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Operational Status: Open

T/V Kings Pointer

A team of midshipmen wearing orange life vests row a white wooden boat together in the water. Directly behind them is the massive blue hull of the training vessel Kings Pointer moored at a concrete pier.

T/V KINGS POINTER

Kings Pointer is the United States Merchant Marine Academy's flagship vessel. The United States Maritime Administration acquired "The Pointer" in 2012. Following a refit for training vessel service at a shipyard in Florida, Kings Pointer arrived at the Academy in 2013. 

Kings Pointer is 176' in length, with a displacement of 1,052 Tons. The ship is powered by two 12-cylinder EMD engines, rated at 1,450 horsepower a piece for a combined rating of 2,900 horsepower. Through reduction gears, that power turns two 7' controllable pitch propellers for a service speed of 12 knots. In addition, Kings Pointer is equipped with two thrusters, a stern water jet thruster and a bow tunnel thruster, both powered by GM 8V71 Detroit Diesels.  

Capt. Derek Schubert, C/M Harris Papson, and C/E Rob Gorgy utilize the vessel as a valuable training platform to educate and prepare Midshipmen for their upcoming Sea-Year.

T/V Kings Pointer is moored inside Hague Basin at Kings Point, alongside Mallory Pier.
 

HISTORY

Formally known as Liberty Star, the Kings Pointer was completed in 1980 for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at Atlantic Marine Shipyard, on Fort George Island, near Jacksonville, FL. 

She was one of two sister vessels that recovered Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB's) from the Space Shuttle after launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, in Cape Canaveral, FL.  Approximately seven minutes after Space Shuttle liftoff, the SRB's would touch down, with the assistance of three parachutes in the Atlantic Ocean. Each vessel would retrieve one SRB and tow the booster back to Cape Canaveral for reconditioning.

Her sister ship, Freedom Star, still maintains her original name and is the training vessel at the Seafarers International Union training school, in Piney Point, MD.

A wide shot of the large blue Kings Pointer training vessel resting out of the water on blocks inside a drained concrete dry dock. The industrial scene features a large crane in the background and is set against a stunning, vibrant sunset sky filled with pink and orange clouds. An aerial view of the USMMA waterfront showing the large blue training vessel docked at a long pier. Nearby, a tugboat maneuvers a flat barge, while a marina filled with rows of small white sailboats sits to the right. A close-up front view of the Kings Pointer training ship securely moored to a pier with thick ropes tied to yellow bollards. The ship features a blue hull, a white superstructure, and an American flag flying from its tall mast under a cloudy sky. A side view of the blue and white Kings Pointer training vessel navigating across the water, leaving a small white wake behind it. A massive suspension bridge and a hazy city skyline are visible in the distant background.

Last updated: Friday, April 24, 2026

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