Overloaded Migrant Boat Sinks Near Greece — at Least 78 Dead, Hundreds Feared Drowned

Reuters reports that rescuers scoured the seas off Greece on Thursday following a shipwreck that killed at least 78 migrants, as hopes of survivors dwindled and fears grew that hundreds more, including children, may have drowned inside the crowded vessel’s … Continue reading

Retired Passenger Liner SS United States Threatened by Eviction From Philadelphia Pier

The SS United States, the largest and fastest transatlantic passenger liner ever built in America, has spent the last 27 years moored at Philadephia’s Pier 82 on the Delaware River. The venerable ship is now threatened with eviction.  Yahoo reports … Continue reading

Three British Tourists Missing After Fire on Dive Boat in Egyptian Red Sea

The BBC reports that three British tourists are missing after a fire broke out on board a dive boat on the Egyptian Red Sea.   Twenty-six other people, including 12 Britons, were rescued from the boat, called Hurricane. Initial reports suggested the … Continue reading

The Mighty Windjammer Preussen — Animation From Mariner’s Mirror Podcast

Here is an animation from a Mariner’s Mirror podcast about perhaps the greatest windjammer of the early twentieth century, the Preussen. One of the Flying P-Liners, built for the F. Laeisz shipping company in 1902, she was the only five-masted … Continue reading

Hurtigruten to Launch Zero Emissions Electric Cruise Ship With Solar Sails by 2030

Norwegian ferry and expedition cruise operator Hurtigruten has revealed plans for a zero-emissions electric cruise ship with retractable sails fitted with solar panels, that will sail the Norwegian coast by 2030. The 500-passenger ship is designed for coastal service with … Continue reading

On the 79th Anniversary of D-Day, Remembering Andrew Jackson Higgins and the Higgins Boat

I am aware of only one man who was praised by both Eisenhower and Hitler. A repost on the 79th anniversary of D-Day. General Dwight David Eisenhower said that “Andrew Higgins … is the man who won the war for … Continue reading

Wind Turbine One, Cargo Ship Zero — Off Course General Cargo Ship Allides With Wind Farm

We missed this story the first time around, but it seems worthwhile to mention it, all the same. For what is being referred to as the first time it has occurred, a merchant ship had an allision with a wind … Continue reading

Malaysia Detains Chinese Barge on Suspicion of Looting WWII British Warship Wrecks

For more than a decade, warships sunk in World War II have literally been disappearing from the ocean floor.  Illegal scrappers operating grabs from barges have been looting of Australian, American, British, Dutch, and Japanese warships for scrap metal in … Continue reading

Royal Navy’s XV Patrick Blacket Tests GPS-Free Quantum Navigation System

Last year we posted about the christening of the Royal Navy’s research ship XV Patrick Blacket. (The “XV” designation refers to “experimental vessel.”) The 42-meter, 270 tonne modified crew-supply ship is intended to be a platform on which to test … Continue reading

Dueling Sea Drone Videos in Russian/Ukrainian PR Battle

Recent videos of a sea drone attack on a Russian warship released by Russia’s Defence Ministry and by Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne tell two very different stories of the encounter. The Russian video shows a Ukrainian sea drone, a small … Continue reading

The Story of the Bark Kathleen, Sunk by a Whale, Carved on a Sperm Whale Jawbone

We are all familiar with Melville’s novel, Moby Dick, inspired, at least in part, by the ramming and sinking of the whaleship Essex by a rogue sperm whale in the Pacific in 1820.  Less well-known is the sinking by a … Continue reading

HMS Prince of Wales Crippled by Misaligned Propeller Shaft

We now have the answer why the  Royal Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales, broke down off the Isle of Wight, in late August 2022.  The external shaft coupling on the starboard propeller shaft failed, resulting in serious damage … Continue reading

Titanic — Digitally Reconstructed 3D View of Wreck Seen For First Time

The BBC is reporting that the first full-sized digital scan of the Titanic, 3,800m (12,500ft) down in the Atlantic, has been completed using deep-sea mapping, providing a unique 3D view of the entire ship. “There are still questions, basic questions, … Continue reading

De Tukker, Ecoclipper’s First Ship Sets Sail in Emission-Free Short-Sea Liner Service

Ecoclipper has announced that with the maiden voyage of the recently refitted De Tukke, their emission-free short-sea Western European liner service has begun. From their press release: De Tukker, the first ship operated by the sail cargo company Ecoclipper, has … Continue reading

Will Historic Schooner Victory Chimes Become a Floating Restaurant?

The three-masted, gaff-rigged Chesapeake ram schooner Victory Chimes was recently sold at auction to Miles and Alex Pincus, who currently own two restaurants aboard historic schooners in New York harbor, as well as several shore-based establishments.  While it had been … Continue reading

Navy Takes Down Private Webcams in San Diego That Livestreamed “Warship Chicken”

In late November of last year, the guided-missile destroyer, USS Momsen, and the dock-landing ship, USS Harpers Ferry, were moving in opposite directions in San Diego Bay when they came close to colliding. The two ships came within 35 yards … Continue reading

HMS Diamond Serves as Royal Guardship For King Charles III’s Coronation

HMS Diamond, a Type 45 Royal Navy air-defense destroyer, docked on the River Thames in Greenwich, served as the Royal Guardship during the coronation of King Charles III earlier today. While the purpose of the guard ship is to help … Continue reading

Sea Change & MF Hydra — First Hydrogen Fuel Cell Powered Ferries

Two new ferries, powered by hydrogen fuel cells, have or will soon enter service. In Norway, the MF Hydra, the first liquid hydrogen fuel cell powered ferry entered regular service at the end of March. MF Hydra sails on the … Continue reading