Maritime News and Comment

February 2008

    MORE NSC PROBLEMS.  The Navy Times reports what everybody in the industry knows.  The C4ISR on the new "National Security Cutter", the future USCGC "Bertholf", doesn't work.  Read the article here.  Expect delivery to be delayed and delayed while they try to fix it.  Another triumph for Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin, those exemplars of incompetence.  February 28, 2008.

    INDEPENDENCE TO INDIA TOO.  But for a different reason.  The liner "Independence", left San Francisco on February 8, under tow to a breaker in India.  Anyone who really thought that NCL would ever reactivate her must now accept that it was all a con.  Ironically, the EPA would not let the ship and her tug, the "Pacific Hickory", in to Honolulu to refuel, because of the asbestos and other nasty stuff on board.  Of course, that was never a problem when she was operating, or while she was laid up in S.F., but there's your federal government for you.  They will try to refuel in Guam instead.  "Independence was built by Quincy (Hull 1618) in 1950 but has been laid up for the last seven years.  Her sister, the "Constitution" sank mysteriously in 1997, while on her way to the breaker's yard: it couldn't happen again, could it?  February 27, 2008.

    KITTY HAWK TO INDIA?  Reliable sources report that DoD is considering transferring the USS "Kitty Hawk" (CV 63 - built by New York Ship in 1961 and still active), to India, as an incentive to them to buy a whole lot of US-built fighters.  Good idea, although it would be nice if, one day, DoD would consider giving some country a bunch of old fighters as an incentive to them to buy some US-built ships.  As one humorist points out, however, an advantage of this deal is that tech support would only require a local call.  February 26, 2008.

    DH TANKER FOR SCRAP?  Reliable sources report that Alaska Tankers, operator of US-flag tankers for BP, will shortly return the "Prince William Sound" to Keystone.  In the absence of any other need for a Jones Act crude carrier, the ship will presumably be scrapped.  "Prince William Sound" is the oldest of the three "Ecology"-class double-hull tankers built by Sun Ship in the 1970s, with the foresight that Sun had in those days.  The other two now work for ExxonMobil.  February 26, 2008.

    QUINCY CRANE FOR ROMANIA.  The Quincy Patriot-Ledger reports that the 1200-ton goliath crane in the Quincy shipyard has been sold to Daewoo for its shipyard in Romania, Daewoo Mangalia Heavy industries.  Read the article here.  February 15, 2008.

    $1.4 BILLION FOR A DESTROYER.  The Navy has awarded contracts to GD and NG for the first two "Zumwalt"-class DDGs.  Read the DefenseLink announcements here.  $1.4 billion each.  Amazing!  This is another example of that great oxymoron- naval arithmetic: they could get three DDG-51s for $1.4 billion.  February 15, 2008.

    ANOTHER NEW BARGE BUILDER.  A company with the suitably Neanderthal name of Mammoth Marine, owned by "a consortium of investors from Louisville", is apparently buying a 94-acre site in Owensboro KY, for the purpose of developing an inland barge construction facility.  More fools them, and their bankers too.  They'll have it in operation just in time for the downward slope of the business cycle.  February 14, 2008.

    SEACOR GETS TWIN-HULL CREWBOAT.  Gulfcraft has delivered the twin-hull crewboat "Seacor Cheetah".  The 170-foot boat will carry up to 150 passengers and 180 tons of supplies at a cruising speed of 38 knots.  An excellent example of modern marine technology.  We will see more of these as exploration and production in deep water expands.  February 14, 2008.

    HALTER TO BUILD TWO PSVS.  L. & M. BoTruc Rental, Inc., has ordered two 230-foot PSVs from VT Halter Marine.  The boats will cost about $25 million each and will be delivered in 2010.  February 13, 2008.

    LNG CARRIER LOSES POWER.  Teekay LNG's "Catalunya Spirit" is being towed into Boston, after losing power on Monday.  Read the latest Coast Guard report here.  No spill, no panic, no cause for alarm.  This is why we have escort tugs.  Don't be surprised, however, if the idiot politicians start jumping up and down again.  February 13, 2008.

    BIG EVENT IN SAVANNAH.  The Savannah Morning News reports today that the Port of Savannah's new post-panamax container cranes have arrived.  Read the article here.  The reason I report this is that they are apparently to be unloaded "using a series of rails and wenches".  This I have to see, so I'm off to Savannah.  I mean you can never have too many wenches on the waterfront.  February 13, 2008.

    NAVAL ARITHMETIC.  The Navy Times reports that our leaders have now concluded that the way to maintain naval strength is to extend the service life of a destroyer from 35 to 40 years.  Read the article here.  Brilliant.  These are the same leaders who have been systematically shaving the maintenance budget and extending the interval between dry-docking availabilities.  Oh and they are the same leaders that have now sunk 18 of the 31 "Spruance"-class destroyers as targets, at ages ranging from 21 to 29, rather than extend their lives or even give them to our allies.  They've even retired the first five of the "Ticonderoga"-class cruisers - and sunk one of them! - although the oldest of the five was only 22 years old.  Talk about dumb.  February 12, 2008, corrected February 14.

    THE POWER OF GRAMMAR!  Headline of Allstate Insurance's full-page ad in the Op-Ed section of last Sunday's NY Times:

"How Long of a Retirement Should You Plan For?"

Headline of Allstate Insurance's  full-page ad in the Op-Ed section of this Sunday's NY Times:

"How Long a Retirement Should You Plan For?" 

How many pedants, apart from me, do you suppose inquired if it's also Allstate's stand that bad grammar is OK?  February 3, 2008.

    BOLLINGER, BATH AND AUSTAL GET JHSV DESIGN CONTRACTS.  Bollinger Shipyards, Bath Iron Works and Austal USA have each been awarded $3 million Phase 1 design contracts for the Joint Army/Navy High-Speed Vessel (JHSV) program.  The obvious loser is the Maersk/Derecktor/Gibbs & Cox team, but there may be others.  February 1, 2008.

    NASSCO GETS ANOTHER T-AKE.  The Navy has exercised an option on its contract with NASSCO for the construction of T-AKE 10.  The mod. is priced at $459.8 million, but this includes long-lead-time material for T-AKE 11.  Delivery is February 2012.  Read the DefenseLink announcement here.  February 1, 2008.

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