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Photo By OneEighteen
Your car’s parked in the lot outside a roadside diner, well off the road, when a another vehicle pulling a trailer passes. As it passes the trailer breaks free and ploughs into your car, rupturing the petrol tank and spilling fuel. So the police arrest you because you should have assumed that the […]

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Captain Paul Wright, a Cornishman, is a kind of latter day Henry VIII - a master and commander who moves from one queen to the next in quick succession.
He is the first person to command all three Queens in the Cunard fleet - Queen Elizabeth 2, Queen Mary 2 and their “younger sister” Queen Victoria.
His […]

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Sea-Fever.org points us to Popular Mechanic’s feature “This Is My Job. World’s Coolest Professions“. This month’s feature; Captain Andy Merrill, master of Matson’s M/V Manulani. They write;
From sailing to surfing to piloting 32,000-ton container ships, Andy Merrill has always felt at home on the ocean. Today, the 42-year-old clocks 70-day shifts as captain of Matson […]

 

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(Photo by PA2 Prentice Danner, USCG)
This morning Senator Barbra Boxer and Representative Nacy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, announced a bill giving the U.S. Coast Guard broader authority to direct the actions of ship masters in navigating inland waters. The San Francisco Chronicle tells us;
The Coast Guard would gain new authority to order ships […]

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MarineBuzz brings us photos of the M/V Bohai Challenge, being launched on what appears to be Yokohama Fenders (official they’re not Yokohamas). They tell us;
Qingdao Yongtai shipping supplies co.,ltd has come out with a novel product called Intense pneumatic tire for ship lifting, loading and floating. These highstrength pneumatic tubes are useful in cargo boat […]

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A gCaptain reader forwarded the following National Public Radio appearance by our friend Kelly Sweeney, author of the book “From the Bridge, Authentic Modern Sea Stories“.
Captain Kelly brings up some excellent point so be sure you get your pen ready, you’ll want to take notes.
NPR Show Notes:
A congressional hearing into the cause of the San […]

 

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Yesterday my comments were published on the front page of The San Francisco Chronicle in an article titled; “Hearing today at Presidio - tough queries for spill captain.”
Prior to being asked to comment the Chronicle’s lead maritime reporter contacted our friend Captain Kelly Sweeny who discussed industry wide problems with marine technology. The article states;
Sweeney […]

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A vessel found in 700 AD, several centuries before the Vikings ruled Norway, the Oseberg ship from approximately 800 AD and the knarr from around year 1000 AD all have one thing in common; their rounded bows were the inspiration for Ulstein’s latest design, the x-bow container ship.
This design is not new, launched last […]

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For those curious how the editors at gCaptain research maritime incidents like the Cosco Busan’s allision with San Francisco’s Bay Bridge, here are some of the websites that provide excellent reference material.
Maritime Industry Custom Search Engine

Our first stop in researching any maritime related topic is our own Maritime Industry CSE. It’s a powerful resource […]

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Chronicle photo by Michael Macor
After visits from California powerbrokers Arnold Schwarzenegger and Diane Feinstein yesterday the head of the US Coast Guard, Admiral Thad Allen, joined the inspection team.
Here news of his visit courtesy of the San Diego Tribune;
“They talk about the fog of war. I think we had the fog of navigation going on […]

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