Romania Rescues 11 Seafarers and 2 Deceased from Turkish Vessel

Philippines Accuses PLA of Unsafe Close Encounter Over South China Sea

Published Oct 5, 2026 5:47 PM by The Maritime Executive

The Philippine military says that a Chinese fighter made an unsafe close approach to a patrol aircraft near Scarborough Shoal, a contested reef west of Luzon in the South China Sea. According to the AFP, a Philippine C-208 light patrol aircraft was conducting a flight near Scarborough on Saturday when it was approached by two Chinese military aircraft. One of the Chinese planes, a J-16 jet fighter, approached repeatedly and moved in too close for safe operation, the AFP claimed...

Norwegian Authorities Investigating Collision of Three Ships

Published Oct 5, 2026 4:56 PM by The Maritime Executive

Residents of a Norwegian coastal town reported being awoken early Monday morning to a loud boom that turned out to have been a collision between three short sea vessels navigating in one of the coastal fjords on Norway’s west coast. The authorities are trying to sort out the circumstances of the unusual collision between the three ships, which left one taking on water and all three damaged. The collision took place just after 01:30 a.m. October 5, near Alesund. Two...

UKMTO: Tanker's Engine Room On Fire After Latest Hormuz Attack

Published Oct 5, 2026 3:56 PM by The Maritime Executive

Iran has added to a rapidly-expanding list of strikes on energy shipping in the Strait of Hormuz with another attack on a tanker off the Musandam Peninsula. On Monday evening at about 1637 UTC, the master of a tanker informed UKMTO that the vessel was hit by an unknown projectile, sparking a fire in the engine room. The crew was still fighting the fire at the time of the report. No injuries were reported, nor any environmental damage. UKMTO advised...

Houthi antiship missiles on display (Houthi Military Media file image)

Houthis Face Being Cut Off on Yemeni Coast

Published Oct 5, 2026 3:08 PM by The Maritime Executive

Yemen’s Internationally Recognized Government (IRG) has launched Operation Dawn of Yemen across all fronts, with apparently substantial support from allies. The IRG counterattack comes after Houthi forces made a breakthrough down the Tihama coast last month, capturing Mocha, Dhubab and finally Perim Island and the Ras Menhali peninsula, and thus potentially overextending themselves. The IRG’s president, Rashad Al-Alimi, has announced that the objective of Operation Dawn of Yemen is to recapture the capital Sana’a and to end the Houthi insurgency....

Shipping

Japan Launches First Vessel Sanctions in Support of Ukraine

The Japanese government announced a package of sanctions at the end of last week designed to target Russian trade, which included its first-ever vessel sanctions. According to the government, it was imposed for the purpose of contributing to the international effort for achieving peace. The move was seen as an effort by the Japanese government to further align with the West. The package included 35 vessels as well as 33 entities and nine individuals. Japanese companies are required to obtain...

Tugs & Salvage

A fish explores the upside-down hull of Virgo Transport 8 (Basarnas)

Lost Ferry Virgo Transport 8 to be Raised to Recover Remains

The insurer and the owner of the lost ferry Virgo Transport 8 have reached an agreement to raise the wreck of the sunken vessel, potentially enabling the recovery of up to 55 additional missing passengers and crewmembers. If raised intact to preserve human remains, the procedure would be an exception to the norm for salvage. Whole-ship raising is costly and technically challenging, and is rarely attempted. The location and state of Virgo Transport 8 will present significant additional complications for...

Government

Philippines Accuses PLA of Unsafe Close Encounter Over South China Sea

Corporate News

ONE and ClassNK Launch Research to Quantify Roll Damping Tank Effectiveness

[By: ClassNK] Ocean Network Express Pte. Ltd. ("ONE") and Nippon Kaiji Kyokai ("ClassNK") have launched a joint research project to evaluate the effectiveness of roll damping tanks ("RDTs") on large container ships. ONE will provide onboard measurement data from its vessels, which ClassNK will analyze alongside numerical simulations to assess roll reduction performance under actual operating conditions. Through the analysis of onboard measurement data and numerical simulations, the research aims to provide practical insights into the performance of RDTs, and...

Cruise Ships

ultra-large cruise ship under construction

Construction is Underway on More Giants for Cruising

The pace of construction on the next generation of ultra-large cruise ships is gaining momentum. The ships are being floated out of their assembly docks and going on sea trials, while steel cutting and block assembly are already underway for even more of the giants. For years, Royal Caribbean International’s two Oasis-class ships at 225,000 gross tons were the outliers, with none of the large, contemporary segment cruise lines willing to jump the 200,000 gross ton milestone. Imaginative concepts were...

Ports

South Africa Approves Move to Set Up Independent Port Authority

The South African government is continuing efforts to move forward with its pledge to improve the operations of its beleaguered commercial ports. The cabinet last week approved a measure that sets the stage for separating the administration of the country’s eight commercial ports into a stand-alone government-owned company. The vote approved a plan to begin exploring the structure for the stand-alone company. While it still requires further development, it is part of a program of reforms for the country’s ports....

Shipping

Japan Launches First Vessel Sanctions in Support of Ukraine

Tugs & Salvage

Lost Ferry Virgo Transport 8 to be Raised to Recover Remains

Government

Philippines Accuses PLA of Unsafe Close Encounter Over South China Sea

Corporate News

ONE and ClassNK Launch Research to Quantify Roll Damping Tank Effectiveness

Cruise Ships

Construction is Underway on More Giants for Cruising

Ports

South Africa Approves Move to Set Up Independent Port Authority

Offshore

New Zealand Invests $20 Million in New Offshore Gas Projects

New Zealand has made further progress in restarting domestic gas production with a new round of funding targeting offshore exploration projects. Resources Minister Shane Jones and Associate Finance Minister Chris Bishop this week announced $21 million financing for two offshore gas projects. The financing will be made through the Gas Security Fund (GSF), a $113 million state-owned investment facility to ramp up gas production in New Zealand. One of the projects considered for funding in this round is EnZed Energy’s...

Shipbuilding

GAO: Modernizing US Navy Shipyards Will Cost $200B with 2080 Completion

The U.S. Navy is facing a formidable task to rebuild its aging and overstretched shipyards, a mission that could cost a staggering $200 billion and take five decades to complete, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). In a report assessing the Navy’s plans to undertake its largest-ever construction and restoration effort to improve poor conditions and outdated infrastructure at its four shipyards, GAO is highlighting that the Navy could have greatly underestimated the task ahead. In its Shipyard Infrastructure...

Environment

The Ship Has Outpaced the Fuel

Methanol has moved faster than almost anyone predicted. It overtook LNG as the alternative fuel of choice for newbuilds in 2023, and by mid-2026 class society DNV had counted 313 methanol vessels on order, second only to LNG and part of a pool of more than 450 methanol-capable ships on order or in operation. Thirty-eight were delivered in the first half of 2026 alone. The maritime industry has largely solved how to burn methanol. The harder work now is integrating,...

Business

Op-Ed: Europe's Shipping Future Depends on Stronger Ship Management

The role of the ship manager is expanding at a time when owners are applying increased pressure on management fees. That tension should concern the whole European shipping industry. Shipmanagement should not only be viewed through the lens of the traditional ship manager. This term now refers to second and third-party management companies, like Columbia, and joint ventures between owners and managers. Whatever the set-up, the issues remain the same as many are being asked to take on more responsibility...

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Romania Rescues 11 Seafarers and 2 Deceased from Turkish Vessel

Philippines Accuses PLA of Unsafe Close Encounter Over South China Sea

Norwegian Authorities Investigating Collision of Three Ships

UKMTO: Tanker's Engine Room On Fire After Latest Hormuz Attack

Houthis Face Being Cut Off on Yemeni Coast

Japan Launches First Vessel Sanctions in Support of Ukraine

Lost Ferry Virgo Transport 8 to be Raised to Recover Remains

Philippines Accuses PLA of Unsafe Close Encounter Over South China Sea

ONE and ClassNK Launch Research to Quantify Roll Damping Tank Effectiveness

Construction is Underway on More Giants for Cruising

South Africa Approves Move to Set Up Independent Port Authority

Global Industry Leaders to Take the Stage at IBIA Annual Convention 2026

Five Issues That Derail Vessel Control System Modernizations

Beyond Web-Based SaaS: The Cloud-Native Advantage

Japan Launches First Vessel Sanctions in Support of Ukraine

Lost Ferry Virgo Transport 8 to be Raised to Recover Remains

Philippines Accuses PLA of Unsafe Close Encounter Over South China Sea

ONE and ClassNK Launch Research to Quantify Roll Damping Tank Effectiveness

Construction is Underway on More Giants for Cruising

South Africa Approves Move to Set Up Independent Port Authority

New Zealand Invests $20 Million in New Offshore Gas Projects

GAO: Modernizing US Navy Shipyards Will Cost $200B with 2080 Completion

The Ship Has Outpaced the Fuel

Op-Ed: Europe's Shipping Future Depends on Stronger Ship Management

Maritime Industry Conferences and Events

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Maritime Industry Conferences and Events