Marad plans more ship disposals

Marad plans more ship disposals    The Maritime Administration said it has authorized four new disposal contracts for obsolete ships in its National Defense Reserve Fleet.
   Two of the ships are in the James River Reserve Fleet in Virginia, and two are in the Suisun Bay near San Francisco. Three of the ships will be dismantled in Brownsville, Texas, and one in Chesapeake, Va.
   'Our ship disposal policy of 'worst first' has worked for us,' said Deputy Maritime Administrator John Jamian. 'We have cleared out the ships in the worst condition, most of which were in the James River. Now we can work ahead and dispose of ships before the situation becomes so critical.'
   The James River Reserve Fleet and the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet are two of the three National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) anchorage sites. Marad maintains the NDRF as a reserve of ships for national defense and emergencies. When ships are no longer considered viable for defense or aid missions, Marad arranges for their disposal.