American Tugboat Review – Professional Mariner

08 Jul

Navy modernizing tugboat fleet with YT 808 class

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

The U.S. Navy has launched a new class of tugboats that will replace aging YTBs on both coasts. YT 808 (Rainier) left Dakota Creek Industries last fall for Naval Base Kitsap in Washington state, where it has worked since October 2020. YT 809 (Agamenticus) left Puget Sound in March atop a barge bound for Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine.…

08 Jul

Shallow-draft Aurora is designed for the long haul

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

Crowley Maritime has enhanced its fuel delivery unit with a sturdy articulated tug-barge (ATB) that will operate in remote western Alaska. The 4,000-hp Aurora pairs with the 55,000-barrel double-hulled barge Qamun through an innovative Intercontinental coupling system. The ATB meets International Maritime Organization (IMO) Polar Code and ABS ice class D0 standards and has a 4,300-mile range. It can operate…

08 Jul

With A. Thomas Higgins, E.N. Bisso & Son builds on what works

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

The 80-foot A. Thomas Higgins, named for a current owner of E.N. Bisso & Son, Inc., joined sister tug C.D. White in the company’s New Orleans fleet last year. Both tugs, built at Eastern Shipbuilding in Panama City, Florida, are RApport 2400-series tugboats designed by Robert Allan, Ltd. of Vancouver, British Columbia. Both are outfitted and classified for ship assist…

08 Jul

Versatile Jack K. handles multiple roles at the dredge site

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

Having made the decision to invest in three dredge tenders, Weeks Marine of New Jersey developed a design they termed a modified lugger tug. The result, according to Shaun O’Brien, Weeks’ senior port engineer of towing and project manager during construction, is a twin-screw tug as multifaceted as a Swiss Army knife. “The intention was to develop a small versatile…

08 Jul

B.C. operator welcomes first z-drive tugboat

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

North Arm Transportation has added a versatile z-drive tugboat to its fleet of coastal towing vessels – and it’s already earning acclaim from captains. “I love these Veth controls,” Capt. Ryan Scott said of the intuitive z-drive control system on North Arm Tempest, the first z-drive in the North Arm tugboat fleet. Scott recently retired after 32 years with a…

08 Jul

Cooper Marine embraces cleaner-burning Tier 4 engines

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

Cooper Marine & Timberlands is now operating one of the most environmentally friendly linehaul towboats on the inland waterways. The company, based in Mobile, Ala., took delivery of Gretchen V. Cooper this spring from Blakeley BoatWorks. It is one of the first linehaul towboats in the United States with engines that meet EPA Tier 4 emissions standards, and the first…

08 Jul

Nimble Wanchese supports critical N.C. ferry operations

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) welcomed the arrival of its all-purpose tugboat, Wanchese, to the Outer Banks. NCDOT oversees a diverse infrastructure portfolio for rail, aviation, bus, motor vehicle, bicycle and pedestrian transportation. The department maintains 80,000 miles of road and 13,000 culverts and bridges, the longest being the five-mile Virginia Dare Memorial Bridge over Croatan Sound between Roanoke…

08 Jul

World’s first LNG bunkering ATB enters service

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

If you want to understand the special role Q-Ocean Service and its liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering barge play in the maritime industry, start by imagining a cruise ship. The massive vessel’s passengers are frolicking on decks, surrounded by the sun and a turquoise sea. Over their heads, giant stacks belch exhaust that can tarnish this idyllic environment. “People are…

08 Jul

Breaker II helps New York utility keep the lights on

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has added a new icebreaking tugboat that supports hydropower generation on the Niagara River. The 56-foot Breaker II typically works in far eastern Lake Erie and along the Niagara River as far north as Niagara Falls. Its primary function is the placement and retrieval of a 9,000-foot ice boom that blocks ice sheets from…

08 Jul

Reinauer updates original ‘facet tug’ for Tier 4 era

Professional Mariner StaffAmerican Tugboat Review

Reinauer Transportation Co. has redesigned its original “facet tug” articulated tug-barge (ATB) for a new era. Reinauer subsidiary Senesco Marine in North Kingstown, R.I., delivered the 120-foot Janice Ann Reinauer in March 2021. Since leaving the shipyard, the tugboat has paired with several Reinauer tank barges on delivery runs along the Eastern Seaboard. Janice Ann Reinauer has the same faceted…