Kwajalein News

The US Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) announced four upcoming Industry Days. (Check SAM.gov for details).The St. Louis District Industry Day is Wednesday, March 2, 2022, 9:00AM to 5:00PM at the Engineering Center of St. Louis. Topics will cover ACE projects and opportunities within other agencies. ACE leadership will participate, and ACE will host one-on-one afternoon briefings covering specific topics. Advance registration is required. Use this link:https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2022…

The U.S. Coast Guard response continues to the grounding of the 308-foot Chinese-flagged commercial fishing carrier Ou Ya Leng No. 6 on Taka Atoll in the Marshall Islands, Wednesday.A Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules crew arrived and made contact with the mariners who remain aboard the vessel and are awaiting rescue.Initial reports from MRCC China stated the crew abandoned ship and were on the atoll, but upon arrival, the Hercules crew confirmed they are aboard the vessel and using emergency generator power.

A U.S. Navy led team has removed 229,000 gallons of oil from a sunken World War II era German heavy cruiser that has been resting on the seafloor near the Marshall Islands for more than 70 years.After being transferred to the U.S. as a war prize, the cruiser Prinz Eugen was loaded with oil and cargo and used to assess survivability of warships during the Operation Crossroads atomic bomb tests in the Pacific. The ship survived two atomic blasts before being towed to Kwajalein Atoll…

Matson has launched its new direct U.S. flag service between Honolulu and the Republic of the Marshall Islands ("RMI"), reducing cargo transit times to the RMI from the U.S. mainland by as many as eight days. The new service will call at three ports in the RMI - Kwajalein, Ebeye and Majuro every 17 days. Matson purchased a 700-TEU, U.S.-flagged containership to operate the new service. Christened Kamokuiki, or 'small island or vessel' in the Hawaiian language,  the vessel is well suited to serving island communities with two 45 ton cranes onboard…

The U.S. Navy will commission its newest fast attack submarine, the future USS Indiana (SSN 789), during a 10 a.m. (EDT) ceremony today (Saturday, Sept. 29), at the Navy Port at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Port Canaveral, Florida.The principal speaker will be U.S. Representative Jim Banks from Indiana. Diane Donald, wife of retired Adm. Kirkland H. Donald, director of Naval Nuclear Propulsion from 2004 to 2012, is serving as the ship’s sponsor. She will give the order to “man our ship and bring her to life!” in a time-honored Navy tradition.“The future USS Indiana shows the increased capabilities that our industrial partners bring to the fleet as we deliver the Navy the nation needs,” said Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer.

Matson has announced that it will introduce a new direct U.S. flag service between Honolulu and the Republic of the Marshall Islands ("RMI") that will shorten cargo transit times to the RMI from the U.S. mainland by as many as eight days. The new biweekly service will call at three ports in the RMI — Kwajalein, Ebeye and Majuro — starting in the first quarter of 2018. Matson has entered into an agreement to purchase a 707-TEU, U.S.-flagged containership from Sealift, Inc., of Oyster Bay, NY to operate the new service.

The U.S. Navy christened its newest Virginia-class fast attack submarine, the future USS Indiana (SSN 789), during a ceremony Saturday, April 29, at Huntington Ingalls Shipyard in Newport News, Va. Vice President Mike Pence, who previously served as the 50th governor of Indiana, delivered the ceremony's principal address. “[President Trump]sent me here today on this historic occasion as a sign of his deep commitment to the Armed Forces of the United States of America, and to his commitment to make the strongest fighting force in the world even stronger still,” Pence said.

The Navy will christen its newest Virginia-class fast attack submarine, the future USS Indiana (SSN 789), during an 11 a.m. EDT ceremony Saturday, April 29, at Huntington Ingalls Shipyard in Newport News, Virginia. Vice President Mike Pence, who previously served as the 50th governor of Indiana, will deliver the ceremony's principal address. Diane Donald, wife of retired Adm. Kirkland H. Donald, director of Naval Nuclear Propulsion from 2004 to 2012, is serving as the ship's sponsor. "The christening of the future USS Indiana brings this technological marvel one step closer to joining the world's preeminent submarine force," said the Honorable Sean Stackley, acting secretary of the Navy.

Stony corals are marine invertebrates with somewhat unique life cycles. For the most part, they reproduce sexually, broadcasting gametes into the water. Often, an entire coral colony or reef will spawn on the same night. Coral may also reproduce asexually by producing genetically identical polyps. Fertilized gametes drift in the current until, hopefully, they alight on a hard surface like a rock suitable for attachment. The gamete then develops into a polyp, producing a basal plate that affixes itself to the hard surface.

Over time, the Blount shipyard has built more than 365 vessels. Today, Blount Boats’ clients include Fire Island Ferries, Casco Bay Island Transit District, Puerto Rico and Municipal Islands Maritime Authority, Spirit Cruises, Circle Line Statue of Liberty (Hornblower), South Ferry on Shelter Island, Long Island, and the Kwajalein Army Base on the Marshall Islands. Blount has been building high quality, innovative shallow draft designs for 66 years. Blount’s designs have created…

1854 - The first formal graduation exercises are held at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md. Previous classes graduated without a ceremony. Rear Adm. Thomas O. Selfridge and Rear Adm. Joseph N. Miller are two of the six graduates that year. 1896 - Authorization is given for the first experimental ship model basin, which was under the supervision of Chief Constructor of the Navy, Capt. David W. Taylor. The basin, in Building 70 at the Washington Navy Yard, Washington, D.C., is used by the Navy to monitor new hull designs.

Over time, the Blount shipyard has built 363 vessels, including such iconic designs as the 130-foot, 600-passenger Miss Liberty. Built in 1952, the vessel is believed to have carried more total passengers than any other vessel in the world. Hull number 93, built in 1955, the “Blount 65’ made its debut and was an immediate success with ferry, commuter and excursion operators. Just under 65’ long, it was an important “break point” in Coast Guard regulations. During the late 1950s, Blount designed the Botruc for the offshore oil and gas industry.

The Coast Guard suspended the search Saturday for an overdue 83-foot commercial fishing vessel near the Republic of Marshall Islands. Fishing vessel Clear Water 02 reportedly went missing with nine people aboard while en route Majuro for offload, March 12. "Suspending a search is never an easy decision and is only done after intense scrutiny and evaluation of our search efforts as a whole," said Lt. Justin Gear, JRCC Honolulu command duty officer. A Coast Guard aircraft searched 49,837 square miles totaling 44 search hours. Ten good Samaritan vessels also assisted in search efforts. A Navy P-3 Orion airplane from U.S. Navy 7th Fleet searched Thursday and Friday covering an additional 8,747 square miles.

Today in U.S. Naval History - January 31 1944 - American amphibious landing on Kwajalein, Marshall Islands 1961 - Lieutenant Commander Samuel Lee Gravely, Jr. becomes first African-American to command a combat ship, USS Falgout 1981 - Era of Enlisted Naval Aviators ends when last pilot retired For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

Blount Boats, Inc. received Notice of Award to design and construct four 75-ft passenger vessels for the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll in the South Pacific. The vessels will be built to meet the USCG Subchapter 'T' for operation between the Marshall Islands of Kwajalein, Rio-Namur and Ennubirr Island on a Protected Waters Route for the Kwajalein Range Service, LLC, a contractor to the U.S. Army. The 150-passenger mono hull boat will be constructed of welded Corten steel with an aluminum superstructure.

1944 - American amphibious landing on Kwajalein, Marshall Islands 1961 - Lieutenant Commander Samuel Lee Gravely, Jr. becomes first African-American to command a combat ship, USS Falgout 1981 - Era of Enlisted Naval Aviators ends when last pilot retired (Source: Navy News Service)

1871- Using his administrative authority Secretary of the Treasury George S. Boutwell re-established a Revenue Marine Bureau within the Department and assigned Sumner I. Kimball as the civilian Chief with the duty of administering both the revenue cutters, which were then under the control of the local Collectors, and the life-saving stations. 1942- Enlistees after this date were restricted to enlistment in the Coast Guard Reserve. This was done to prevent having too many regulars in the service at war’s end. 1944- Coast Guardsmen participated in the invasion of Namur Island, Kwajalein Atoll.

From the Navy News Service:   1944 - A U.S. amphibious landing takes place on Kwajalein, Marshall Islands. 1961 - Lt. Cmdr. Samuel Lee Gravely Jr. becomes the first African-American to command a combat ship, USS Falgout (DER 324). 1981 - The era of enlisted naval aviators ends when the last pilot retires.   For more news from the Naval Historical Center, visit their Navy Newsstand page at www.news.navy.mil/local/navhist.

From the Navy News Service 1944 - A U.S. amphibious landing takes place on Kwajalein, Marshall Islands. 1961 - Lt. Cmdr. Samuel Lee Gravely Jr. becomes the first African-American to command a combat ship, USS Falgout (DER 324). 1981 - The era of enlisted naval aviators ends when the last pilot retires.

Today in U.S. 1918 - President Woodrow Wilson sails in USS George Washington for Paris Peace Conference. 1943 - Aircraft from USS Lexington (CV-16) and USS Independence (CVL-22) attack Kwajalein Atoll, sinking four Japanese ships and damaging five others, while only three U.S. ships suffered damage. 1944 - USS Flasher (SS-249) sinks Japanese destroyer Kishinami and damages a merchant ship in South China Sea. Flasher is only U.S. submarine to sink over 100,000 tons of enemy shipping in World War II. 1965 - Launch of Gemini seven piloted by CDR James A. Lovell, USN.

1918 - President Woodrow Wilson sails in USS George Washington for Paris Peace Conference. 1943 - Aircraft from USS Lexington (CV-16) and USS Independence (CVL-22) attack Kwajalein Atoll, sinking four Japanese ships and damaging five others, while only three U.S. ships suffered damage. 1944 - USS Flasher (SS-249) sinks Japanese destroyer Kishinami and damages a merchant ship in South China Sea. Flasher is only U.S. submarine to sink over 100,000 tons of enemy shipping in World War II. 1965 - Launch of Gemini 7 piloted by CDR James A. Lovell, USN. This flight consisted of 206 orbits at an altitude of 327 km and lasted 13 days and 18 hours. 1983 - Aircraft from USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) and USS Independence (CV-62) launch strike against anti-aircraft positions in Lebanon that fired on U.S.

1918 - President Woodrow Wilson sails in USS George Washington for Paris Peace Conference. 1943 - Aircraft from USS Lexington (CV-16) and USS Independence (CVL-22) attack Kwajalein Atoll, sinking four Japanese ships and damaging five others, while only three U.S. ships suffered damage. 1944 - USS Flasher (SS-249) sinks Japanese destroyer Kishinami and damages a merchant ship in South China Sea. Flasher is only U.S. submarine to sink over 100,000 tons of enemy shipping in World War II. 1965 - Launch of Gemini 7 piloted by CDR James A. Lovell, USN. This flight consisted of 206 orbits at an altitude of 327 km and lasted 13 days and 18 hours. 1983 - Aircraft from USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) and USS Independence (CV-62) launch strike against anti-aircraft positions in Lebanon that fired on U.S.

1871- Using his administrative authority Secretary of the Treasury George S. Boutwell re-established a Revenue Marine Bureau within the Department and assigned Sumner I. Kimball as the civilian Chief with the duty of administering both the revenue cutters, which were then under the control of the local Collectors, and the life-saving stations. 1942- Enlistees after this date were restricted to enlistment in the Coast Guard Reserve. This was done to prevent having too many regulars in the service at war’s end. 1944- Coast Guardsmen participated in the invasion of Namur Island, Kwajalein Atoll.