Navy Continues to Battle Covid-19, New Outbreak on USS Theodore Roosevelt

Recently, three sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for the coronavirus, marking the second outbreak at sea on the ship within a year.  In the spring of last year, the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt … Continue reading

Maersk To Operate First Carbon-Neutral Containership By 2023

Today, A.P. Moller-Maersk, the largest container ship operator in the world, announced that it would launch the world’s first carbon-neutral cargo liner vessel in 2023 – seven years ahead of its initial 2030 target. They also noted that all future … Continue reading

Sailors on Japanese Submarine Soryu Use Cell Phones to Call For Help After Collision With Bulk Carrier

Sailors on the Japanese submarine Soryu had to use their cell phones to call for help after the sub surfaced beneath a Chinese bulk carrier and damaged its radio mast, disabling its communications. Three of the submarine’s crew sustained minor … Continue reading

“The Dig” & Recreating the Sutton Hoo Burial Ship

I recently watched “The Dig,” a new movie on Netflix, starring Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes about the excavation of the Sutton Hoo ship-burial in Suffolk, England.  Now the Sutton Hoo Ship’s Company is undertaking to recreate the great king’s ship … Continue reading

On Holocaust Remembrance Day — MS St. Louis and the “Voyage of the Damned”

On Holocaust Remembrance Day, here is an updated repost from several years ago, remembering the ill-fated voyage of the German passenger liner St. Louis in 1939. The ship carried 908 Jewish refugees fleeing from Nazi Germany. The ship and its … Continue reading

Maersk Essen Diverted to Mexico Due to California Container Port Congestion

Yesterday, we posted about the Maersk Essen that recently lost 750 containers over the side in a  storm in the North Pacific. An unknown number of containers still aboard the ship are believed to have been damaged during the storm. … Continue reading

Maersk Essen Loses 750 Boxes Overboard in North Pacific

In what is developing into a record winter for containers lost over the side, the Maersk Essen lost 750 containers overboard during a storm on January 16.  An unknown number of boxes were damaged but still onboard. The loss occurred … Continue reading

Guest Post by Joan Druett — Tim Severin, Seaman, Adventurer, Author

Originally posted in award-winning maritime historian Joan Druett’s World of the Written Word. Reposted with permission. I was saddened to learn that Tim Severin, a truly remarkable man who was a living inspiration, passed away last month. The Irish Times has a … Continue reading

Saildrone Launches 72′ Surveyor for High-Resolution Ocean Seabed Mapping

Saildrone‘s new 72’ long Surveyor is described as the world’s most advanced uncrewed surface vehicle (USV), equipped for high-resolution mapping of the ocean seafloor. The Saildrone Surveyor is a step up from the 22′ long Saildrone Explorer, yet both combine … Continue reading

CNO on Navy Shipbuilding Mistakes : May Not Be Able To Recover In This Century

The US Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday was blunt when he was recently quoted saying, “I don’t mean to be dramatic, but I feel like if the Navy loses its head, if we go off course and we … Continue reading

The Berthing Barge and the Lightning Carriers

Depending on which news report you listen to, the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford either can’t reliably land planes and is continuing in its dubious status as a “$13 billion berthing barge,” or, more optimistically, it may be ready … Continue reading

Remembering the USS Narwhal, Once the Navy’s Stealthiest Submarine

Last October, the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard completed the year-long dismantling of the US Navy nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Narwhal (SSN-671). Commissioned in 1969, the submarine was a one-of-a-kind, an experimental design that would become one of the most successful … Continue reading

Golden Ray Salvage Update: Stern Cut Completed, Block Hauled Away

The salvage of the stranded car carrier Golden Ray is accelerating. Salvors on the heavy-lift barge VB-10,000 are using a heavy chain to cut the ship into sections to be carried away by barge. The recently completed the second cut, separating … Continue reading

New Zealand’s Astrolabe Reef Reclaiming the Rena — 2020 Shipwreck Survey

Almost a decade ago, the container ship MV Rena ran hard aground on Astrolabe Reef off Tauranga on New Zealand’s Bay of Plenty. The ship, carrying 2,100 containers and 1,700 tonnes of heavy fuel, would break up resulting in New Zealand’s … Continue reading

Update: Golden Ray Salvage, Cutting Begins on Stern Section

Salvors on the heavy-lift barge VB-10,000 have begun making the second cut through the hull of the stranded car carrier Golden Ray which rolled over in shallow water shortly after departing the Port of Brunswick, Georgia on St. Simons Sound … Continue reading