John Paul News

Vigor announced it completed a nine-month docking selected restricted availability (DSRA) on USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112), returning it to service on-schedule.Work performed includes overhauling machinery, repairing the underwater hull and implementing significant renovations to the ship's superstructure.The contract, which was awarded to Vigor after a successful challenge last year, marks the third DSRA Vigor has completed at Pearl Harbor since 2021. Vigor previously competed DSRAs for USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) and USS William P.

Vigor announced it has completed a three-year modernization project on U.S. Navy Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Chosin (CG 65) at its Harbor Island shipyard in Seattle.The project, which encompassed more than 1.7 million hours of work for Vigor employees, in addition to work by dozens of subcontractors and the U.S. Navy, was one of the largest, longest and most complex in Vigor’s history, the company said. Work completed including weapons, communications and information systems modernization, as well as upgrades to many other areas of the ship.

Vigor, a Titan company, has been awarded a $131 million U.S. Navy contract to complete a docking selected restricted availability (DSRA) on USS John Paul Jones (DDG 53) at Harbor Island in Seattle. The ship arrived at Harbor Island on November 4, becoming the fourth U.S. Navy vessel currently undergoing maintenance at the Seattle shipyard.The DSRA will consist of underwater hull preservation, propulsion overhaul, structural work, valve overhaul, sonar work, deck preservation and significant modifications and alterations.

Portland, Ore. based shipbuilding and repair company Vigor Marine has been awarded a $131,151,747 firm-fixed-price contract action to accomplish the USS John Paul Jones (DDG 53) 2C1 dry-docking selected restricted availability (DSRA).The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $131,826,808.Work will be performed in Seattle (77%) and Everett, Wash. (23%), and is expected to be completed by February 2024.This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(3).

Edda Wind’s new Service Operation Vessel Edda Goelo (C416) was launched at Astilleros Balenciaga shipyard in Spain on Friday.Edda Goelo will serve as a mother vessel for wind turbine technicians as they perform maintenance work on offshore wind turbines. When completed, the new SOV will start operations for wind turbine maker Siemens Gamesa at Iberdrola’s offshore wind farm in the Saint-Brieuc Bay off France in the third quarter of 2023. The vessel has a five-year contract with Siemens Gamesa…

After a program of vital welding work, the Scottish Maritime Museum is on track to complete essential repairs to what is believed to be the oldest floating Clyde-built ship in time for the vessel’s 150th anniversary this Summer.The Scottish Maritime Museum raised £40,000 for much-needed repairs to the 1872 MV Kyles, one of Britain’s most important historic vessels and a rare and nationally important survivor from a key period in Glasgow shipbuilding, through a Keep the Kyles Afloat Crowdfunder campaign last year.The Museum’s technical team…

“I hold no branch in higher esteem, than the Merchant Marine…”That is a quote from General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Allied Commander of the Pacific in WWII. That one sentence sums up National Maritime Day. Inasmuch if it were not for our glorious Merchant Marine and maritime industry, we may not even have been a nation at all.National Maritime Day is the day we honor our American Merchant Mariners for protecting our freedom and for their dedication to promoting American commerce together with the accomplishments of the U.S. maritime industry.

Incat delivered its latest large fast ferry, a 110-meter catamaran for Virtu Ferries of Malta dubbed Saint John Paul II.Saint John Paul II is the 44th large commercial fast ferry delivered by Incat and the sixth in excess of 5,500gt in the past decade; a decade also shared with 19 other Incat newbuilds of smaller passenger ferries and support vessels.“Using the latest computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and hydrodynamic free-running model test techniques, the well proven Incat Wave Piercing Catamaran hullform has been further developed for Mediterranean winter conditions…

Shipbuilder Incat has launched the 110m vehicle / passenger ferry from the shipyard at Derwent Park in Hobart Tasmania. The ship will commence sea trials in mid January prior to delivery to her new owner Virtu Ferries for service between Malta and Sicily.Bearing the livery Saint John Paul II the vessel has been named in honor of the Pope who served from 1978 to 2005, so revered the Pope has often posthumously, but unofficially, been referred to by Catholics as "St. John Paul the Great".

The Grande New York, part of the new fleet of the Grimaldi Group, was christened in the Port of NY-NJ at Port Newark Auto Marine Terminal (FAPS). Godmother was Amanda Matilda Cuomo Cole, granddaughter of former late NY Governor, Mario Cuomo and niece of current NY Governor Andrew Cuomo. Father Peter Haldás of St. John Paul II blessed the ship during a short ceremony to a distinguished delegation composed of maritime authorities, customers, port operators and managers of Grimaldi Group and daughter company Atlantic Container Line. Costantino Baldissara, Commercial, Logistics & Operations Director of Grimaldi Group, gave special thanks to Italian Consul General, Francesco Genuardi, the NY-NJ Port Authority Deputy Director, Andy Saporito and FAPS President, August LoBue.

Insights: Rear Admiral Mark H. Buzby, USN (Ret), Maritime Administrator, U.S. Rear Adm. Mark H. Buzby was appointed by President Donald Trump and sworn in as Maritime Administrator on August 8, 2017. Prior to his appointment, Buzby served as president of the National Defense Transportation Association, a position he has held since retiring from the U.S. Navy in 2013 with over 34 years of service. A 1979 graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Buzby earned his Bachelor of Science in Nautical Science and U.S. Coast Guard Third Mate License. He was commissioned in the U.S.

Rear Adm. Mark H. Buzby, USN, Ret. has been sworn in as the Administrator of the Maritime Administration by U.S Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao. As Maritime Administrator, Buzby will lead the agency tasked with promoting the use of waterborne transportation and its seamless integration with other segments of the transportation system; and the development and maintenance of an adequate, well-balanced U.S. merchant marine, sufficient to carry a substantial portion of the Nation’s waterborne commerce, and capable of service in time of war or national emergency.

The U.S. Navy has a balanced fleet, but it wants to grow bigger and better. Will the budget allow both? Maritime Reporter's March 2017 cover story on the U.S. Navy was all about the numbers. There exists several plans to grow the fleet beyond the current number of 308 ships, the Mitre recommendation of 414 ships, the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment 340-ship proposal, and the Navy’s decision to grow the fleet to 355 ships, and the Trump administration’s 350. With so many numbers being bandied about, there are even more suggestions on how to get there.

A multinational group of Sailors and scientists from a variety commands, organizations and militaries searched for the wreckage of Revolutionary War ship Bonhomme Richard, Sept. 2-9. Underwater archaeologists from the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC), Navy divers from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit(MDSU) 2, Sailors from Naval Oceanography Mine Warfare Center (NOMWC), Sailors from the French Mine Clearance Dive Unit (MCDU) and members from Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration (GFOE) embarked upon Military Sealift Command rescue and salvage ship USNS Grasp (T-ARS 51) to survey a late 18th or early 19th century-shipwreck off the coast of England in the North Sea.

1747 - John Paul Jones is born in Arbigland, Scotland. Originally appointed to the Continental Navy in 1775, he is known for his quote, Ive not yet begun to fight! during the battle between Continental frigate, Bonhomme Richard, and HMS Serapis on Sept. 23, 1779. 1898 - During the Spanish-American War, the auxiliary-cruiser USS Dixie captures the Spanish vessels, Three Bells, Pilgrim, and Greeman Castle, off Cape Cruz, Cuba. 1943 - Following the Allied landing on New Georgia, the Japanese attempt to land reinforcements with 10 destroyers, resulting in the Battle of Kula Gulf. In the battle, USS Helena (CL 50) is hit by three torpedoes, breaks apart, and sinks, with nearly 170 of her crew lost.

1777 - John Paul Jones takes command of the Continental Navy sloop USS Ranger. While commanding Ranger, the ship receives the first official salute to the Stars and Stripes flag by the French fleet at Quiberon Bay. 1777 - The Continental Congress adopts the design of present U.S. flag of 13 stripes and 13 stars. 1847 - Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry conducts the second expedition against Tabasco, Mexico, also known as the Battle of Villahermosa. 1945 - USS Sea Devil (SS 400) sinks the Japanese transport Wakamiyasan Maru in the Yellow Sea. 1945 - PB4Y aircraft bomb Japanese shipping off Banjarmasin, Borneo and sink Japanese (No. 470) shuttle vessel. 1985 - Steelworker Second Class Robert D.

Today in U.S. 1779 - Capt. John Paul Jones in Continental Navy frigate Bonhomme Richard captures HMS Serapis. 1931 - Lt. Alfred Pride pilots Navy's first rotary wing aircraft, XOP-1 autogiro, in landings and takeoffs on board USS Langley while underway. 1944 - USS West Virginia (BB-48) reaches Pearl Harbor and rejoins the Pacific Fleet, marking the end of the salvage and reconstruction of 18 ships damaged at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.

Today in U.S. Naval History - July 22 1802 - Frigate Constellation defeats nine Corsair gunboats off Tripoli. 1905 - Body of John Paul Jones moved to Annapolis, Md. for reburial. 1953 - U.S. ships laid down heavy barrage to support UN troops in Korea 1964 - Four Navy Divers (LCDR Robert Thompson, MC; Gunners Mate First Class Lester Anderson, Chief Quartermaster Robert A. Barth, and Chief Hospital Corpsman Sanders Manning) submerge in Sealab I for 10 days at a depth of 192 feet, 39 miles off Hamilton, Bermuda. They surfaced on July 31, 1964. 1974 - Evacuees from the coup on Cyprus arrive on board Navy vessels in the Mediterranean. Operation ended on 24 July. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

Today in U.S. 1779 - Commodore Abraham Whipple's squadron captures 11 prizes in largest prize value of Revolutionary War. 1813 - U.S. Frigate President captures British Daphne, Eliza Swan, Alert and Lion. 1920 - Naval aircraft sink ex-German cruiser Frankfurt in target practice. 1943 - German submarine shoots down K-74, the first and only U.S. airship lost during WW II. 1947 - President Harry S. Truman delegates responsibility for the civil administration of former Japanese mandated island to the Secretary of the Navy. 1966 - Launch of Gemini 10 with L.Cdr. John W. Young, USN as Command Pilot. Mission involved 43 orbits at an altitude of 412.2 nautical miles and lasted two days, 22 hours, and 46 minutes. Recovery was by HS-3 helicopter from USS Guadalcanal (LPH-7).

BAE Systems has received a multi-ship, multi-option (MSMO) contract from the U.S. Navy to repair, maintain, and modernize nine destroyers and cruisers, either homeported in or visiting Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The five-year contract, awarded by the Naval Sea Systems Command, includes modernization, maintenance, and repair work for the USS Chafee, USS John Paul Jones, USS Chung-Hoon, USS Hopper, USS Michael Murphy, USS O’Kane, USS Halsey, USS Milius and USS Preble. This award marks…

Today in U.S. 1884 - USS Bear left the New York Naval Shipyard as part of the Greely Relief Expedition. USS Thetis would join the mission a week later, with USS Alert also joining on this mission. The Greely Expedition was marooned in the Arctic. Greely and six other survivors were found at Cape Sabine, 23 June 1884. 1959 - Organization of American States asks U.S. 1981 - RCA delivers to the Navy, NOVA I, the 1st production unit of the improved navigational satellite. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

Today in U.S. Naval History - April 22 1778 - Captain John Paul Jones of Ranger led landing party raid on Whitehaven, England 1898 - U.S. warships begin blockade of Cuba 1987 - U.S. Navy ordered to provide assistance to neutral vessels under Iranian attack outside the exclusion zone and that requested help For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

Today in U.S. Naval History - February 14 1778 - John Paul Jones in Ranger receives first official salute to U.S. Stars and Strips flag by European country, at Quiberon, France. 1813 - Essex becomes first U.S. warship to round Cape Horn and enter the Pacific Ocean 1814 - USS Constitution captures British Lovely Ann and Pictou 1840 - Officers from USS Vincennes make first landing in Antarctica on floating ice For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.