Francis News

Over 95% of large ocean-going vessels moving in U.S. waterways are under the direction and control of a pilot that is a member of the American Pilots’ Association  (APA). The enormous increase in vessel sizes – as much as five times bigger than just twenty years ago – without corresponding expansions of waterways has made the already difficult work of these pilots even more challenging.APA-member pilots are generally the only U.S. citizen aboard foreign ships moving in the fragile bays, ports, rivers, and lakes that are the lifeline of this country.

Title: Famous Irish MarinersAuthor: Emma ByrnePublication date: September 22, 2025ISBN 9781788494922 PRICE €17.99/£15.99 HBFORMAT 196x129 mm EXTENT 176ppAlso available as an eBook.Ireland has a rich history of famous – and infamous – mariners: from our earliest navigators, who may have reached North America – by currach – a thousand years before Columbus, to daring polar explorers Ernest Shackleton and Tom Crean.Read the stirring adventures of Ireland’s seafaring women, from Granuaile to Kate Tyrrell…

Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), a public university with undergraduate degree programs focusing on science, engineering, technology, math, and business has been recognized as the top public higher education institution in the state for graduate earnings, according to the latest report from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education.The Academy’s #1 ranking confirms that its graduates achieve the highest salaries among peers statewide, highlighting the institution’s reputation for academic excellence…

The National Transportation Safety Board said on Tuesday that a loose wire led to a power failure on the cargo ship Dali that crashed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March 2024, killing six people and wrecking the bridge.The NTSB is holding a hearing in Washington to determine the probable cause of the incident that killed six construction workers on the bridge.The board staff said they are recommending operators complete periodic inspections of high voltage switchboards…

Gulf Island Fabrication has reported strong third-quarter results with revenue of $51.5 million and adjusted EBITDA of $2.5 million, despite softer trends in its services business, a decline in small-scale fabrication activity and anticipated losses from the recently acquired Englobal business.Richard Heo, Gulf Island’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “We have made meaningful progress toward our strategic goal of business diversification with our previous acquisition of Englobal and growing focus on markets outside of oil and gas, such as infrastructure and government services.

The owners and managers of the M/V Dali, the ship that destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, have brought a claim in the Pennsylvania Court against the vessel’s shipbuilder, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. The M/V Dali was completed and delivered by HHI in 2015, so is 10 years old.The owners/managers allege strict products liability for defective design and manufacturing, breach of implied warranties, negligent misrepresentation, negligence and an indemnity and/or a contribution.

Artemis Technologies is leading a feasibility study on the establishment of a new ferry service between Newlyn in Cornwall and St Mary’s in the Isles of Scilly, around 30 miles off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England, in the Atlantic Ocean.The study will assess the technical and commercial viability of deploying the Artemis EF-24 Passenger, a 100% electric, high-speed hydrofoil ferry, to provide a reliable, year-round passenger and cargo service on a route where no winter…

China sanctioned former Philippine senator Francis Tolentino on Tuesday and barred him entry, citing "egregious conduct" on matters such as the disputed South China Sea a day after the end of his six-year term.Tolentino, who lost his bid for a second term in midterm elections, had canvassed on his efforts to bring in laws last year defining the country's sea lanes and maritime zones, which China opposed.A spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry accused some Filipino politicians of making "malicious remarks and moves" that hurt ties between the two nations."The Chinese government is firml

X-Press Feeders Group, the world’s largest independent common carrier, has signed two agreements with COSCO SHIPPING Lines, one of the world’s largest mainline operators, to expand network coverage, strengthen mainline-feeder coordination and improve service reliability.The agreements were signed by Francis Goh, Chief Operating Officer of X-Press Feeders Group and Irene Cheng Jin, Deputy Managing Director of COSCO SHIPPING Lines on June 18, 2025. Under the partnership agreement…

A Florida-based federal emergency response team that reopens U.S. ports after storms and accidents is unstaffed this hurricane season largely due to widespread federal workforce reductions driven by the Trump administration, according to two sources familiar with the matter.The closure of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s Navigation Response Team in Fernandina, Florida – one of the network's six national locations - could mean slower response times and longer port closures if hurricanes slam into the U.S.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Baltimore District, has received more than $218 million in funding for numerous infrastructure improvement, dredging and environmental projects benefiting Maryland, Pennsylvania, southern New York, and the District of Columbia.The financing includes $62 million towards Baltimore Harbor operations and maintenance and $71.9 million for the Mid-Chesapeake Bay Island project.This funding is through the fiscal year 2025 Work Plan for the Army Civil Works Program, which is Congressionally authorized funding specifically for USACE.

We are at the one-year since the Francis Scott Key (FSK) Bridge collapsed over the Patapsco River’s Fort McHenry Channel in Baltimore, Maryland. Nearly 100 percent of the wreckage and debris removal was conducted by the Jones Act private sector U.S. maritime industry. The FSK collapsed at about 1:28 a.m. local time on March 26, 2025 after the container ship MV DALI lost power and collided with one of bridge’s support piers. Six construction workers died in the collapse, while two other workers survived the fall into the freezing water.

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended that 30 owners of 68 bridges across 19 states conduct a vulnerability assessment to determine the risk of bridge collapse from a vessel collision.The recommendation comes as part of the ongoing investigation into the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.The NTSB found that the Key Bridge, which collapsed after being struck by the containership Dali on March 26, 2024, was almost 30 times above the acceptable risk threshold for critical or essential bridges…

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has issued a permit for the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, granting Maryland Transportation Authority permission to construct the bridge, following the collapse of the original structure that claimed the lives of six Baltimoreans. The Baltimore District Regulatory Branch previously issued two permit verifications in 2024 for preliminary construction activities, explosive demolition, and removal of the remaining bridge structures and continues to participate in weekly interagency meetings on the project.To remind…

The Coast Guard gets its first new polar icebreaker in more than 25 years.The Coast Guard has accepted its first new polar icebreaker in more than 25 years, but it’s not really new. The 12,900-ton, 360-foot Anchor Handling Tug Support Ship (AHTS) Aiviq was acquired by the Coast Guard and renamed USCGC Storis (WAGB 21).According to a Coast Guard statement, “On Nov. 20, the Coast Guard purchased the M/V Aiviq, a 360-foot U.S.-built polar class 3-equivalent icebreaker for $125 million in a deal with Offshore Surface Vessels LLC.

On March 26, 2024, the M/V Dali, a massive Neopanamax (the terms for the size limits for ships travelling through the Panama Canal, 1201 ft. long and 168 ft. wide) container ship, collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge,an incident that highlights the growing tension between U.S. maritime infrastructure and modern shipping practices. This accident is poised to create ripple effects across infrastructure, trade regulations, and even maritime law, especially in terms of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (the Jones Act).The collision serves as a stark reminder that the United States…

Maryland Transportation Authority selected Bridging Maryland Partnership as its general engineering consultant for rebuild of Baltimore bridge that collapsed after cargo ship collision.Just 10 months after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA), owner, selected Bridging Maryland Partnership — a joint venture that includes WSP — to provide general engineering consultant services for the reconstruction of the strategically significant bridge.The $75 million contract with the WSP-led joint venture, including engineering firms Rummel, Klepper & Kahl (RK&K); and Johnson, Mirmiran & Thompson (JMT); was approved on Jan. 8 by the Maryland Board of Public Works.

A new study by UCL and UMAS, which analyzed ship movements between 2018-2022, found that optimizing port arrivals to consider port congestion or waiting times could reduce voyage emissions by up to 25% for some vessel types.The average potential emissions saving for the voyages is approximately 10% for container ships and dry bulkers, 16% for gas carriers and oil tankers and almost 25% for chemical tankers. The study finds that these ships spend between 4-6% of their operational time…

China summoned the Philippines' ambassador on Friday to express its objection to two new laws in the Southeast Asian nation asserting maritime rights and sovereignty over disputed areas of the South China Sea, its foreign ministry said.China made "solemn representations" to the ambassador shortly after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr signed the Maritime Zones Act and the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act into law to strengthen his country's maritime claims and bolster its territorial…

On March 26, 2024, the Dali container ship crashed into Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, resulting in the loss of six lives. In June, the federal government announced that it had spent approximately $100 million to remove the wreckage and reopen the Fort McHenry Shipping Channel, which had been closed for nearly three months.In response, the Department of Justice has filed a $100 million lawsuit against the ship's owners, Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited, accusing them of gross negligence.

A U.S. judge approved on Friday a $102 million settlement by the companies that owned and operated the ship that struck Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, killing six people.The payment, approved by U.S. District Judge James Bredar, resolves the U.S. government's claims after the Justice Department filed a civil claim in September seeking $103 million from two Singaporean companies, Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited.A spokesperson for the companies said on Friday they had agreed to pay even though they deny liability.

The owner and operator of the cargo ship that struck Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, killing six people, have agreed to pay $102 million to the federal government, the U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday.The department in September filed a civil claim seeking $103 million from two Singaporean companies, Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited. The claim was intended to recoup the money the U.S. government spent responding to the disaster…

Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) officially took custody of its new training ship Patriot State during a handover ceremony on October 11.The vessel is the second of five being built by Philly Shipyard under the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration’s (MARAD) National Security Multi-Mission Vessel (NSMV) program, designed to provide a purpose-built, state-of-the-art training ships for the nation's state maritime academies.During the handover ceremony, Rear Admiral Ann Phillips…