La. shipbuilder delivers boats to VI

JEANERETTE, La. - Louisiana-based shipbuilder Metal Shark has delivered two new custom welded aluminum vessels to the Virgin Islands Port Authority (VIPA). The vessels, designed by Metal Shark and built at the company’s Jeanerette, La., production facility, were recently delivered to St. Thomas and transferred to the VIPA. The two vessels are already operating from the Edward Wilmoth Blyden IV Marine Facility on the Charlotte Amalie waterfront, where they serve the islands of St. Thomas and St. John. The new pilot boat is a 45-foot Defiant-class mono-hull pilothouse vessel with a military-proven hull design and a unique deck arrangement specifically designed for pilot operations. (Source: Metal Shark 04/23/18)