Sherman A1
Sherman A1's JournalMaintenance Error Led to $3.8 Million Ferry Casualty in Washington -NTSB
An improperly tightened fastener led to a diesel engine failure on the passenger and car ferry Wenatchee near Bainbridge Island, Wash., resulting in nearly $3.8 million in damages, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday.
On April 22, 2021, the catastrophic failure of the no. 3 main engine aboard the Wenatchee during a sea trial in Puget Sound led to the ejection of components from the engine and resulted in a fire in the no. 2 engine room. No injuries or pollution were reported.
In November 2020, the Wenatchee, operated by Washington State Ferries (WSF), was taken out of service for maintenance. During the maintenance period, two of the four main diesel engines, numbers 2 and 3, were overhauled by factory-trained technicians. In February 2021, following the completion of engine overhauls, the vessel crew conducted engine tests. Alarms activated for the no. 3 main engine. Crew members found pieces of a cigarette lighter in the lube oil system. Technicians returned to inspect the engine and recover the pieces; they advised WSF it was acceptable to run the engine.
On April 22, while the vessel was conducting a post-maintenance sea trial in Puget Sound, the no. 3 main engine experienced a connecting rod assembly failure and ejected components that breached the crankcase, resulting in the ignition of hot pressurized gases that were released in the engine room. The crew of the Wenatchee effectively contained the spread of the fire by stopping all fuel supply and ventilation to the engine room and isolating the space.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/maintenance-error-led-million-ferry-495052
Evergreen Containership Still Aground Near Baltimore
The Ever Forward containership is currently grounded in the Chesapeake Bay near Baltimore, according to the U.S. Coast Guard, nearly a year after another ship run by the same company blocked the Suez Canal for six days.
The containership is operated by Evergreen Marine Corp Taiwan Ltd 2603.TW, the same Taiwanese transportation company that operates the Ever Given. The Ever Given ran aground last March, blocking traffic in the Suez Canal, one of the world's busiest waterways and the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia.
The Coast Guard received reports on Sunday that the Ever Forward was grounded and is now conducting checks every four hours to ensure the safety of the crew on board and marine life, according to Petty Officer 3rd Class Breanna Centeno.
The Coast Guard says the ship is grounded outside of the canal and is not blocking the traffic of other containerships.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/evergreen-containership-aground-near-495051
Australia to Lift Entry Ban for Cruise Ships After Two Years
Australia on Tuesday said it would lift its entry ban for international cruise ships next month, effectively ending all major COVID-related travel bans after two years and boosting a tourism industry hit hard by the pandemic restrictions.
Australia banned the entry of cruise ships in March 2020, when they were the source of about 20% of Australia's early coronavirus infections. The vessels became a flashpoint in its pandemic response after symptomatic passengers were allowed to disembark in Sydney, many of whom later tested positive.
The federal government said it would not renew the current ban beyond April 17 as the country begins to live with the coronavirus after reaching higher vaccination levels. Last month, Australia fully reopened its airports to vaccinated international travelers.
Before the pandemic, Australia welcomed more than 600,000 cruise ship passengers across its ports from almost 350 vessels in 2019, according to official data, a major source of revenue for the country's A$60 billion ($43 billion) tourism industry.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/australia-lift-entry-ban-cruise-ships-495033
Massachusetts Maritime Academy Teams Up with Union Apprentice Program for Offshore Wind
With the passing of the historic infrastructure bill in August 2021, the backbone of the United States will undergo a transformation over the next several years, and for this, workers will be needed in all facets of the construction industry.
Building Pathways South (BPS), a pre-apprenticeship program in Southeastern Massachusetts, is preparing young adults for opportunities available today as well as down the road, including in the growing U.S. offshore wind industry.
Yvonne Tobey, Program Manager, BPS, has been opening doors for many people interested in joining the building trades over the last five years. Through the organization’s “Introduction to Construction” program, young adults are provided with an overview of the various trades that make up the construction industry, such as the ironworkers, plumbers, bricklayers, and pipefitters just to name a few. Participants also receive job skills training as well as coaching and counseling to be successful. “My goal is that every individual who participates in our program lands a union apprenticeship in the trade they want,” Tobey said. “The opportunities are available, and our role is to help deserving men and women get started on a path to success.”
Introduction to Offshore wind
With the wind farms being built offshore Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard and understanding that $100 billion for electric power generation and transmission, including clean energy, is earmarked in the infrastructure bill, Tobey knew she needed to introduce her students to this opportunity.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/massachusetts-maritime-academy-teams-495067
Russian navy convoy passes through strait off Japan
Japan's defense ministry says six Russian naval vessels have passed through a strait between the country's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido and Russia's Sakhalin island.
The ministry says Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force vessels spotted the Russian warships in the Sea of Okhotsk about 130 kilometers southeast of Cape Soya around Sunday midnight.
Ministry officials say the six vessels included a destroyer, a submarine, and a missile tracking ship. They say the Russian fleet later passed through the Soya Strait to reach the Sea of Japan.
Russia's navy has been carrying out large-scale maritime drills involving more than 20 warships in waters including the Sea of Okhotsk since February. The six vessels are believed to have taken part in the drills.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220314_44/
Japan set to revoke Russia's 'most-favored nation' status
The Japanese government is set to revoke Russia's "most-favored nation" trade status as part of additional sanctions over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
NHK has learned that the government will announce the move on Wednesday following a decision by Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.
US President Joe Biden announced the same measures on Friday, while the leaders of the Group of 7 nations issued a joint statement pledging to move to deny Russia "most-favored nation" status.
The measures mean Russian imports to those countries will be subject to higher tariffs.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20220316_09/
'I see bad times ahead.' Sanctions start to get real for Russians.
Virtually overnight, Russia has become the most sanctioned nation in at least a century, if not ever.
Barely two weeks ago, most Russians enjoyed relatively prosperous, consumerist lives, with access to goods and services familiar to anyone in the West. They were able to travel, use their Russia-based bank cards in just about every country, order services online, and, like billions of the world’s denizens, communicate on universal platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
But Russia’s so-called special military operation in Ukraine has stirred up a blizzard of economic and financial penalties in response. Amid that storm – which includes the decision of brands like McDonald’s, Ikea, and Coca-Cola, as well as 300 more, to leave or “pause” their activities in Russia – and Moscow’s retaliatory measures, Russians’ place in the interconnected global economy seems about to end, perhaps permanently.
The Monitor has talked to more than a dozen Russians to try to gauge their initial experiences, and attitudes, about what looks to be an onrushing long, drawn-out, and life-changing crisis. Several “average” people agreed to speak frankly on condition their surnames not be used. A few well-known analysts spoke on the record, provided no political opinions that might be illegal under a new law on “fake news” be attributed to them.
https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2022/0315/I-see-bad-times-ahead.-Sanctions-start-to-get-real-for-Russians
RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, MARCH 15
Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, March 15
Mason Clark, George Barros, and Kateryna Stepanenko
March 15, 5:30 pm ET
Local company- and battalion-level attacks by Russian forces northwest of Kyiv on March 14-15 likely indicate the largest-scale offensive operations that Russian forces attempting to encircle Kyiv can support at this time. Russian forces did not conduct offensive operations northeast of the city, around Sumy, and only limited (and unsuccessful) attacks southeast of Kharkiv. Russian force generation efforts, including reservist and conscript call-ups and the ongoing transport of Syrian fighters to Russia and Belarus, are unable to change the balance of forces around Kyiv within the coming week. Russian forces have not conducted simultaneous attacks along their multiple axes of advance across Ukraine since March 4 and are unlikely to do so in the next week.[1]
Russian forces in southeastern Ukraine continue to demonstrate the greatest capabilities to date and are steadily advancing in three directions: northeast from Kherson, taking territory in Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts, and reducing the Ukrainian pocket in Mariupol. Russian forces are unlikely to successfully encircle Mykolayiv and threaten Odesa in the near future but retain uncommitted Naval Infantry reserves that could conduct an amphibious operation or disembark to reinforce Russian ground operations, as Russia has employed Naval Infantry elsewhere. Russia may seek to encircle Zaporizhya by advancing northeast up the west bank of the Dnipro River after failing to break through Ukrainian forces directly south of the city on the east bank. Russian forces are making slow but steady progress against Ukrainian defenders on the line of contact in Donbas and likely seek to force them out of their prepared defensive positions.
With Russian forces likely unable to complete the encirclement of Kyiv or resume mobile offensive operations in northeastern Ukraine in the near future, the Russian capture of Mariupol will likely be the next key inflection in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Russian forces have successfully encircled Mariupol and are conducting daily assaults on the western and eastern outskirts of the city. Russian air, missile, and artillery strikes continue to target residential areas and civilian infrastructure to force the city to capitulate. Russian forces have encircled the city to a depth that will likely prevent the defenders from breaking out and prevent Ukrainian efforts to relieve the defenders. Russian forces will likely be able to capture Mariupol or force it to capitulate despite strong Ukrainian defenses. The Russian capture of Mariupol will free up Russian forces, likely including large portions of the 8th Combined Arms Army, to threaten Ukrainian defenders along the line of contact in Donbas with encirclement or alternatively reinforce a Russian offensive toward Mykolayiv and Odesa. This assessment assumes that the defenders in Mariupol will run out of ammunition and/or water at some point in the relatively near future. Mariupol has been heavily fortified for years, however, and it is possible that its defenders secured sufficient supplies in advance to hold out longer. The Russians will likely continue to escalate bombardments to the point of simply destroying the city if that appears to be the case, but the reduction of Mariupol in this way could take considerably longer.
Key Takeaways
Russian forces are unlikely to launch offensive operations to encircle Kyiv larger than the scattered Russian attacks observed northwest of Kyiv targeting Irpin on March 14 and Guta-Mezhyhirska on March 15 within the coming week but may launch further tactical attacks.
Much More At Link.........
https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-15
White House Aims to Boost Supply Chain Information Sharing
The White House on Tuesday unveiled a new pilot effort to help clear supply chain bottlenecks at congested U.S. ports by getting truckers, shippers, wholesalers, retailers and other businesses to share information.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and National Economic Council Director Brian Deese launched the Freight Logistics Optimization Works (FLOW), an information sharing initiative "to pilot key freight information exchange between parts of the goods movement supply chain."
The White House said "the lack of digital infrastructure and transparency makes our supply chains brittle and unable to adapt when faced with a shock" and said it was crucial to improve information sharing because a "lack of information exchange can cause delays as cargo moves from one part of the supply chain to another, driving up costs and increasing goods movement fragility."
The effort includes 18 initial participants including FedEx, UPS, Albertsons, Target as well as the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles and Georgia Ports Authority and Ocean Carriers CMA CGM and MSC and Fenix Marine Terminal and Global Container Terminals.
https://www.marinelink.com/news/white-house-aims-boost-supply-chain-495040
Ireland to take 500 Ukrainian refugees from Moldova
Up to 500 people in Moldova who have recently fled Ukraine will soon travel to Ireland, the Cabinet agreed at a virtual meeting this afternoon.
The decision was taken in light of the extreme pressures faced by Moldova.
Today's discussions focused on ramping-up the humanitarian response to quickly provide accommodation and other essential supports for people from Ukraine seeking refuge in Ireland.
Preparations are under way to provide accommodation in hotels, guest houses, B&Bs, rooms and homes pledged by the public, State-owned or private properties that may be suitable, religious properties, and local authority facilities.
https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2022/0314/1286414-cabinet-ukraine/
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