T/S Kings Pointer - ex-Contender T-AGOS 2
The T/V Kings Pointer is a training ship operated by the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at King's Point, NY. The United States Merchant Marine Academy is a federal service academy that educates and graduates leaders of exemplary character who are committed to serve the national security, marine transportation, and economic needs of the United States as licensed Merchant Marine Officers and commissioned officers in the Armed Forces. With 95 percent of the world's products transported over water, these leaders are vital to the effective operation of the merchant fleet for both commercial and military transport in peace and war.
Built in 1983 for the Navy as an Ocean Surveillance Ship, she was transferred to the Merchant Marine Academy after 1992. She is 224 feet long, 43 feet wide and has a draft of 15 feet. The Kings Pointer was retrofitted as a training vessel at North Florida Shipyard at a cost of $3.3 million. Before being redesigned for this role, the ship was previously known as the MV Liberty Star and served as a rocket booster recovery vessel for NASA, retrieving solid rocket boosters from the ocean following space shuttle launches. The former NASA rocket booster recovery ship was formally rechristened in May 2016 as the United States Merchant Marine Academy’s new T/V Kings Pointer following an extensive overhaul at a Florida shipyard.
Propelled by two combined 2,900 horsepower diesel engines, the 176-foot long, newly-christened Kings Pointer has a 6,000 mile range and a maximum speed of 15 knots. The ship’s controllable pitch propellers and auxiliary water jet thruster, combined with modern joy-stick dynamic positioning capability provide midshipmen a highly maneuverable training platform. The vessel has a 7,500 pound deck crane, which is an ideal tool for providing a basic understanding of modern cargo operations. It also has a fast rescue boat, which can provide midshipman critical experience in general launch operations. In addition, the vessel’s double towing winch, substantial towing H bitts, and a massive towing fairlead add significant new towing training capabilities to the Academy’s portfolio.
The Academy had been without a proper training ship since December 2011 when MARAD unexpectedly stripped the Academy of its beloved 1983-built, 224ft long training ship T/V King’s Pointer amid the reassignment of top leadership at the Academy. The vessel was subsequently transferred to Galveston, Texas, home of the Texas A&M Maritime Academy.
This decision also accounts for the upcoming reconstruction of Mallory Pier, the Academy’s main ship docking facility. The Mallory Pier project has been in the planning stages for several years, and work is now scheduled to begin in early 2012. The project will take 12 to 18 months, during which time there would be no docking facilities available to tie up vessels as large as the TV KINGS POINTER. Great Lakes Maritime Academy cadets train both in the classroom and on the water. Cadets participate in sea projects during their time at the Academy. Cadets usually spend at least 3 semesters at sea. One cruise is aboard the Training Ship State of Michigan, and the other two cruises may be on commercial ships on the ocean.
