QinetiQ wins NRL contract

RESTON, Va. -- QinetiQ North America today announced it was awarded a $12 million, three-year strategic contract for ocean modeling, remote sensing, and physical oceanography programs to support the Naval Research Laboratory at Stennis Space Center, Miss. Ocean circulation patterns, temperatures and depths are constantly changing. Mapping and prediction models are critical to naval strategy, informing fleet and special mission deployment decisions, military planning exercises, satellite calibration, and fleet design for ships, submarines and other maritime vessels. One of project included in this contract is to continue developing the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model, HYCOM, a new global, high resolution ocean prediction system that improves situational awareness and the ability to predict future ocean environments. (Source: PRWeb, 01/29/14) SSC is also home of the U.S. Navy Meteorology and Oceanography Command and Naval Oceanographic Office.

LCS 4 leaves Mobile

MOBILE, Ala. -- The Navy's newest littoral combat ship, the future USS Coronado (LCS 4), departed from the Austal USA shipyard in Mobile, Ala., today en route to her commissioning site in Coronado, Calif. Coronado is the fourth littoral combat ship delivered to the Navy, and the second LCS of the aluminum, trimaran Independence variant. It's scheduled to be commissioned April 5, and will be homeported in San Diego, Calif. (Source: NNS, 01/27/14)

Supply vessel launched

GULFPORT, Miss. -- Gulf Coast Shipyard Group Inc. announced the launch of the first of six Harvey Gulf International Marine dual-fuel offshore supply vessels. Incorporating clean-burning LNG technology, these vessels position Harvey Gulf as a leader in the environmental application of liquefied natural gas, the company said in a news release. The first of these GCSG-built Harvey Gulf OSVs will be moved to GCSG’s newly commissioned space at the Port of Gulfport in mid-March for final completion and testing. The vessel will be christened and put into service a few months later. (Source: Mississippi Press, 01/22/14)

Silver Ships to build support boats

THEODORE, Ala. -- Silver Ships will provide 36 surface support craft vessels to the U.S. Navy. The aluminum boats will be used for open-water utility functions, including ocean diver support and medical transport. Silver Ship builds custom aluminum boats for the military, municipalities and other commercial customers. The Theodore-based company has been in business since 1985. (Source: al.com, 01/18/14)

Pentagon to trim LCS orders

The Navy has been told to cut back its order for littoral combat ships from 52 to 32 vessels, Pentagon sources told Defense News. A Jan. 6 memo from Acting Deputy Defense Secretary Christine Fox detailed the decision after the Defense Department received its 2015 budget guidance. Three of the ships are already in service with a fourth to be commissioned in the spring. The Navy originally planned to build 52 LCS, with 12 of those coming from Austal USA, which has production facilities in Mobile. (Source: Defense News, al.com, 01/15/14)

JHSV 1 on maiden deployment

USNS Spearhead. Navy photo

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- The Navy's first joint high-speed vessel departed Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Ft. Story Thursday on its maiden deployment to the U.S. 6th Fleet Area of Responsibility. USNS Spearhead, JHSV 1, will remain in U.S. 6th Fleet until May 2014 and sail to the U.S. 4th Fleet area of responsibility through the end of fiscal year 2014. While deployed, the ship will undergo testing to determine the ship's capabilities. Spearhead, built by Austal USA in Mobile, Ala., is fast, flexible and maneuverable and used for intra-theater transport. The 338-foot catamaran is equipped with a 20,000-square foot mission bay that can be adapted to multiple uses. Spearhead and the other JHSVs in its class can move more than 600 tons of troops and equipment 1,200 nautical miles. The ship's flight deck can also support flight operations for a wide variety of aircraft, including a CH-53 Super Stallion. (Source: NNS, 01/16/14)

VT Halter lays barge keel

PASCAGOULA, Miss. -- VT Halter Marine laid the keel for one of two articulated tug barge units being built for Bouchard Transportation Co. Construction of the two units began in April at VT Halter Marine's Pascagoula facility, with delivery scheduled for mid 2015. The barge is 625 feet by 91 feet by 47 feet, has a 250,000-barrel capacity and will be used to transport liquid petroleum. (Source: Mississippi Press, 01/13/14)

Signet moves forward on upgrade

PASCAGOULA, Miss. -- Signet Maritime Corp. is investing $7.2 million in infrastructure improvements at its Pascagoula shipyard, Signet Shipbuilding and Repair. The work will support an increased workload and future growth, and includes a 150-ton crawler crane, dredging and renewal of a 1,000-foot waterfront bulkhead, a new fabrication shop, an expanded drydock and concrete base for vessel repairs and an improved sand blasting and painting area. (Source: Mississippi Press, 01/13/14)

Navy to christen JHSV

The Navy will christen Joint High Speed Vessel Fall River on Jan. 11 during a 10 a.m. CST ceremony in Mobile, Ala. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus will deliver the ceremony's principal address. Diane Patrick, the first lady of Massachusetts, will serve as the ship's sponsor. Upon delivery to the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command, Fall River will be designated as a United States naval ship and will have a core crew of 21 civilian mariners who will operate and navigate the ship. The 338 foot-long aluminum catamaran was built d by Austal USA in Mobile (Source: DoD, 01/09/14)

Workers finishing up LNG fuel tank

NEW ORLEANS -- Lockheed Martin workers this month will put the finishing touches on the first 90-foot long, stainless steel liquefied natural gas fuel tank being built for Wartsila, a Finnish company that designs engines and propulsion systems for ships. The tank and another one being built at Michoud Assembly Facility will be installed on two new LNG-powered offshore supply vessels being built by New Orleans-based Harvey Gulf International Marine. The U.S. shale drilling boom has led to cheap and abundant natural gas. Low prices and tightening emissions standards have prompted more U.S. companies to consider building ships, trucks and trains fueled by natural gas. Multibillion-dollar plans for plants to produce, store and ship LNG are springing up across the country. (Source: nola.com, 01/03/14)