Propulsion damaged on MMA’s new training ship during trials

Repairs to $350M training vessel will delay delivery by several months

Maine Maritime Academy’s new training vessel, the 525-foot State of Maine. Photo courtesy of MMA. The new ship has a training bridge, helipad, and can accommodate 600 cadets.

By Steele Hays

CASTINE–Maine Maritime Academy’s new training ship, the $350 million State of Maine, has experienced problems with its propulsion system during dockside trials that will require extensive repairs and will delay delivery of the vessel to MMA by several months. 

Michael Dickerson, MMA’s director of communications, confirmed in an email that, following a naming ceremony for the ship on Aug. 26, the State of Maine “encountered propulsion shaft and stern tube bearing issues during dockside trials. The ship was subsequently drydocked in September. During this drydocking, the tail shaft, stern tube bearing, bearing carriers, and other associated components were removed for analysis and replacement/repair.”

“An additional drydocking will be necessary to facilitate the installation of a reconditioned tail shaft, stern tube bearings, and associated propulsion components,” Dickerson said in his email.

The problems with the vessel have not been previously reported and MMA had not acknowledged the delivery delay until contacted by The Rising Tide. Dickerson said the academy had planned to report on the needed repairs and delayed delivery in the December issue of its alumni magazine, Mariner. 

The propulsion shaft and stern tube are crucial components of a large ship's propulsion system. The propulsion shaft transfers power from the engines to the propeller and is typically made of high-strength steel designed to handle heavy loads and bending stresses. The tail shaft connects the main engine or gearbox to the propeller and runs through the stern tube, which supports it and prevents seawater from entering the vessel through sealing systems. 

Expected delivery of the ship is now early 2026, “following repairs, root cause analysis, and additional dock trials to prove the efficacy of the repairs,” Dickerson said.

“The shipbuilder, Hanwha, is responsible for the repairs,” he said.

In a Nov. 12 email to The Rising Tide, Rob Loveless, a communications manager with the shipyard in Philadelphia where the vessel is being built, said the delay allows time for the academy to build its new ship pier and will not affect training for its cadets.

“The updated delivery schedule doesn't impact any scheduled Maine Maritime Academy training sailings,” Loveless wrote. “Necessary upgrades to Maine Maritime's pier infrastructure are still under development, so the updated schedule provides the academy with additional time to prepare the facility to accept the ship.”

The ship is now expected to be relocated to Searsport in the first quarter of 2026 while a new pier to accommodate the larger vessel is built in Castine. Phase I of that work is scheduled to be completed in mid-2026, which will allow the training ship to begin operating from its permanent home port in Castine.

The vessel  is the third of five ships commissioned by the United States Maritime Administration being built at Hanwha Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia by TOTE Services, a commercial company that manages ship construction, often under contracts with federal agencies. 

The training ship was supposed to be delivered to MMA by the end of December. It is the third of five National Security Multi-Mission Vessels (NSMV) being built by the federal government for training mariners, as well as for national security missions such as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

The vessel is equipped with a dedicated training bridge and navigation lab, two full-sized engine rooms, eight classrooms, laboratory space, an auditorium, and a helipad. The new ship can handle 600 cadets on board, compared to 245 on the academy’s previous training vessel.

Funding for the 525-foot-long State of Maine comes through the Maritime Administration, a division of the U.S. Department of Transportation that was created to promote development of the nation’s maritime industry.

The vessel was christened in August with speakers including President Lee Jae Myung of the Republic of Korea, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, U.S. Senator Todd Young of Indiana and other top officials.