Farragut receives donation of a 33′ Navy personnel carrier

Admiral Farragut Academy recently came into possession of a 33-foot Navy personnel carrier. Dockmaster and sailing instructor Chief Master-at-Arms (EXW) Dan Kühl, USNR (Ret) plans to refit the vessel with the help of interested students, and later it will serve a multitude of purposes for Naval Science, Scuba, Marine Science, and even Lower School students.

The personnel carrier and the 3-axle trailer it sits on were a gift from a philanthropic family, Mr. and Mrs. Mark Cassidy III, of Cassidy’s Ice in Stuart, FL. Chief Kühl found the boat listed on Facebook marketplace and when he contacted Mr. Cassidy and told him what the boat would be used for, Mr. Cassidy decided to donate it instead. Mr. Cassidy has also pledged further support for the refitting project, and has many contacts in the boating industry, both recreationally and commercially.

Additionally, the project has already received a sponsorship for marine paint from Awlgrip Marine Paint of Central and South Florida, a steering console from one of Farragut’s day student parents (who wishes to remain anonymous), and Chief Kühl hopes to line up more donations now that he has received the vessel. The biggest item on the list of needed items will be to repower the boat with a replacement for the original diesel engine and drive with an additional outboard, or a set of medium-sized outboards.

“As this boat will be designed to go places AFA has not been able to go since we last had a Navy boat,” Chief Kühl said, “I would like to follow the Navy safety motto of ‘Two is one, one is none.’”

The goal in obtaining and refitting this vessel is primarily for the cadets of both the Upper and Lower School. Chief Kühl plans to use the vessel in a variety of ways, including:

• During the refit, teaching marine construction techniques, mechanics, hydraulics, electrical, lighting, maintenance, and more. Several cadets have already expressed interest and some of them are bringing their own expertise to the project!
• Expanding our QBH/QM program to include instruction in twin-engine, medium-size vessel navigation, and boat handling skills. Our demographic and informal information from several cadets indicates that many of our families own one or more boats, many of them are larger and/or with multiple engines.
• Taking up to two entire Upper or Lower School classrooms at a time on explorations, short trips, class outings, etc.
• Taking Marine Science classes from both Upper and Lower School to areas not currently available to us due to range, class size larger than our boats will hold, and other current organic limitations to allow sampling and education that no other school can.
• Taking Scuba students to saltwater offshore dive sites, including wrecks, islands, and the Underwater Veterans Memorial off Dunedin, that are either currently unavailable to us, or not without extra cost of chartering a suitable dive boat.
• Making a noticeable presence to large audiences during the myriad of boat parades and public events offered in our area. The vessel will hold larger groups of cadets than previously available, making a bigger impact on locals and tourists alike, who attend these events in huge numbers. The vessel will be emblazoned with the Admiral Farragut Academy logo, so as to leave no doubt of its ownership.
• Providing a venue/activity during fundraising and community events, including short boat trips for our donors and alumni, in order to increase both their pride in, and appreciation for, our unique academic offerings.

Other ideas that Chief Kühl has had at this stage include setting up a barter situation for dockage in exchange for one of our unused vessels and rebuilding a dock that was historically in the bench area of the waterfront to berth the new vessel. He has also heard of a donor that would like to donate mooring poles.

“To once again have a genuine and obvious US Navy vessel as part of Admiral Farragut’s fleet is a huge stride in our Maritime Education program,” said Chief Kühl. “From being able to take entire classrooms on excursions, go out to areas previously unreachable for Marine Science and Scuba, and using this new boat as AFA’s premier vessel in community functions, parades and events, the future for our program and our school have never been more promising. We already have cadets asking to help, to learn, and even to bring their own expertise to the project!”

If you’d like to be involved in this initiative please contact either Chief Kühl at dkuhl@farragut.org or our Chief Development Officer Tony Sloan at tsloan@farragut.org.