USCGC Mackinaw (WLBB-30)

USCGC Mackinaw (WLBB-30) is a 240-foot (73 m) vessel built as a heavy icebreaker for operations on the North American Great Lakes for the United States Coast Guard. IMO number: 9271054. She should not be confused with a namesake ship, the USCGC Mackinaw (WAGB-83), IMO number: IMO 6119534, which was decommissioned on June 10, 2006.

Mackinaw was delivered to the Coast Guard on November 18, 2005 and commissioned on June 10, 2006. In addition to her ice-breaking duties, the Mackinaw will also serve as an Aids to Navigation ship, able to perform the same duties as the Seagoing Buoy Tenders (WLB) of the Coast Guard fleet. Further, she can conduct law enforcement and search and rescue missions and can deploy an oil skimming system to respond to oil spill situations and environmental response.

One of the Mackinaw's unique features in the US Coast Guard fleet is the use of two Azipods, ABB's brand of electric azimuth thrusters, for her main propulsion. These, coupled with a 550 hp (410 kW) bow thruster, make the ship exceptionally maneuverable. Azipods also remove the need for a traditional rudder, as the thrusters can turn 360 degrees around their vertical axis to direct their thrust in any direction. The Mackinaw also lacks a traditional ship's steering wheel. Much of the ship’s technology, including the Azipod thrusters, is from Finnish Maritime Cluster.

WLBB

WLBB (1330 AM, "Newstalk 1330") is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Carrollton, Georgia, USA, it serves the Carrollton area. The station is currently owned by Gradick Communications and licensed to WYAI, Inc. WLBB features programming from Salem Radio Network.

The station is an affiliate of the Atlanta Braves radio network.

References

External links

WLBB (disambiguation)

WLBB may refer to: