Summer Sea Term 2023 Captain’s Log
481 Cadets from 5 different maritime academies attend their first formation aboard the Helo Deck of the TS Kennedy for Summer Sea Term 2023. Captain Wade Howell will be providing updates while underway as connectivity allows. Follow us on social media (@texasmaritime) for publishing alerts or check back weekly at our Captain’s Log page for updates.
Log #2 – June 1, 2023
Make ship ready for sea.
481 cadets from five separate maritime academies converged on the TS Kennedy over the course of 16 hours. After a good night’s sleep and some food in their bellies, the first order of business is safety: All cadets and crew go through safety management system orientation, followed by a series of drills to prepare us for our final examination in front of the United States Coast Guard prior to sailing. As we progress through our pre-summer sea term, the ship finds its rhythm and settles into routine.
We look forward to a safe and enjoyable summer as we sail the Caribbean while learning our trade.
Log #1 – May 25, 2023
Greetings from the TS Kennedy. After 18 years, it is great to be on our own dedicated, mission-ready ship! Work aboard the TS Kennedy continues around the clock to prepare the ship for 480 cadets and 80 crew! All deck and engine officers are onboard and are working full-time to get the ship ready to sail.
The ship’s engineers and their student workers have lit off the steam plant so the ship’s boilers can “warm up” prior to departure, and they have been going through the ship’s accommodations/decks, making sure all equipment is in good working order. There are hundreds of rooms onboard and many different pieces of equipment, such as plumbing, air conditioning, coffee makers, and many new items brought on board. They have also been conducting requisite safety inspections to ensure the ship passes all of her upcoming regulatory inspections.
The deck officers and their student workers have been feverishly at work transferring supplies and equipment aboard and outdated material off. Ships IT is installing our Starlink internet package, new electronic message boards, new computers in the lab and a PA system on the Helo Deck. The mates are spending hours in hot lifeboats inspecting supplies, life jackets, survival suits and emergency gear lockers. The Mates have made over 70 crane lifts and are conducting routine deck equipment maintenance and inspections.
Preparing to sail any vessel is an enormous task, but getting a 56-year-old, 540-foot training vessel ready to sail with over 500 people onboard presents a unique challenge. There are many “behind the scenes” tasks that get done along with the regulatory/administrative work that goes with operating a large vessel. Much of this goes unnoticed but is critical to our mission every summer.
The crew will continue working hard to prepare the ship, and we look forward to having cadets from all the academies arrive to help us with final preparations – there will be no shortage of things to be done.! We have an outstanding team of officers that are ready to teach the cadets the skills they will need to succeed in the industry.
We look forward to welcoming the cadets aboard.
Don’t forget to visit us on June 3 for our dock party and open house!