Feb 12, 2009 – It looks like a regular ship, but the 294-foot ship t/s Kennedy at the West Indian Company Dock is also a floating classroom for 509 cadets from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.
The ship is visiting St. Thomas for four days after a 1,400-mile trip – from San Juan.
Of course San Juan is just 130 miles away, but the cadets, faculty and crew made the most of their training time in the Caribbean by sailing from San Juan, stopping at Mayaguez for anchor drills, and then around the island of Hispaniola (which comprises the nations of Haiti and the Dominican Republic) before coming into Charlotte Amalie Harbor, according Capt. Thomas L. Bushy, vice president of marine operations and master of the Kennedy.
The ship has also made a call at Tampa before coming to Puerto Rico.
It is a little like old home week for the ship, which was greeted and brought into the dock by V. I. Port Authority harbor pilot Capt. Robert Ripley, an alumnus of the academy and a former student of Bushy's.
While the academy uses a military-style culture, it is not an armed services training academy like West Point or the Naval Academy. The culture sometimes confuses people, Bushy said, and this sometimes works in their favor and sometimes not. When a ship comes into foreign port, for example, Bushy said there have been such obstacles as the proper way to clearing customs.
The cadets have been aboard since Jan. 5 and will sail with the ship until it returns to the academy Feb. 24. They are divided into four groups that rotate through different activities.
While in St. Thomas, three of the four divisions will be allowed liberty each day, while the fourth division performs watch and maintenance duties on the Kennedy.
"We're honored that we get to come in here and represent ourselves as a school," said Timothy Brady, a fourth classman (or freshman), from Plymouth, Mass. Brady celebrated his 19th birthday on the first day of the voyage.
The cadets on liberty in St. Thomas won't look all that different than other tourists, wearing civilian clothes while they are on shore leave. Their attire is reviewed for appropriateness before leaving the ship, Bushy said.
The ship will sail straight from St. Thomas back to its home port in Massachusetts's Buzzard's Bay, Bushy said.
Bushy said the ship is capable of speeds of 20 knots, but to conserve fuel will probably make the voyage at slower speeds.
In addition to the students, there is also a professional crew as well as faculty from the academy, for a total of nearly 600 people aboard. Among the regiment, as the group of students is called, there are some 45 women, who all berth together. There are also women among the professional crew.
As few as nine or as many as 81 students share berthing areas, based on their rank, class (year) or on gender.
During days at sea, cadets stand watch, attend classes in one of the many labs or classrooms aboard and perform maintenance under the direction of professional maintenance staff. Their majors include emergency management, marine safety and environmental protection, international maritime bsiness and marine engineering and transportation. Their studies will prepare them for careers on cruise ships, tankers or freighters and in other maritime fields, according to Commandant of Cadets Edward Rozak.
Further information on the voyage is available by visiting the school's website.
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