In this issue

Issue 81 • March 2022

When Oceanbird revealed their new ship design last year, my personal Twittersphere had a very nice giggle. The new vessel promises to cut cargo shipping emissions by 90% – mightily impressive.

The problem is, it's using technology that has been around since around the first century. It uses sails.

Well, it's not a problem with the application. Sails work. they always have. It's a problem with the adoption. Engines are more reliable than sails. That's why we use engines. Shipping needs to be reliable, and wind power isn't. But what if it was? 

There is also the real phenomenon that, if we're honest, everybody wants the best option to be exciting, complicated, shiny new technology. Not sails.

In our cover story this issue, we look at another company, Airseas, that's trying to convince people to go back to the old ways, and embrace wind power for shipping.

We also look at the growth of LNG infrastructure, the first autonomous cargo ship, autonomous hull cleaning, and the growing demand for underwater drones in ports.

For all of this and more, read on. And don't forget to stay up to date with everything at @ShipTechMag.

Peter Nilson, editor