About Sal Mercogliano

Salvatore R. Mercogliano is an associate professor of History at Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina and teaches courses in World Maritime History and Maritime Security. He is also an adjunct professor with the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and offers a graduate level course in Maritime Industry Policy. A former merchant mariner, he sailed and worked ashore for the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command. His book, Fourth Arm of Defense: Sealift and Maritime Logistics in the Vietnam War, available through the Naval History and Heritage Command.

The Cruise Industry’s War Against COVID-19

March 20, 2020 by Sal Mercogliano

Cruises ships are seen docked at Miami port as the tourism industry is affected by the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Miami, Florida, U.S., March 18, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos Barria By Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. - On Friday, March 13, 2020, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) announced that their ocean-going cruise lines would be, … [Read more...]

Merchant Mariners for the Gold

March 6, 2020 by Sal Mercogliano

SS John W. Brown on the Great Lakes in 2000. John W. Brown is one of only two surviving World War II Liberty Ships. Photo: Project Liberty Ship Update March 13, 2020 - President Trump today signed into law the “Merchant Mariners of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act of 2020,” a bill to award the Congressional gold medal to American Merchant Mariners of WWII. By … [Read more...]

Bouchard Ordeal Evokes 19th Century Supreme Court Decision

February 19, 2020 by Sal Mercogliano

File Photo: Kim M. Bouchard. Credit: MarineTraffic.com/Duncan Williams By Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. On July 7, 1895, the barque Arago arrived in San Francisco with four of its crewmembers in irons. The deckhands had jumped ship while in Portland, Oregon prior to the ship embarking on a cruise down to Chile. The master of the vessel signed out warrants … [Read more...]

America’s Surge Sealift: What Are They Not Telling Us?

January 28, 2020 by Sal Mercogliano

By Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. - On January 22, 2020, the Inspector General (IG) for the Department of Defense released a declassified and redacted report, entitled, Audit of Surge Sealift Readiness Reporting. The surge sealift fleet, those 15 vessels held by the Navy’s Military Sealift Command (MSC) and the 46 by the Department of Transportation’s Maritime … [Read more...]

Turbo Activation – A Sealift Surge, or just a Trickle?

December 31, 2019 by Sal Mercogliano

By Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. - In September, gCaptain reported on Turbo Activation 19-Plus, US Transportation Command’s largest peacetime exercise of the 61-ship surge sealift fleet. Initial assessments, gathered from unclassified sources reported that 23 out of the 28 ships activated on Monday, September 16, 2019, were able to get underway to meet their readiness … [Read more...]