Westport Passenger Boat Goes Into Full Year Service

Wesport Shipyard's 100-ft. Admiralty Wind has been chosen by Four Seasons Marine, in Alaska, to be its year-round vessel for two 38-mile round trips per day. The company already operates Westport fiberglass passenger boats on seasonal tours of the Inland Waterway. Admiralty Wind will make the two trips daily to Admiralty Island from Auke Bay near Juneau. The company transports miners to the island to connect with busses to take them inland to Kenicott Copper's Greens Creek Mine. Captain Robert Patronsky said, in addition to rugged dependability, speed is important for the service. The new 100 x 22.8 ft. vessel will have a cruising speed of 28 knots. Designed by Jack Sarin, Bainbridge Island naval architect, the vessel utilizes a Westport 8500 hull, built with Airex/PVS core and fire retardant resins. The boat will carry 149 passengers on two decks. A 20-seat passenger lounge is located forward of the galley on the main deck. The vessel is propelled by twin Caterpillar 3518B, 1,960 hp electronically controlled engines with ZF BW 465 marine gears. Alaska Diesel Electric supplied Northern Lights 40 kW and 32 kW generators. The bowthruster consists of a dual prop, hydraulically driven 16-in., 40 hp unit from Wesmar. Twin Disc Power commander single lever engine controls equip three stations, including port and starboard wing consoles. Steering and autopilot are part of an MDI three-axis ride control system.