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Sky News

28 Apr 2024

Unified Command Reflects on Key Bridge Disaster Response Efforts

Source: Keybridgeresponse2024

Approximately one month has passed since the Singaporean-flagged container vessel M/V Dali allided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26. The bridge, which connects Hawkins Point and Dundalk, Maryland, collapsed into the lower Patapsco River, bringing all maritime traffic in and out of the Port of Baltimore to a standstill.The Unified Command offers its reflection on the response efforts underway:During the incident involving the Dali, eight road crew workers, who were on break from repairing potholes, were present on the bridge when it collapsed.

26 Apr 2024

French Carrier Joins NATO Drills as Russian Threat Looms

Copyright Florence Piot/AdobeStock

As Russia's war in the Ukraine drags on now into its third year, NATO today launched one of its biggest naval deployments since February 2022, with French aircraft carrier the Charles de Gaulle under the command of the alliance for the first time.The French nuclear-powered carrier began its mission in the Mediterranean Sea, close to its home port of Toulon. Placing the Charles de Gaulle under NATO operational control for the first time is highly symbolic, not least because the…

18 Apr 2024

Stena Bulk Sells LNG Carrier Stena Blue Sky

(Photo: Stena Bulk)

Tanker shipping company Stena Bulk on Thursday announced the sale of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier vessel Stena Blue Sky to an undisclosed Asian buyer.The sale of Stena Blue Sky follows the recent announcement that Stena Bulk had sold two LNG carriers to BW LNG.The successful transfer of Stena Blue Sky has already taken place. The vessel was delivered on April 18 in Singapore.Originally built in 2006 by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) in South Korea, Stena Blue Sky has a carrying capacity 145…

08 Apr 2024

American Cruise Lines to Receive Two New Ships in 2025

(Image: American Cruise Lines)

American Cruise Lines is set to take delivery of two more new small ships in 2025.The 125-passenger sister ships, American Patriot and American Pioneer, represent the fifth and sixth ships in the company’s Project Blue series of 12 new small ships for the U.S. market. The ships will be built at the company’s affiliated shipyard, Chesapeake Shipbuilding in Maryland.American Patriot will begin sailing in June 2025, and American Pioneer in November 2025 and both new ships will operate a host of American’s U.S.

04 Apr 2024

Metal Shark Debuts Prowler Autonomous Vessel and Frenzy Micro-USV

Louisiana-based boat builder Metal Shark has unveiled Prowler, its new autonomous, amphibious, and semi-submersible military craft engineered to meet the current and near future warfighting requirements of the U.S. military and its allies. The company is also debuting Frenzy, a high-performance, low-cost, amphibious micro-USV (uncrewed surface vehicle) with a payload carrying capacity of up to 14 pounds.“Prowler represents the sum total of everything we’ve learned while building 400-plus autonomous and remote operated vessels for our military customers over the past decade…

26 Mar 2024

Six Presumed Dead After Baltimore Bridge Collapse

Satellite image ©2024 Maxar Technologies.

Six workers were missing and presumed dead from a bridge that collapsed in Baltimore Harbor early on Tuesday after a massive cargo ship crippled by a power loss rammed into the structure, forcing the closure of one of the busiest ports on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard.With dive teams facing increasingly treacherous conditions in the darkened, wreckage-strewn waters, active search-and-rescue operations were suspended about 18 hours after the accident, U.S. Coast Guard and Maryland…

26 Mar 2024

Cargo Ship Lost Power Before Slamming Bridge in Baltimore

Collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore (Credit: Screenshot/StreamTime Live)

A massive cargo ship smashed into a bridge while sailing out of Baltimore early on Tuesday, sending cars and people into the river below and closing one of the busiest ports on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard.Rescuers pulled out two survivors, one of whom was hospitalized, and searched for more in the Patapsco River after huge metal spans of the 1.6-mile (2.57 km) Francis Scott Key Bridge crumpled into the icy water around 1:30 a.m. (0530 GMT).The ship reported a power issue before impact…

26 Mar 2024

Stena Bulk Completes Sale of LNG Tankers

Erik HĂĄnell, President & CEO of Stena Bulk. Image courtesy Stena Bulk

Stena Bulk completed the sale of two of its LNG carriers – Stena Crystal Sky and Stena Clear Sky – to BW LNG.As part of the sale, BW LNG will assume the existing charters for both vessels.Both vessels were originally delivered in 2011 from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering in South Korea. Stena Crystal Sky and Stena Clear Sky each have an LNG carrying capacity of 174,000 cbm.“As part of our strategy to continuously look for new opportunities, Stena Bulk took the decision some time ago to sell Stena Crystal Sky and Stena Clear Sky," said Erik Hånell, President & CEO of Stena Bulk.

05 Mar 2024

Ukraine Says it Sunk a Russian Patrol Ship Near Crimea

(Photo: Ukraine Defense)

Ukrainian sea drones hit and sank a Russian Black Sea Fleet patrol ship off occupied Crimea in an overnight attack, the Ukrainian military said on Tuesday.Ukraine's GUR military intelligence agency said a special unit called Group 13 had fired Magura V5 maritime drones at the Sergey Kotov near the Kerch Strait, which connects the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea.It said on the Telegram messaging app that the vessel had sustained damage to the stern, starboard and port sides, at an estimated cost of $65 million."Right now this ship is on the seabed as a result of fire damage by unmanned boats…

05 Mar 2024

MSC Containership Hit by Houthi Missile Sailing to Djibouti

(Photo: Indian Navy)

Container ship MSC Sky II was continuing its voyage to Djibouti on Tuesday after being hit by a missile a day earlier near Yemen's port city of Aden, its operator MSC said.MSC Sky II was hit by a missile about 85 miles southeast of Aden and 170 miles east-southeast of the Bab al-Mandab Strait while it was sailing from Singapore to Djibouti, the Swiss-headquartered MSC said in a statement."The missile caused a small fire that has been extinguished while no crew were injured. She is currently continuing her journey to Djibouti and will arrive today for further assessment…

05 Mar 2024

Yemen's Houthis Hit Container Vessel in Gulf of Aden with Missile

© Kalyakan / Adobe Stock

One of two anti-ship ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Houthis at the container vessel M/V MSC SKY II in the Gulf of Aden hit the ship and caused "damage", the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Tuesday.Initial reports indicated no injuries and the Liberian-flagged, Swiss-owned container vessel did not request assistance and continued on its way, CENTCOM said in a statement.A military spokesperson for the Iran-aligned Houthis said on Monday that they targeted the vessel with "a number of suitable naval missiles".

21 Jan 2024

Drone Attack: Russia Suspends Operations at Ust-Luga

© grigvovan / Adobe Stock

Russian energy company Novatek said on Sunday it had been forced to suspend some operations at a huge Baltic Sea fuel export terminal due to a fire started by what Ukrainian media said was a drone attack.The giant Ust-Luga complex, located on the Gulf of Finland about 170 km (110 miles) west of St. Petersburg, is used to ship oil and gas products to international markets. It processes stable gas condensate - a type of light oil - into light and heavy naphtha, kerosene and diesel to be shipped by sea.It was not clear how long the disruption would last…

15 Jan 2024

Xeneta Appoints Luykx as Chief Revenue Officer

Tonia Luykx (Photo: Xeneta)

Ocean and air freight rate benchmarking and intelligence platform Xeneta has appointed Tonia Luykx to spearhead its journey to drive revenues through an industry data revolution.Luykx, who has a track record for building and scaling SaaS and tech businesses including Sift, Google, Dropbox and Amazon, has now set her sights on global logistics in the position of Chief Revenue Officer at Oslo-based Xeneta.She said, “I have always worked in organizations that challenge the status quo…

15 Jan 2024

Houthis Say They Will Target US Ships

© Andrea Izzotti / Adobe Stock

Yemen's Houthi movement will expand its targets in the Red Sea region to include U.S. ships, an official from the Iran-allied group said on Monday, as it vowed to keep up attacks after U.S. and British strikes on its sites in Yemen.Attacks by the Houthis on ships in area since November have impacted companies and alarmed major powers in an escalation of Israel's more than three-month war with Hamas militants in Gaza. The group says it is acting in solidarity with Palestinians.British…

28 Dec 2023

Workboat Power: Alternatives Join Diesel to Power Current—and Future—Vessels

Crowley’s new electric tug eWolf is being built by Master Boat Builders for scheduled delivery in 2024. (Image: Crowley)

Analysts and commentators are quick to point out that fossil fuels will power maritime equipment, and indeed dominate the fueling marketplace, well into the future. However, they will do so alongside new fuels, and new technologies, that will be introduced to the maritime sector in the coming years. In its September, 2023 report “Beyond the Horizon: View of the Emerging Energy Value Chains”, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) explains that, “During the recent 80th meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 80)…

26 Dec 2023

Ukraine Strikes Russian Naval Landing Warship

(Photo: George Chernilevsky, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Ukraine struck a large Russian landing warship in Crimea with cruise missiles in an overnight attack that killed at least one person and could hinder any Russian attempt to seize more Ukrainian territory along the Black Sea coast.The Russian defence ministry, cited by the Interfax news agency, said Ukraine had used air-launched missiles to attack the Crimean port of Feodosia and that the Novocherkassk large landing ship had been damaged.Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had briefed President Vladimir Putin in detail about the attack, the Kremlin said.

26 Dec 2023

Indian Navy to Deploy Guided Missile Destroyers After Strikes Off Its Coast

© Kamchai / Adobe Stock

The Indian Navy will deploy guided missile destroyer ships in the Arabian Sea as a deterrent after an Israel-affiliated merchant vessel was struck off the Indian coast over the weekend.The navy was investigating the nature of the attack on the vessel, MV Chem Pluto, which docked in Mumbai on Monday, and initial reports pointed to a drone attack, a navy statement said."Further forensic and technical analysis will be required to establish the vector of attack, including type and amount of explosive used…

21 Dec 2023

Shipping Industry in the Dark Over US-led Red Sea Navy Force

(Photo: Samantha Alaman / U.S. Navy)

Shipping companies remain in the dark over a new international navy coalition being assembled by the United States to combat attacks in the Red Sea, with many vessels continuing to avoid the area or cancelling contracts, sources said on Wednesday.The sources, who include shipping and maritime security officials, say few practical details are known about the initiative launched on Tuesday by Washington or whether it will directly engage in the event of further armed attacks at sea.Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen have since Nov.

13 Dec 2023

Panama Canal Woes Mean Longer Haul for Many

Tanker Strinda inside the Gatun locks on the Panama canal. Copyright Moments by Patrick/AdobeStocks

As low water level continue to plaque the Panama Canal, shipowners and managers are paying the price in the form of longer hauls and higher fuel (and emissions) costs to deliver product to market.In one example, oil tanker Cururo is taking the long way from Houston to Chile: sailing the length of South America's Atlantic coast, across the Strait of Magellan and heading up the Pacific coast before discharging.The voyage could take 32 days and travel more than 10,000 nautical miles (18…

11 Dec 2023

New Blue Sky Report Outlines N. America Roadmap to Net Zero Maritime Transport

© y zxvisual / Adobe Stock

The Blue Sky Maritime Coalition (BSMC) has released a new report titled, Roadmap to Net-Zero Emissions: North American Waterborne Transportation, which envisions industry-wide decarbonization by 2050 and identifies the guiding principles and key actions that will help the maritime value chain meet that vision.By understanding what success in 2050 looks like for each stakeholder, the roadmap works backwards to identify the steps and pathways needed to bring that future to reality.

21 Nov 2023

Meet the CIO: Erika Graziuso, Crowley

Photo credit Rick Wilson/Courtesy Crowley

Erika Graziuso, Chief Information Officer, Crowley, brings a breadth and depth of non-maritime experience to bear in her quest to drive Crowley’s digital transformation in the name of decarbonization, holistic transportation efficiency and crew attraction and retention.Emulating best practices from industries outside of maritime has been a mantra in boardrooms and conferences for decades, as traditional maritime mindset has, at times, been seen as an impediment to achieving next-level efficiency.Enter Erika Graziuso…

14 Nov 2023

Viking Expands Southeast Asia River Fleet

Source: Viking

Viking has announced the expansion of its river fleet in Southeast Asia with the new Viking Tonle.Designed for the Mekong River, the vessel will join its identical sister ship, the Viking Saigon, which debuted in 2022, and will sail between Kampong Cham, Cambodia, and Mỹ Tho, Vietnam, as part of Viking's 15-day Magnificent Mekong itinerary.The ship is under construction and is currently scheduled to debut in October 2025. To meet strong demand for Mekong River voyages, Viking…

09 Nov 2023

Burger Boat Company Introduces the 142 Atrium Motor Yacht

Source: Burger Boat Company

Burger Boat Company and yacht designer Evan K. Marshall have collaborated on the Burger 142 Atrium Motor Yacht, a vessel the companies say combines impeccable design and cutting-edge technology in a stunning 142-foot masterpiece.The inspiration behind the design was to establish an extraordinary centerpiece within the yacht's interior. With the Atrium, Marshall has successfully crafted a multi-story grand entrance that has never been seen on a yacht of this size. This distinctive feature will captivate the owner and their guests…