They conducted maneuvers during the biennial Rim of the Pacific naval exercises. He worked a fleet of 33 home-ported ships and, for two weeks each year, 66 incoming and outgoing foreign military vessels. Trail was a Navy YTB craftmaster in Pearl Harbor between 19. “We assist anything from an aircraft carrier to a destroyer, or moving a fuel barge for bunkering,” Trail said. The YTB also assists military ships visiting the ports in Puget Sound. The assets include aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, frigates, submarines, Military Sealift Command vessels, large crane barges, water barges, bunkering barges and construction barges.

“We move all the United States Navy’s floating assets around the Pacific Northwest,” said Trail. John Trail now guides Pokagon around Everett, Wash., where the 36-year-old boat assists aircraft carriers and destroyers and moves bunker barges. The draft averages 15 feet.Ī former YTB craftmaster in the Navy, Capt. After extensive modifications and the addition of new winches in 1998, the YTB had a displacement of 298 tons light and 422 tons full-load. The tug’s delivery displacement was 286 tons light and 346 tons full-load. Pokagon was launched on April, 9, 1975, and was delivered to the Navy in Puget Sound on June 24, the same day and year the tug’s present captain, John Trail, was born. The keel of the 108-foot tug was laid in October 1974 at Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wis. We’ll get to the brass later, but first some particulars. The gleaming brass aboard their impeccably maintained tug, that is.īased at Naval Station Everett in Washington, Pokagon continues to assist the Navy’s assets in Puget Sound, even though the Navy now has new azimuthing stern drive (ASD) tugs designed by Robert Allan Ltd, of Vancouver, and built by J.M.

Even though the crew of Pokagon (YTB-836) is civilian, they still have to worry about the brass.

Uss calmira tugboat