News Briefs – Pacific Maritime Magazine

U.S. Navy’s 1st Hydrofoil Scrapped in Astoria

Sixty years after the fanfare of its christening, the 116-foot former USS High Point hydrofoil was scrapped in August at the Hyak Tongue Point Shipyard in Astoria, Ore. The event marked the end of the pioneering design of the U.S. Navy’s first full-size “Patrol Coastal Hydrofoil,” or PCH-1. It was the product of a decade of research and experimentation and was promoted as a potential submarine hunter during America’s Cold War with the Soviet Union. The Navy chose Boeing to build the revolutionary high-speed vessel with the ability to “fly” above the water on foils. The construction was sub-contracted to…

SAFE Boats Gains New Board Members

Bremerton-Wash.-based SAFE Boats International announced in late September that retired Vice Admiral William “Dean” Lee and Tom Norton have joined the company’s Board of Directors. Lee served in the U. S. Coast Guard for more than 36 years, most recently as the Commander, Atlantic Area (LANTAREA), responsible for all Coast Guard operations from the Rocky Mountains to the Arabian Gulf. During his service to the Nation, he served in numerous command and staff positions specializing in search and rescue and small boat operations. Notable assignments included Commander, Fifth District; Deputy Commandant for Operations Policy and Capabilities; Commander, Deployable Operations Group;…

MARAD Designates New Marine Highway Routes in Alaska

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has designated two new Marine Highway routes, one including seasonal barge routes in Alaska, in an effort to speed up movement of goods, strengthen supply chains and support local economies in Alaska. Buttigieg made the announcement in Juneau on Aug. 16, on the last day of a three-day whirlwind tour of Alaska, where he met with residents of the city Kotzebue, toured the Port of Alaska and traveled aboard an Alaska Marine Highway System ferry to visit Southeast Alaska towns. “By expanding our marine highway system, we can strengthen our supply chains, improve port operations…

Vigor Alaska Begins Maintenance, Repair Work on Coast Guard Cutter

The U.S Coast Guard has awarded Vigor Alaska, a Titan Acquisition Holdings company, a contract to perform maintenance and repairs on U.S. Coast Guard cutter John McCormick at Vigor’s Ketchikan shipyard. CGC John McCormick is the first Coast Guard maintenance solicitation awarded to Vigor’s Ketchikan shipyard since 2011. The Fast Response Cutter is stationed at Coast Guard Base Ketchikan, just 3.5 miles from Ketchikan Shipyard, ensuring work on this locally-based vessel supports jobs in Ketchikan’s local economy. Work on the vessel began in mid-September. “Having a strong partnership with the Coast Guard supports family wage jobs in Ketchikan and helps…

Port of Vancouver USA Settles Pollution Lawsuit

The Port of Vancouver USA and environmental group Columbia Riverkeeper on Sept. 12 announced that they have reached an agreement to settle a Clean Water Act lawsuit over years of alleged unlawful water pollution from the public port. In the settlement, the port committed to make significant changes to reduce the amount of water pollution that flows off the 1,643-acre property into the Columbia River. However, before the proposed settlement can go into effect, it must undergo a 45-day review period by the U.S. Department of Justice and be approved by a federal district court judge. As part of the…

EPA Seeks Ideas About Zero-Emission Port Projects

In May, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a request for information (RFI) about how the agency can best develop funding programs to support the build-out of zero-emission energy and transportation infrastructure at ports. The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provides $4 billion to the EPA to develop grant and rebate funding programs to reduce greenhouse gases and improve air quality. There are two focuses: a $1 billion Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Program and the $3 billion Grants to Reduce Air Pollution at Ports. Funds go to eligible recipients, with the money not dependent on annual federal budget cycles. The EPA’s…

Safety in Shipping Report Highlights Developing Risks, Changing Landscape

New risks are emerging in the shipping industry—from excess capacity, economic factors, decarbonization and increased fire perils driven by changing cargo trends—countering the upsides of a continued long-term drop in vessel losses due to improvements in safety and ship design. These developing trends, detailed in a new report from global insurer Allianz, are worth watching for West Coast shippers as part of various changes that promise to reshape the global shipping landscape. The upside of this year’s Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty Safety and Shipping Review, an annual look at losses and safety trends in shipping, is the continuation of…

Coast Guard Cutter Munro Visits Japan, South Korea

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Munro visited Yokosuka, Japan and the Republic of Korea during international port visits conducted in July and August. In Japan, the Munro conducted training and engagements with the Japan Coast Guard; in Gwangyang, South Korea, the cutter conducted several days of engagements and exchanges with the Korea Coast Guard. The Munro arrived Aug. 6 while deployed in the Indo-Pacific and hosted several members of the Japan Coast Guard for professional exchanges, including showcasing the Munro’s small boat and aerial capabilities and search-and-rescue operations. The visit allowed members of both services to discuss their dual mission…

Coast Guard Cutter Returns After 57-Day Arctic Ocean-Bering Sea Patrol

The Coast Guard cutter Alex Haley returned to its homeport of Kodiak, Alaska on Labor Day following a 57-day patrol in the Arctic Ocean and Bering Sea. The Alex Haley is a 282-foot Medium Endurance Cutter that performs search and rescue, fisheries law enforcement and vessel safety inspections across Alaska and has been homeported in Kodiak since 1999. Nicknamed the “Bulldog of the Bering,” the vessel supported multiple strategic-level objectives for the Seventeenth Coast Guard District and the U.S. Northern Command during its 57-day mission, including providing presence along the U.S. Maritime Boundary Line and supporting U.S. Navy assets during…

Coast Guard Medevacs Fisherman 93 Miles Off San Diego Coast

A Coast Guard helicopter aircrew medically evacuated a 50-year-old male from the sport fishing vessel Spirit of Adventure about 93 miles west of Point Loma, on Aug. 16. Crew aboard the Spirit of Adventure contacted Coast Guard Sector San Diego Joint Harbor Operations Center at about 1:40 p.m. requesting assistance for a passenger who was displaying symptoms of a heart attack. Watchstanders launched a Coast Guard Sector San Diego MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, including a San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Special Tactics and Rescue (STAR) Team paramedic, to assist. Once on the scene, the helicopter crew recovered the patient and transported…