On its final leg of a two-month international training voyage, the student-operated U.S. training ship Golden Bear stopped at the Port of Los Angeles on Monday, July 29.
The vessel — part of the course work at the California State University Maritime Academy — arrived with 249 cadets on board. The students, aiming to earn a U.S. Coast Guard license via the at-sea experience, are responsible for operating the ship, including navigating and piloting it, repairing and overseeing the propulsion system, and maintaining the vessel in general.
The crew includes 65 cadets from the greater Los Angeles area. The crew also included 46 officers, faculty and staff.
LA is the final stop on the voyage, said Capt. Samar Bannister Schneider (she goes by Capt. Bannister), an alumni of the program. She graduated in 2000.
The trips provide valuable experience for the students, she said, and are required for Coast Guard licenses.
During the voyage that just ended, the ship logged some 12,500 nautical miles across the Pacific Rim, with port stops in Honolulu; Busan, South Korea; and Yokohama, Japan.
The cadets were on the ship’s annual training voyage, which is part of the specialized curriculum offered at Cal Maritime, established in 1929 and located on 92 acres of California State University waterfront property in Vallejo.
It is the only maritime academy granting degrees on the West Coast. Academic programs prepare students for maritime industry careers in the fields of engineering, oceanography, transportation, global logistics, marine sciences and international relations.
Specialized programs in marine transportation, marine engineering technology and mechanical engineering can lead to a Merchant Marine license issued by the U.S. Coast Guard, in addition a bachelor’s degree.
The training cruise provides cadets who are pursuing a U.S. Coast Guard license with the sea experience they need to graduate and work aboard ships of any size worldwide.
Training cruises are led…
Read the full article here
