U.S. maritime academies graduate more than 1,600

New pool of officers will fill positions on board U.S.-flag domestic and deep-sea vessels.    The nation’s seven maritime academies this year graduated more than 1,600 men and women who will join the ranks of the U.S. merchant marine.
   The merchant marine’s proponents cite a wave of retirements among the mariner pool, which is threatening a shortage of qualified U.S.-flag vessel operators.
   “As a seafaring nation with hundreds of seaports large and small and thousands of miles of marine highways, canals and waterways, we are grateful for this next generation of licensed mariners to operate and command America’s commercial and military sealift ships,” said U.S. Maritime Administrator Mark Buzby in a statement. 
   The graduates seeking officer credentials come from seven maritime academies: the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, N.Y.; State University of New York (SUNY) Maritime College of Fort Schuyler; California Maritime Academy at Vallejo; Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City, Mich.; Maine Maritime Academy of Castine; Massachusetts Maritime Academy at Buzzards Bay; and Texas A&M Maritime Academy of Galveston.
   According to American Maritime Partnership, the majority of these graduates will serve on board domestic vessels, tugs and barges, while others will work on U.S.-flag deep-sea commercial vessels providing sealift to the U.S. military in times of war and during national emergencies. Some also will serve as officers in the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard.