Photo courtesy SUNY Maritime College
SUNY Maritime College in the Bronx, New York on Monday welcomed the arrival of its new state-of-the-art training ship, the Empire State VII, marking a new era training for the nation’s future Merchant Mariners.
The ship is the first of five new government-owned National Security Multi-Missions Vessels (NSMVs) designed for the dual-purpose of service as a world-class training platform for the nation’s five state maritime academies and assisting with humanitarian and disaster relief during times of national emergency.
The Empire State VII was delivered to the U.S. Maritime Administration this month by Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Philly Shipyard was picked to construct all five NSMVs by Tote Services, which served as the program’s Vessel Construction Manager.
“This is an exciting day for Maritime College as we welcome the Empire State VII to its home port,” said SUNY Maritime College President RADM Michael Alfultis, who was instrumental in engaging with Congress to get the ships built. “This state-of-the-art training ship will provide our cadets the most advanced technology in the shipping and maritime industry, and ensure they are prepared to operate and maintain vessels as licensed deck officers and engineers. We appreciate the National Security Multi-Mission Vessel Program’s bipartisan support of the state maritime academies. We also appreciate the support of New York Governor Kathy Hochul and SUNY Chancellor John B. King.”
Each NSMV will be equipped with instructional spaces, a full training bridge, and room for up to 600 cadets to train at sea. In addition to serving as a training and educational platform, the NSMVs will also provide modern hospital facilities, a helicopter pad, and the ability to accommodate up to 1,000 people during humanitarian missions. They will also have roll-on/roll-off and container storage capacity for disaster relief missions.
SUNY Maritime College will officially welcome the ship on Friday with an Arrival and Delivery Ceremony.
The second NSMV will be delivered to the Massachusetts Maritime Academy in 2024, followed by NSMV III to Maine Maritime Academy, NSMV IV to Texas A&M Maritime Academy, and NSMV V to California Maritime Academy. All five deliveries are planned to take place by 2026.
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