Captain John Konrad is the founder and CEO of gCaptain, one of the world’s most-read maritime news websites, and a member of the Pentagon Press Corps. He holds a USCG Master Unlimited license. John studied naval architecture at the U.S. Naval Academy before graduating from SUNY Maritime College with a degree in Marine Transportation. He is also a Y Combinator Startup School alumnus. His decade at sea included service aboard Military Sealift Command-operated ships, crude-oil supertankers running to Valdez, and dynamically positioned drillships supporting deepwater projects. In industry leadership roles, he participated in major offshore exploration and drilling campaigns, including the KG-D6 discovery with Reliance Industries and world record-setting deepwater work with Chevron. On April 20, 2010, John had finished overseeing the $750 million Deep Ocean Ascension newbuild project for BP when the Deepwater Horizon exploded. His seven years at Transocean and personal ties to members of the Horizon crew drove him to investigate the disaster, resulting in Fire on the Horizon (HarperCollins, 2011). In 2025, he co-authored Returning from Ebb Tide: Renewing the United States Commercial Maritime Enterprise for Marine Corps University Press. John has contributed to publications including Forbes, CIMSEC, Lloyd’s List, and the U.S. Coast Guard Compass, and has appeared on outlets including NPR and the BBC. He has also consulted for major newsrooms and public institutions on maritime reporting and offshore industry topics. His reporting draws on primary documents, official maritime records, and on-the-record sources cultivated over two decades in the industry. He is an Associate Fellow of the Nautical Institute and a member of the Council of American Master Mariners and the Navy League of the United States. His work has been recognized with the U.S. Navy Combined Maritime Forces Naval Support Award and SUNY Maritime’s Distinguished Alumnus of the Year award.
by John Konrad (gCaptain) Yesterday we wrote that shares of the offshore drillship company Transocean ($RIG) were surging on retail investor interest in highly
by Captain John Konrad (gCaptain) In May 2020 I wrote an article sharing the fact that Transocean ($RIG) was the biggest loser stock of the last decade. At the
In his new book "Leadership Is Language, The Hidden Power of What You Say and What You Don't", former submarine commander Captain L David Marquet (USN Ret)
MILAN, Dec 29 (Reuters) – Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri’s planned acquisition of state-controlled French rival Chantiers de
At least 15 sailors were missing on Thursday after the Panama-flagged cargo ship Xin Hong capsized in rough seas off Vietnam. The incident happened near the
by John Konrad (gCaptain) Over the past few years a few of my fellow captains and I have been working on new ways to teach Bridge Resource Management (BRM).
by John Konrad (gCaptain) Last week gCaptain had the privilege of interviewing Rear Admiral Jack Buono, USMS. Two years ago Buono was appointed as the
by John Konrad (gCaptain) Just under a month since the start of the Board Diversity Action Alliance, big-time businesses including Albertsons, Centene Corp.,
Just days after Veterans day the US Navy released this video via YouTube and all its social media channels thanking US Merchant Mariners for their service to
The gCaptain Shop is open for the holiday season with some new designs and returns of some old favorites. Please note that due to COVID deliveries will be
by John Konrad (gCaptain) In August 2017 President Trump swore in Rear Adm. Mark H. Buzby as MARAD Administrator, the top civilian maritime position in the
by John Konrad (gCaptain) The London Headquarters of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), was besieged again by Ocean Rebellion protestors on
by Captain John Konrad (gCaptain) Over 300,000 seafarers are stuck at sea in what the Pope has called one of the biggest crises ever to face the maritime
This year the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star, the nation’s only heavy icebreaker, will not deploy to Antarctica to resupply McMurdo station this year
It’s been over sixty years since the first (and last) US-flagged nuclear-powered cargo ship set sail but, if Bill Gates has his way, the ocean may soon
COVAXX, a Long Island biotech company developing a multitope synthetic peptide-based vaccine to fight COVID-19, has announced a global logistics partnership
by Captain John Konrad V (gCaptain) The stock of China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMSE – SHA) climbed higher after the release of the
In the opening scene to the movie All the Presidents Men, the most famous whistleblower in history (Deep Throat) gives Washington Post investigative journalist
Please standby as we continue to test opportunities for the return of our Maritime Monday weekly news brief. Here are the top maritime news stories of
For the past day and a half, visitors to the official International Maritime Organization website, www.IMO.org, have been greeted with the message “This
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