LAKE EXPRESS

Lake Express Partner Welds a Start to Ferry Construction

Key stakeholders involved in the landmark project to build a 192-ft. high-speed ferry for Milwaukee-based Lake Express LLC attended a ceremony on July 10 to celebrate the start of the vessel’s construction at the Austal USA shipyard in Mobile, AL. Chris Pemberton, Austal USA’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing, welcomed the guests and explained that construction of the aluminum catamaran was actually already well underway, as was evident in the main construction hall of Austal USA’s modern shipbuilding facilities. Pemberton acknowledged the Maritime Administration’s support for the project and lauded the vision of the Director of the Port of Milwaukee, Ken Szallai. “MARAD’s recent confirmation of loan guarantees under the Title XI program was vital to this project moving forward, and it is a great pleasure to be involved in realizing Ken’s 10-year-old dream of a high speed link across Lake Michigan,” Mr. Pemberton said. David Lubar, President of Lubar and Co., the company that created Lake Express, stressed that it was a partnership that had been formed and said he looked forward to working with Austal USA to realize this landmark project. “We are delighted to be able to work with Austal USA and have complete confidence in its ability to deliver the vessel on time, on-budget and to the world-class quality for which Austal is well known,” he told the audience which included John Waggoner and Greg Brown of Hornblower Marine Services

Annand Named Chairman of PVA Subcommittee

Hornblower Marine Services (HMS) is pleased to announce that William Bill Annand, its Director of Marine Operations for Hawaii Superferry, has been appointed Chairman of the Passenger Vessel Association (PVA) High-Speed Subcommittee. Members of the PVA’s High-Speed Subcommittee include operators, designers, builders, equipment suppliers and regulators of high-speed craft. As Director of Marine Operations for Hawaii Superferry, Annand presides over the Alakai

HMS Global Maritime Extends Westpac Express Contract

HMS Global Maritime (HMSGM) announce the extension of the HSV WestPac Express’ charter with the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command (MSC) and the Third Marine Expeditionary Force, beginning in February 2012. The contract can last up to an additional two years. The HSV WestPac Express has been operated by HMSGM for the past nine years as a high-speed transport vessel for military personnel and equipment over a 1,200 mile range in Asia

Annand Named Director of Marine Operations for Superferry

Hornblower Marine Services announced the appointment of Bill Annand as Director of Marine Operations for Hawaii Superferry. Hornblower Marine Services, based in New Albany, Ind., is contracted to operate the long-awaited passenger ferry between Honolulu and the islands of Maui and Kauai. Passenger service is scheduled to begin in August 2007. Annand will initially manage approximately 100 crew members, including unlimited officers, and non-rated union and non0union shipboard staff

Old Relic Remains at Bottom of Milford’s Harbor

At the bottom of Milford, Conn.’s city harbor lies a century-old, barnacle-encrusted submersible, belonging to native and inventor Simon Lake, a pioneer in the field of submarine technology and underwater exploration. While some mistakenly believe the submersible in the city's harbor is an early submarine, it is actually a chamber that would be lowered to the ocean floor by a boom on a ship. People could walk to the chamber through a 200-foot-long tube with a staircase that was connected to

24/7 On-The-Water Assistance for Boaters

Capt. Steven Moore, a former hired captain with the on-the-water towing company TowBoatUS Lake Lewisville, has purchased the business from his former boss, Capt. Jay Nunnally, who will remain with the company as a towing captain.   Moore, who has boated on the lake for 30 years, is US Coast Guard licensed and carries a Masters 50-ton with commercial assistance towing certification.  Much like an auto club for boaters

Great Lakes Tugs are Unsung Icebreaking Heroes

After one of the five coldest Decembers in recorded history, The Great Lakes Towing Company is finishing up one of its busiest seasons in recent history of icebreaking on the Great Lakes. While the U.S. Coast Guard's role in assisting ships through the ice of the Great Lakes is relatively well-known, few people outside the marine industry realize that U.S. Coast Guard assistance is provided mainly in the federally-maintained navigation channels

Great Lakes States to Address Ballast Water Issue

Attorney General Jennifer M. Granholm has joined Attorneys General from around the Great Lakes states in filing a brief in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that asks the Court to order the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address the problem of aquatic nuisance species in the ballast water of Great Lakes ships. In a "friend of the court" brief filed jointly with the states of New York, Minnesota, and Illinois

GLMRI Awarded $750,000 Clean Diesel Grant

The Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute (GLMRI) has been awarded a $750,000 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 Midwest Clean Diesel Initiative Grant to help reduce air emissions from a 1,000-ft Great Lakes ore carrier.  Dr. Richard Stewart, GLMRI co-director, said the grant enables Key Lakes I, Inc., a Great Lakes vessel operator to repower the M/V Edwin H. Gott during the year-long project

New Cargo Ship for Lake Tanganyika Launched In Burundi

At 12,700 square miles (32,890 sq km) in area, Lake Tanganyika is the second largest in Africa. It is larger than North America’s Lake Eire (9,910 sq. mi.) and over half the size of Lake Michigan (22,300 sq.mi.). Ships have operated on it since before the First World War when Germany and Britain had some minor naval battles there. This past August a new ship, the M/V Teza, began working the waters of the great lake. Built entirely in Burundi by the Batralac firm