Wasp News

BlueNose, a London-based maritime innovation startup, has been awarded $460,000 through the U.K. Government’s Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC6) to advance aerodynamic efficiency concepts for commercial shipping.The seven-month feasibility study, funded under the Department for Transport’s UK SHORE program and delivered by Innovate UK, will support Project WAVE and run until March 2026. BlueNose, working with lomarlabs, will develop inflatable and foldable wind-deflector…

Finland-based Bluetech has partnered with NYSE-listed INSW to develop Bluetech’s new ‘SeaWasp’ tanker vessel design, purpose-designed for wind but still practical for INSW MR fleet operations.With the support of wind-propulsion specialist Norsepower, Bluetech modified its BT50 design to extract maximum forward thrust from two 35-metre Rotor Sails. This resulted in a total savings of up to 876kW of propulsion power on one representative INSW MR tanker route from San Francisco to…

Wind assisted ship propulsion (WASP) pioneer Blue Wasp Marine announced the launch of its latest software tool, Pelican Suite, which will enable vessel owners, operators and charterers to assess and optimize a range of WASP solutions.Pelican Suite hosts a collection of tools to assess the suitability of WASP solutions, both pre- and post-installation. It provides important insights such as the probability that a certain rudder angle or grid load is exceeded, or which routes are more favorable for wind assistance.

About 10,000 Sailors served aboard 130 landing craft support (LCS) ships during World War II. The last two surviving LCS Sailors, J. William Middendorf II and Eddy Desmond, visited NUWC Division Newport to share their stories with a full audience in Chafee Auditorium on Nov. 18.Middendorf and Desmond were the most prominent members of a panel, which also included Dr. Christopher Lehman, national security and naval warfare expert; Christine Pitts, granddaughter of U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr.

Two mechanical sails have been installed on board Jumbo's heavy lift vessel (HLV) Jumbo Jubilee. The wind assisted ship propulsion (WASP) solution is the latest in a series of innovative technologies installed to the vessel in a bid to boost fuel efficiency and cut carbon.Jumbo is committed to advancing sustainable heavy-lift shipping with innovative energy-saving and decarbonization initiatives across its fleet, said Jumbo Maritime CEO Daan Kornneef.“At Jumbo, we believe that every step towards sustainability is crucial.

A U.S. amphibious assault ship has docked in Cyprus as part of a pre-arranged visit, but could be used to support civilians if hostilities flare in the Middle East, the U.S. ambassador to Cyprus said.EU member Cyprus has offered to assist, if needed, in the evacuation of Europeans and third-country nationals should tensions spill over in the Middle East amid a standoff between Israel, Iran and Iran-affiliated groups."The visit comes at a time when the United States continues all efforts along with key partners to de-escalate regional tensions and to be prepared to support civilians in crisis…

An at-sea training mishap off the coast of Jacksonville, Fla. caused injuries to 30 Sailors and Marines, the U.S. Navy said.The incident, which occurred on the evening of May 1, involved two landing craft, air cushions (LCAC) from USS Wasp (LHD 1) and USS New York (LPD 21).Five Sailors were medically evacuated for further care at Savannah Memorial University Medical Center, officials said. Four of the five Sailors have been released from the hospital after treatment, while one…

Here’s some good news for America’s sea power. While the U.S. Navy has initiated another review of its 30-year shipbuilding plan in the face of widespread dissatisfaction, one element within that plan has been praised: the decision to provide funding for continued construction of amphibious warfare ships. These vessels offer unmatched flexibility and the capability of transporting, deploying, and supporting ground combat forces – typically U.S. Marine Corps – to conduct amphibious assaults, humanitarian operations, or disaster relief missions.

RINA has awarded an Approval in Principle (AiP) for Blue Wasp Marine’s Pelican performance prediction software for wind-assisted ships.With this, Pelican has become the first software of its kind to have received class recognition.Pelican, the product of over 10 years of PhD research, is able to simulate the performance of a ship equipped with wind propulsion technologies using specific wind conditions and sea states. Pelican features a built-in force module for both aero- and hydrodynamics.

The Navy wants, and needs, more ships; but it can’t build them fast enough.While the U.S. Navy aims to achieve a 355-ship fleet, it is decommissioning older (and some not so old) ships at about the same rate it's adding new ones.A Congressional Research Service report stated that, as of April 17, 2023, the Navy included 296 battle force ships. "The Navy projects that under its FY2024 budget submission, the Navy would include 293 battle force ships at the end of FY2024 and 291 battle force ships at the end of FY2028."But there is progress…

Shipboard fire a constant threat: Bonhomme Richard tragedy an enduring lesson in fire prevention, responseJuly 12, 2020 was a lazy Sunday morning at Naval Base San Diego. USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6), which had been commissioned only two years earlier, had recently made the base its new homeport and was docked as it underwent a maintenance availability.But, the silence of that morning was rocked by an explosion a few minutes before 9 a.m., changing everything for the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship.Below the decks…

Adding a flap to a Flettner rotor can lead to improved performance and significant reductions in both emissions and fuel consumption, according to a recent assessment.The study, conducted by wind-assisted ship propulsion specialist Blue Wasp Marine on behalf of the Technical University Delft (TU Delft) and the Sea Axe Fund, leveraged in-house developed Pelican software to assess the potential of a straightforward adjustment to a Flettner rotor, a vertical cylinder that spins and develop lift due to the Magnus effect.In the circumstances covered by Blue Wasp’s tests…

The U.S. Navy has long valued the potential of additive manufacturing (AM) and 3D Printing.AM refers to the depositing of material layer by layer to create an object. For the Navy, it’s not practical to carry every replacement part for every system on a ship, and it can be difficult to forecast if or when parts will fail. AM provides a flexible source of supply in being able to make parts instead of ordering them and waiting for them to arrive, especially for warships at the far end of the supply chain.

HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division in Pascagoula, Miss. started fabrication of the U.S. Navy’s newest amphibious assault ship Fallujah (LHA 9) on Monday. The start of fabrication signifies that the first 100 tons of steel have been cut for the ship and that the shipyard is ready to move forward with the construction of the ship.“Our shipbuilders are proud of the work they do for the security of our nation and for our Navy and Marine Corps customers,” said Eugene Miller, Ingalls Shipbuilding LHA program manager.

BAE Systems said it has received a $294.7 million contract from the U.S. Navy to drydock and perform more than 20 months of maintenance and modernization work on the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3). The contract includes options that, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value to $340.3 million.Under the awarded contract, the maintenance availability of USS Kearsarge will begin in April. Starting in June, the 843-foot-long ship will be drydocked for nearly a year at BAE Systems’ Norfolk, Va. shipyard.

HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding has been awarded a $2.4 billion U.S. Navy fixed-price-incentive contract for the detail design and construction of amphibious assault ship LHA 9. The award includes options, that if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of the contract to $3.2 billion. Ingalls was awarded the original long-lead-time material contract for the fourth ship in the America (LHA 6) class on April 30, 2020.Construction on LHA 9 is scheduled to begin in December 2022.The America-class is a multi-functional and versatile ship that is capable of operating in a high density…

America’s largest military shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) said its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has received a contract modification from the U.S. Navy for $113.6 million to enable long-lead-time material and advance procurement activities for amphibious assault ship LHA 9. This modification brings the total advance funding for LHA 9 to $651 million.Ingalls is the sole builder of large-deck amphibious ships for the Navy. The Pascagoula, Miss. shipyard delivered its first amphibious assault ship, the Iwo Jima-class USS Tripoli (LPH 10), in 1966.

The U.S. Navy's new aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) on Monday underwent its third explosive event off the coast of Jacksonville, Fla., rounding out the ship’s Full Ship Shock Trials (FSST) and validating its shock hardness and ability to sustain operations in a simulated combat environment using live ordnance. During the four-month testing evolution, the first-in-class aircraft carrier withstood the impact of three 40,000-pound underwater blasts, released at distances…

A U.S. Navy sailor was charged on Thursday with starting a fire last year that burned for four days on the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard, injuring more than 60 people and destroying the vessel.The sailor, who was not identified by name, was charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and could face court martial, Navy Commander Sean Robertson, a spokesman for the U.S. 3rd Fleet, said in a statement."The Sailor was a member of Bonhomme Richard's crew at the time and is accused of starting the fire…

America's largest military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced on Monday that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has received a fourth contract modification from the U.S. Navy for $107 million to provide long-lead-time material and advance procurement activities for amphibious assault ship LHA 9. This modification brings the total advance funding for LHA 9 to $457 million.“The amphibious warship production line is a critical component of our nation’s defense industrial base,” Ingalls Shipbuilding President Kari Wilkinson said.

The U.S. Navy has begun the process to remove the island from the USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) as part of an ongoing inactivation availability for the warship that was destroyed by a major fire in 2020.Salvage contractor Smit Americas started the removal process Tuesday, the Navy said. Workers will reduce the island's height down to just above the flight deck to improve the ship’s structural integrity and readiness for tow.The Navy announced at the end of 2020 it would scrap the…

Boomsma Shipping announced its general cargo vessel Frisian Sea has been fitted with wind-assisted propulsion units to help reduce the ship's fuel usage and emissions as the shipping industry continues work to reduce its environmental footprint. “We believe it is necessary and very important to meet sustainability challenges to reduce our environmental footprint. Together with the IMO decarbonization goals for 2050 we want to do our part to reduce our fuel consumption and CO2 emissions as soon as possible…

The global shipping industry is going to face a big challenge during the coming years when regulators, investors and stakeholders demand the drastic reduction of CO2 and other GHG emissions during ship operations. But in reality, the change is already underway.Since 2013, any newbuild ship over 400GRT has been obliged to comply with a specific Energy Efficiency limits – the well-known Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI). It is about to enter an accelerating phase propelled by the recently released IMO GHG reduction strategy.