William News

Bellingham, Wash. shipbuilder All American Marine (AAM) has delivered a new high-speed and long-range eco-tour vessel to Phillips Cruises and Tours. The vessel will operate daily in Prince William Sound and will be based out of Whittier, AlaskaDeveloped by Nic de Waal of Teknicraft Design in Auckland, New Zealand, the Chugach Express boasts an 84.5’ x 30.7’ semi-displacement aluminum catamaran hull.The new sightseeing vessel integrates the signature Teknicraft Design symmetrical and asymmetrical combined hull shape, bow wave piercer, and a patented hydrofoil-assisted hull design.

The Philippines on Saturday denied a Chinese claim that the two countries had reached an agreement over an escalating maritime dispute in the South China Sea, calling the claim propaganda.A spokesperson at China's embassy in Manila said on April 18 that the two had agreed early this year to a "new model" in managing tensions at the Second Thomas Shoal, without elaborating.Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said on Saturday his department was "not aware of, nor is it a party to, any internal agreement with China" since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr took office in 2022.

Iran’s foreign minister said the crew of a seized Portuguese-flagged ship linked to Israel have been granted consular access and are expected to be freed, Iranian media reported on Saturday.Iran's Revolutionary Guards seized the container vessel MSC Aries with a crew of 25 in the Strait of Hormuz on April 13, days after Tehran vowed to retaliate for a suspected Israeli strike on its consulate in Damascus. Iran had said it could close the crucial shipping route.Recent attacks on merchant shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis…

On April 19th, 2024, Muddy Water Dredging, LP, held the christening ceremony of its Marlin Class dredge at the Port of New Orleans. The event was attended by many esteemed business leaders, media personnel, and distinguished dignitaries. "We are happy to unveil the Vaneta Marie dredge. After many hours of collaboration between Muddy Water and DSC what we have before us is a dredge that was crafted with precision and ingenuity," said Michael Kerns, President, and CEO of Muddy Water.

Anacortes, Wash. shipbuilder Dakota Creek Industries (DCI) has delivered a new state-of-the-art oil spill response barge to Alyeska Pipeline Service Company for operation in the coastal waters of Alaska.The barge, named Allison Creek, is specifically designed by Elliot Bay Design Group (EBDG) to meet the rigorous requirements in Prince William Sound. Allison Creek has a capacity of 13,600 barrels, an overall length of 200', beam of 42', depth of 16' and is outfitted with a deck crane and on-deck houses to store emergency response equipment.The barge is certified by the U.S.

The Biden administration on Tuesday gave final approval to Orsted and Eversource's Sunrise Wind offshore wind facility, which is expected to provide power to more than 320,000 homes in New York.The announcement was the latest positive development for the project, which Denmark's Orsted warned just months ago could fail without a new contract that would cover soaring costs for equipment and financing.Orsted and Eversource said separately that they had taken a final investment decision…

A Ukrainian missile attack struck a Russian naval reconnaissance vessel and a large landing warship that Moscow captured from Kyiv during the annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, Ukraine's navy said on Tuesday.Ukraine hit the vessels during an attack on Crimea at the weekend, the navy said.

The Indian navy handed over 35 Somali pirates to the police in Mumbai on Saturday, after 100 days of anti-piracy operations east of the Red Sea, where piracy has resurfaced for the first time in nearly a decade.India, the largest national force in the Gulf of Aden and northern Arabian Sea region, captured the pirates from the cargo ship Ruen last week, three months after it was hijacked off the Somali coast.Taking advantage of Western forces' focus on protecting shipping from attacks in the Red Sea by Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi militants…

China's coastguard said it had taken measures against Philippine vessels in disputed waters of the South China Sea on Saturday, while the Philippines decried the moves, including the use of water cannons, as "irresponsible and provocative".China's actions led to "significant damage" and injury to personnel on a civilian boat hired to resupply troops, the Philippine task force on the South China Sea said in a statement.The incident occurred in the Second Thomas Shoal and Spratly Islands waters, according to the Chinese coastguard.

2024 marks another year for development of a biennial WRDA bill—Water Resources Development Act, critical legislation for the Nation’s waterways, ports and harbors. WRDA encompasses a range of issues, from environmental regs to energy use to agriculture and, of course, a focus on projects critical for economic growth.Because these are dynamic and timely issues, Congress and the maritime sector like to keep WRDA on a two-year reauthorization timeline. Indeed, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, December and January, held three WRDA information hearings.

Somali police and international navies were preparing on Monday to attack a commercial ship that was hijacked by pirates last week, the Puntland region's police force said, two days after Indian commandos rescued another cargo vessel held by pirates.The MV Abdullah was hijacked off the coast of Somalia last week, the latest of more than 20 attacks since November by Somali pirates who had laid dormant for nearly a decade.On Saturday, the Indian navy rescued another cargo vessel, the Maltese-flagged MV Ruen, which had been seized in December, freeing its 17 crew members and arresting 35 pirates.

A fire caused by nearby explosions broke out onboard a vessel southeast of the Yemeni port city of Aden on Monday, before being contained, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency and British security firm Ambrey reported."The Master reports the fire onboard has been extinguished and that the crew are all safe. Coalition Forces are responding," UKMTO said in a recent update on the incident.It later added that the vessel was clear of the area and was proceeding to its…

Yemen's Houthis will introduce military "surprises" in their Red Sea operations, the Iran-aligned group's leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in a televised speech on Thursday."Our military operations will continue and advance and we have surprises that our enemies will not expect at all," al-Houthi said.Houthi militants have repeatedly launched drones and missiles against international commercial shipping since mid-November, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians against Israel's military actions in Gaza.Their Red Sea attacks have disrupted global shipping and forced firms to re

Yemen's Houthis fired a missile that likely targeted the Torm Thor in the Gulf of Aden on Feb. 24 but missed the U.S.-flagged oil tanker, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Monday, as the Iran-aligned militia steps up attacks on ships.Shipping risks have escalated due to repeated Houthi drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait since November in support of Palestinians in Gaza. U.S. and British forces have responded with several strikes on Houthi…

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility for an attack on a UK-owned cargo ship and a drone assault on an American destroyer on Thursday, and they targeted Israel's port and resort city of Eilat with ballistic missiles and drones.The statement by a Houthi representative on social media site X came shortly after the group's leader said it was ramping up attacks on ships in the Red Sea and other waters - including with new "submarine weapons" -to mirror Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip.Houthi militants have launched repeated drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea…

Britain's Trident nuclear-deterrent system misfired during a test last month, sending a missile crashing into the ocean off the Florida coast near the submarine that launched it, The Sun newspaper reported on Wednesday.The Ministry of Defense confirmed that an "anomaly" had occurred during the test but said Britain's "nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective".With Defense Secretary Grant Shapps on board the HMS Vanguard to witness the test, The Sun said, the first…

The Greek-flagged bulk cargo vessel Sea Champion arrived in the southern Yemeni port of Aden on Tuesday after being attacked in the Red Sea in what appeared to have been a mistaken missile strike by Houthi militia, shipping and military sources said.Shipping risks are escalating due to repeated drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait by the Iran-aligned Houthis since November. U.S. and British forces have responded with several strikes on Houthi facilities but have so far failed to halt the attacks.The Sea Champion…

An oil spill that has stained Tobago's coastline in the Caribbean is entering into Grenada's waters and could impact neighboring Venezuela, Tobago's Chief Secretary Farley Augustine told Reuters on Thursday.Eight days after Trinidad and Tobago's Coast Guard first spotted the oil from a capsized vessel whose owner and origin have not been confirmed, portions of the stain have moved about 144 km (89 miles) into the Caribbean Sea at a rate of 14 km per hour, Augustine said."It has now entered Grenada's territorial waters…

The Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC), under the command of Capt. Michael Chien, has won the Commodore Viggo C. Bertelsen Jr. and Vice Admiral John P. Currier Auxiliary Integration Award in the category of Applied Innovation. The award was presented by Commander Steven Koch, who leads the Auxiliary (AUX) in New England, at a command all hands. The Auxiliary is the 25,000-member volunteer organization supporting the Coast Guard across 11 missions.Regional Auxiliary Commodore Michael West noted…

Strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen have not fully diminished the group's appetite to disrupt Red Sea shipping, defence minister Grant Shapps said on Monday."These attacks have had a significant effect on degrading Houthi capabilities. But the Houthis' intent to continue disrupting the Red Sea has not been fully diminished," Shapps told parliament.(Reuters - Reporting by Muvija M, writing by William James; Editing by Kate Holton)

A ship carrying 16,000 sheep and cows that turned back from the Red Sea due to the risk of attack off Yemen was stranded at an Australian port in a heatwave on Friday as the exporter sought to offload at least some of the animals into quarantine.Meanwhile, another vessel carrying an even larger cargo - tens of thousands of animals - from Australia sailed for a Red Sea port in Jordan, with a contingency plan to unload them in the Gulf if it fails to obtain permission to enter the…

Thordon Bearings reports it has secured a second major Mexican Navy contract for the supply of its water-lubricated SXL wear rings for retrofit installation to the waterjet propulsion nozzles on 25 interceptor patrol vessels.The contract follows the success of extensive trials in which the SXL material replaced the use of other anti-corrosive coatings in waterjet impeller housings, resulting in increased resistance to cavitation induced corrosion.Rotary Parts, Thordon’s authorized distributor in Mexico, is supplying the housings for 25 Polaris and Polaris II fast patrol boats.

The crew of Moran Towing's tug Lynne Moran has been honored for its courageous response and rescue of two stranded boaters near the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on the evening of October 25, 2023.The crew has received the U.S. Coast Guard Public Service Commendation, presented by Captain O’Connell, as well as the American Waterways Operators (AWO) Honor and Excellence in Rescue Operations (HERO) Award, presented by Brian Vahey, AWO’s Vice President, Atlantic Region.In collaboration with the U.S.