The Department of Transportation announced that the last of ’s famous ships, the Arthur M. Huddell, will be towed from the James River Reserve Fleet site at , , to , on July 28, to prepare the World War II-era vessel for a cross-Atlantic tow to its new homeport in . Greek officials say the ship will become a merchant marine museum of that nation’s shipping industry.
While in , the Huddell will be berthed at the W3 Marine facility while the cross-Atlantic tow-prep is performed by a local Hampton Roads marine services company.
The ship’s transfer is the result of Memorandum of Understanding between the and the government of , which was signed in June 2008 by Maritime Administrator Sean T. Connaughton and ’s Minister of Merchant Marine George Voulgarakis.
During World War II, American shipyards built 2,751 ships in the largest shipbuilding effort in history. The ships were crewed by merchant mariners and carried troops and military cargo all over the world.
After World War II ended, Greek ship owners purchased many ships to build up their fleet. The Greek merchant fleet is now the largest in the world