ship combat. Captain James Lawrence on the Chesapeake was mortally wounded during the battle. His last words … Continue reading
The bark Europa arrived in the port of Ushuaia, Argentina in late March. Ushuaia, which describes itself as “the end of the world, the beginning of everything,” would normally be the jumping-off point for the ship’s regular voyage to Antarctica. … Continue reading
Three rusting masts rise from the Thames Estuary, off Sheppy Island, not far from Sheerness. They are the masts that once supported the swinging booms on the Liberty ship USS Richard Montgomery, which sank with a cargo of high explosive … Continue reading
In the 1990s, rumors began to spread that the Colombian cartels were moving cocaine to the United States by submarine. In 2006 the navy intercepted a “narco-sub” off Costa Rica with 3.5 tonnes of cocaine on board. In 2019, thirty-three … Continue reading
On Throw-Back-Thursday, here is footage of the sinking of the German battleship Bismark, 79 years ago yesterday, by the Royal Navy in a three-day running battle in which the Bismark sank the British battlecruiser HMS Hood. Ultimately, the German battleship … Continue reading
It would appear to be a sign of times. Surgical masks have been washing ashore on the beaches of New South Wales, Australia. Not pandemic aid from King Neptune, but the result of containers of medical supplies among the at … Continue reading
Eighty years ago today, on May 26, 1940, Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of British and other Allied troops from the French port of Dunkirk, began. Following a Blitzkrieg attack by German forces in early May, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), … Continue reading
This year’s Fleet Week celebrations, traditionally held around the country over the Memorial Day weekend, have been canceled due to the pandemic. So, here is a Fleet Week New York flashback, the Parade of Ships from 2011. We hope that … Continue reading
A major fire broke out on Saturday morning in a warehouse on Pier 45 on San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf which came very close to the engulfing the historic World War II Liberty ship, SS Jeremiah O’Brien. The fire was reported … Continue reading
China Merchants Group has recently signed a contract with China Shipbuilding for two Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) that will sail, powered, in part, by the wind while gliding on a cushion of air bubbles. The two 300,000 DWT tankers … Continue reading
In the United States, May 22nd is celebrated as National Maritime Day. The day brings to mind a largely forgotten monument, a ship’s anchor on a concrete slab, on Corlear’s Hook in New York’s East River Park. National Maritime Day … Continue reading
The latest coronavirus outbreak on a Navy ship is on the Military Sealift Command’s (MSC) fleet replenishment oiler, USNS Leroy Grumman. The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is reporting that the outbreak occurred late last month, barely a week after … Continue reading
Whether in quarantine or not, the Monterey Bay Aquarium live shark cam is a great spot to escape to. The cam features sevengill sharks, leopard sharks, spiny dogfish, and the elusive Pacific angel shark in an aquarium that replicates the … Continue reading
The Miami Herald recently helped to quantify the scale of the crew repatriation crisis aboard cruise ships around the world. They report that “two months after the cruise industry shut down amid repeated COVID-19 outbreaks on ships, more than 100,000 … Continue reading
Now, for something completely different. The bright pink manta ray was first seen swimming in 2015, in the waters off Australia’s Lady Elliot Island, on the Great Barrier Reef. It has been seen only seven times since, making its most … Continue reading