Yesterday, May 7th, at 0800, boarding the TSSOM for Cruise 2023 started with check-in. LCDR Gualtieri and Warrant Officer Kowalski ensured that every cadet had their paperwork, passports, TWIC card, and juniors had their Merchant Mariner Credentials. Then CMDR Christian and LT Willette reviewed the cruise agreement and conducted bag searches for unapproved items. If Midshipmen had hair out of regulation, quick haircuts were issued before they were allowed to board. After MIDN had loaded their own bags, additional fire gear was brought onboard. Next, faculty and students headed to the forecastle to be issued a lifejacket and immersion suit, also known as a survival suit, by members of the Emergency Squad. The ship’s crew will conduct emergency drills to practice and perfect a system to ensure everyone onboard is accounted for and executes their duties during an emergency. As specified in the Safety Management System Manual, “Emergency Drills and/or Exercises (must) be conducted on a weekly basis at a minimum during underway periods.” (8.6.1 EMERGENCY DRILL AND EXERCISE PROGRAM) Everyone is talking about their last cruise or which port they are most excited about; all involved are excited to get underway. Tomorrow, we are expecting to get a large shipment of stores (food/supplies), so loading operations are expected to take the whole day. Stay tuned.
Latest 2023 Summer TSSOM Cruise
- Castine, METime: 1404 Position: Castine, Maine Good Afternoon, Between some technical difficulties and end of semester exams I have been crazy busy, but now safely alongside in Castine, I have some time! We cruised back across the Atlantic at 11 knots. Last I wrote, we were heading into some weather creating 3.5 meter seas. I definitely […]
- Return to CastineThe TS State of Maine is quickly approaching the East Coast of the United States and is due back in Castine on July 19th at 6:30 am. Livestreaming of the return is scheduled to start at 6:15 am and is accessible either below or at live.mainemaritime.edu.
- Leaving IrelandTime: 2315 Lat: N 53º 05.4 Long: W 005° 24.6 Good Evening! Ireland was fantastic and has made its way up the list to my favorite port! Let’s start where we left off. Last we checked in, we were rounding the southernmost tip of England and heading north toward Belfast, Ireland. We saw Wolfs Head […]
- Underway to BelfastTime: 2305 Lat: N 49 56.4’ Long: W003 32.9’ Good Evening, We gained an hour last night to sync up with Belfast, Ireland. Capt. MacArthur changed our course to go down through the English Channel and then up to Ireland rather than the planned route up and over Scotland. We left Kiel a couple of […]
- The past week and Kiel!The Past Week and Kiel! Time: 2030 Position: Lat: 55° 20.1′ Lng: 011° 02.7 We have been busy in the last week, and I was on watch for most of it, so let’s pick up from where we left off. The very popular ping pong tournament took place last week, with 4C Cleaves taking first […]
- Underway to GermanyTime: 14:35 Lat: 44 42’59 Long: 9 36’51 Good Afternoon, We are cruising along toward Kiel. The water we are cutting through is glassy and the weather is very nice. The only turbulence is the wake off our bow and stern. I am writing this from the berthings, two decks below the main deck. Maintenance […]
