The training ship Lone Star State, the fourth of five newbuilds under the Maritime Administration's (Marad) National Security Multi-Mission Vessel (NSMV) program, arrived Tuesday at Texas A&M University at Galveston, giving the Texas A&M Maritime Academy a dedicated training platform for the first time in more than two decades.
The 524' diesel-electric vessel is now moored at the Texas Clipper Pier on the Galveston campus, and the academy's first cadet sea term aboard the new ship is planned for April 2027.
The Lone Star State was built by Hanwha Philly Shipyard, Philadelphia, with TOTE Services LLC, Jacksonville, Fla., serving as vessel construction manager for the NSMV program, after Congress appropriated $325 million for the ship in December 2020. The ship's keel was laid in December 2023, and the vessel was launched in January 2025, christened in Philadelphia on July 17, 2026, and delivered to Marad on Aug. 21.
Principal dimensions are 525'1"x88'7"x21'4", with a scantling draft of 24'7", deadweight of 8,487 metric tons, berthing for 760, and a service speed of 18 knots.
Unlike the converted, end-of-life vessels that have long served state maritime academies, the NSMVs were designed from the keel up for training, with instructional spaces built into the ship. The class was authorized to help address a shortage of licensed merchant mariners available to crew government and commercial sealift tonnage, and the vessels are federally owned and available for humanitarian assistance and disaster response.
Each NSMV is built with a full training bridge, multiple instructional spaces, and berthing for up to 600 cadets. The ships also carry hospital facilities, a helicopter pad, roll-on/roll-off and container capacity, and can accommodate up to 1,000 people during humanitarian assistance or disaster relief missions.
The first three NSMVs — Empire State, Patriot State, and State of Maine — were assigned to SUNY Maritime College, Massachusetts Maritime Academy, and Maine Maritime Academy. The fifth and final ship, Golden State, is scheduled for delivery to California Polytechnic State University Maritime Academy in 2027.
Texas A&M has been without a dedicated training ship since the Texas Clipper II was reassigned by the federal government in 2005 following disaster response work after hurricanes Katrina and Rita; cadets have since sailed under a ship-sharing arrangement with Massachusetts Maritime's Kennedy. The academy's 224'-long General Rudder, which berths up to 50 cadets, has provided year-round supplemental training at the campus.
"What I have witnessed is a remarkable, coordinated effort by all six of the state maritime academies to relentlessly press forward to engage our congressional delegations, alumni, and regional stakeholders to get us here today," said Col. Michael E. Fossum, vice president of Texas A&M, chief operating officer of the Galveston campus and superintendent of the Texas A&M Maritime Academy. "I am personally grateful to the president of Texas A&M University, the chancellor of the Texas A&M University System, and the board of regents for making this their top priority and not giving up until we were successful."
The academy said it is pairing the new ship with a targeted recruiting push, an in-state tuition rate for all cadets regardless of residency, and new industry-focused degree and continuing education programs. Enrollment has grown 70% over the past two years, with record incoming classes.
The Galveston campus offers marine, coastal, and maritime degrees ranging from the humanities to engineering and operates 35 research centers, institutes, and laboratories.
"There's something special happening here on this campus," said Donna Lang, interim dean of the College of Marine Sciences & Maritime Studies and associate vice president for academic operations. "What's going to happen here in less than six months is going to change the trajectory of the campus even further."
A ribbon-cutting for a new engineering classroom and research building is scheduled for October, followed by a formal celebration of the Lone Star State in November. The campus expects to break ground in early 2027 on the Cheryl Mellenthin Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Hospital and Educational Outreach Center.
