Rich Miller – Professional Mariner

01 Jun

Safety alert: Key insights from passenger vessel fires

Rich MillerMaritime Newscasualty news, U.S. Coast Guard

(WASHINGTON) — This safety alert is in response to multiple ongoing investigations being conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) into fires on board two certificated small passenger vessels. Fortunately, there were no resulting injuries; however, both vessels sustained millions of dollars in structural damage. The insights below are intended to provide industry personnel…

01 Jun

SUNY Maritime receives $1.3 million for offshore wind training

Rich MillerLicensing & Trainingmaritime news, offshore wind

(BRONX, N.Y.) – SUNY Maritime College has received two grants totaling $1.3 million to establish a Global Wind Organization (GWO) certified training center. The first grant of $800,000 was awarded to the college by the U.S. Department of Labor Community Project Funding as a result of advocacy by U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. A second award of $500,000 was granted…

31 May

BOEM: No environmental impacts for Gulf wind leasing

Rich MillerMaritime Newsoffshore wind

(WASHINGTON) — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) on Tuesday issued a final environmental assessment on potential impacts from offshore wind leasing on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico, a key milestone toward the first offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf. Based on the analysis, BOEM has issued a finding of no significant impacts…

31 May

Crowley, Tugdock partner on platforms for offshore wind

Rich MillerMaritime Newsoffshore wind, Ports

(JACKSONVILLE, Fla.) – Crowley has announced a new investment in Tugdock, developers of the world’s first road-transportable floating dry dock known as the Tugdock Submersible Platform (TSP), to help advance offshore wind energy in the United States. Crowley and Tugdock will explore potential use of the platforms in locations such as the U.S. West Coast, where depth and conventional dry…

31 May

MetalCraft lands new order for Coast Guard Interceptors

Rich MillerMaritime Newsshipbuilding, U.S. Coast Guard

(WATERTOWN, N.Y. and KINGSTON, Ontario) — MetalCraft Marine (MCM) has been awarded a $31 million contract from the U.S. Coast Guard as part of the Long-Range Interceptor (LRI) III program. This is the second contract MCM has received for the design and build of its 11-meter (36-foot) high-speed Interceptor patrol boat. “Our previous Interceptor for the Coast Guard, the 11M…

30 May

WETA completes Bay Area ferry conversion project

Rich MillerMaritime Newsferries, Ports, propulsion

(SAN FRANCISCO) – The San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) and Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Air District) have announced that WETA’s Gemini Class Clean Air Conversion Project has been completed, resulting in a substantial decrease in air pollution emissions from four San Francisco Bay Ferry vessels serving Oakland, Alameda and Richmond. WETA already operates the…

30 May

NMC update: Unapproved courses at Mid-Atlantic Maritime Academy

Rich MillerLicensing & Trainingmaritime news, U.S. Coast Guard

(MARTINSBURG, W.Va.) — An investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard has revealed that between January 2015 and December 2019, instruction hours designated for evening courses (courses scheduled to convene at or after 3 p.m.) provided at Mid-Atlantic Maritime Academy in Virginia were cut by 50 percent or more. End-of-course exams issued for these courses may also have been compromised. The…

26 May

America’s ‘greatest asset’ honored on National Maritime Day

Rich MillerMaritime NewsLicensing and training

(WASHINGTON) — The contributions of U.S. shipping as well as past and present mariners were recognized across the country on Monday during the annual National Maritime Day observance. This was the 90th celebration of Maritime Day, which was established in 1933 to commemorate the May 22, 1819 trans-Atlantic crossing of SS Savannah. Captained by Moses Rogers, the sidewheel steamer departed…

26 May

NASSCO gets option to build ninth Lewis-class oiler

Rich MillerMaritime Newsshipbuilding

(SAN DIEGO) – General Dynamics NASSCO has been awarded a $736 million modification to the existing T-AO contract for construction of a ninth ship (T-AO 213) in the John Lewis-class fleet oiler program. The exercised option comes in addition to the earlier awarded eight ships, bringing the total contract value to approximately $5.5 billion for construction of nine ships. “NASSCO…

25 May

Palfinger unveils new transfer system for offshore personnel

Rich MillerMaritime Newsoffshore wind

(SALZBURG, Austria) — At Nor-Shipping 2023, Palfinger Marine will for the first time showcase a model of the new, fully 3D-compensated offshore passenger transfer system (OPTS). Designed specifically for marine applications, the OPTS facilitates the safe and efficient transfer of people and cargo between a vessel and an offshore installation such as a wind turbine or drilling platform. To take…