The ship’s controllable pitch propellers and auxiliary water jet thruster, combined with joy-stick positioning will provide midshipmen with a highly maneuverable training vessel.
The United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York has a new training vessel, the MV Liberty Star, a 2,900 horsepower, twin-diesel ship. The 176-foot long Liberty Star, soon to be renamed the Kings Pointer, in keeping with Academy tradition, has a 6,000 mile range and a maximum published speed of 15 knots.
In its prior seagoing life, Liberty Star was one of NASA’s rocket booster recovery vessels. Along with its twin, Freedom Star, Liberty Star worked on NASA’s shuttle missions by positioning itself 140 miles offshore of Cape Canaveral in advance of shuttle launches to retrieve the two 146-foot, 200,000-pound reusable booster casings ejected during shuttle launches.
Liberty Star will remain on call for future NASA missions.
After shipyard work to add sleeping berths and other training features, the Liberty Star will go to the Academy. Marking the transfer agreement between NASA and DOT’s Maritime Administration, Academy Superintendent Rear Admiral James Helis said, “This state-of-the-art training vessel will help us provide the best education and hands-on experience for our future maritime leaders.”
The ship’s controllable pitch propellers and auxiliary water jet thruster, combined with modern joy-stick dynamic positioning capability will provide midshipmen with a highly maneuverable training vessel. Liberty Star has a 7,500 pound deck crane, good for providing a basic understanding of modern cargo operations. In addition, the vessel’s double towing winch, substantial towing H bitts, and a massive towing fairlead add new training capabilities to the Academy’s portfolio.
Liberty Star will remain on call for future NASA missions, so midshipmen (midshippersons?) will have the opportunity to get at-sea experience with commercial crews and NASA technicians.
(AutoInformed dedicates this story to the memory of Al Burns who grew up on Long Island and proudly served the Unites States during WW2 as a member of the Coast Guard as a loran instructor.)
