Life onboard the US Coast Guard Cutter Citrus (WLB 300), a 180 ft. ocean-going buoy tender was normal on Monday morning, 26 February 1979. Citrus was underway, steaming at 12 knots on the north side of Kodiak Island. Skies were clear and the weather pleasant for a February day. At 1734 their world, however, would change dramatically. By early afternoon Citrus was heading … [Read more...]
Veteran’s Day In Peace And War
by Salvatore R. Mercogliano, Ph.D. (gCaptain) This Veteran’s Day we remember the thousands of Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen who gave their lives in defense of the United States of America. We should also remember the thousands of merchant mariner veterans who set sail under the flag of the United States and exposed themselves to risk and … [Read more...]
Bankrupt Titanic Collector Is Selling Everything
Titanic April 14, 1912, drawing appeared in John Walker's book AN UNSINKABLE TITANIC EVERY SHIP ITS OWN LIFEBOAT published 1912. Photo via Shutterstock. by Dawn McCarty (Bloomberg) The story of the doomed luxury liner R.M.S. Titanic proved so alluring that divers were searching for the wreck seven decades after it sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Once it was found … [Read more...]
Nine Seafarers Killed in Fireball Remembered on 25th Anniversary of British Trent Disaster
UK-based maritime welfare charity Sailors' Society has commemorated the 25th anniversary of the British Trent disaster by laying a wreath underneath the ship’s bell at All-Hallows-by-the-Tower in London. Nine seafarers lost their lives when the British Trent collided with another ship in foggy conditions 10-miles off Ostend on 3 June 1993. Upon impact, the British Trent’s … [Read more...]
Historic Shipyard Turns From Ships To Technology
by David M. Levitt (Bloomberg) -- America may never recover its glory as a manufacturing powerhouse, but the Brooklyn Navy Yard is doing what it can, transforming itself from a 20th-century ship builder to a 21st-century high-tech hub. Now it’s about to unveil a $2.5 billion building plan that would more than quadruple its current workforce. The navy yard’s … [Read more...]