The Virginia Pilot Association has ordered a high-speed, harbor pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation.
It will be the pilots’ tenth launch built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard. Delivery is scheduled for mid-2023.
The all-aluminum launch is entirely designed and outfitted to optimize harbor service. It displaces about 2,000 pounds less than a similar sized offshore pilot boat. As a result, the boat accelerates faster and reaches a higher top speed, explained Peter...
The Virginia Pilot Association awarded a contracted to Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding to build a Chesapeake-class pilot boat. It will be ninth pilot boat built for the Virginia pilots by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard since 1983.
Since the Chesapeake-class pilot boat was introduced by Gladding-Hearn in 2003, 19 have been delivered to 11 pilot associations throughout the U.S.
The Virginia pilots’ new boat incorporates Volvo Penta’s IPS 3 pod system and Humphree interceptors. “The combination of the...
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