New Lake Charles launch keeps pace with LNG boom
Professional Mariner|June/July 2020
In front of the Lake Charles pilot station in Cameron, La., the 70-foot Cameron Pilot II went from zero to 28 knots in a matter of seconds, and did it as smoothly as the hand of Capt. Mark Foster advancing the throttles.
Brian Gauvin
New Lake Charles launch keeps pace with LNG boom

The boat derives its elegant lines from the classic Ray Hunt Design deep-V hull, synonymous with the pilot boats built by Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding of Somerset, Mass. The launch is fast for its length and weight, and it needs to be. From the Cameron jetties, it is 30 miles to the sea buoy across the open, and often rough, Gulf of Mexico.

“I’ve been a pilot for 27 years and it’s the best pilot boat I’ve ever been on,” said Capt. Brett Palmer, president of Lake Charles Pilots Inc. “It’s solid and rides really flat, and cuts the waves with no pounding in 5-foot seas. It has incredible visibility and is a very functional, purpose-built pilot boat.”

In 2016, local pilots and industry saw a need for new infrastructure to support the expected surge in vessel traffic because of the turn from importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) to exporting it. Currently, Cameron LNG is up and exporting, Venture Global LNG is under construction, and three more LNG terminals have received permits and are expected to be built along the Calcasieu Ship Channel.

“We have 14 jobs today,” Palmer said. “Six months ago, we were not nearly that busy. But we knew this was coming.”

This story is from the June/July 2020 edition of Professional Mariner.

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This story is from the June/July 2020 edition of Professional Mariner.

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