MV ''Aurora'' is a feeder vessel for the
Alaska Marine Highway System, built in
Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin in 1977 by Peterson Shipbuilders and commissioned by the
Alaska Marine Highway System the same year.
The ''Aurora'' is the younger sister ship to the
V ''LeConte'' and both serve or have served as feeder vessels that pick up passengers in small communities such as
Pelican
Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...
and
Hoonah
Hoonah ( tli, Xunaa or ''Gaaw Yat’aḵ Aan'') is a largely Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's panhandle in the southeast region of the state. It is west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inside Passage. Hoonah is the only f ...
and take them to larger regional communities (this process is colloquially known as the "milk run").
However, unlike the ''LeConte'', the ''Aurora'' was moved out of
Southeast Alaska
Southeast Alaska, colloquially referred to as the Alaska(n) Panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia (and a small part ...
into
Prince William Sound
Prince William Sound (Sugpiaq: ''Suungaaciq'') is a sound of the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the east side of the Kenai Peninsula. Its largest port is Valdez, at the southern terminus of the Tr ...
area in 2005 to take the place of the retired
MV ''Bartlett''. This move, however, was highly controversial as the
MV ''Chenega'', a fast ferry, was supposed to take this role and been promised for years in advance to the Prince William Sound area and specifically to be homeported in the city of
Cordova. Instead, the ferry system reneged on this promise and moved the ''Chenega'' to a
Ketchikan-
Wrangell route.
Currently, the ''Aurora'' is being hubbed out of Cordova (although, unlike the fast ferry, the ''Aurora'' operates 24-hours a day so it doesn't have a crew that lives in its homeport thus denying that city the economic stimulus of additional residents/jobs. This is the primary motive for the especially rancorous uproar from Cordova regarding the ''Chenega''s route placement) and operating principally between Cordova,
Whittier, and
Valdez with whistle stops (the ferry only stops if there are prior reservations) in
Tatitlek
Tatitlek (Alutiiq: ''Taatiilaaq''; russian: Татитлек) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Chugach Census Area, United States. The population was 88 at the 2010 census, down from 107 in 2000. Tatitlek is in the Chugach School District an ...
and
Chenega Bay.
The ''Aurora''s amenities include a hot-food cafeteria, movie and forward observation lounges, and solarium. There are no cabins on the ''Aurora'' both because of its small size and the lack of demand due to its feeder route running times.
The ''Aurora'' and the MV ''LeConte'' are the only AMHS vessels able to serve the communities of
Angoon
Angoon (sometimes formerly spelled Angun, tli, Aangóon) is a city on Admiralty Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 572; by the 2010 census the population had declined to 459. The ...
,
Kake
KAKE (channel 10) is a television station in Wichita, Kansas, United States, affiliated with American Broadcasting Company, ABC and owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located on West Street in northwestern Wichita, and ...
,
Pelican
Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...
,
Tenakee Springs and
Hoonah
Hoonah ( tli, Xunaa or ''Gaaw Yat’aḵ Aan'') is a largely Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's panhandle in the southeast region of the state. It is west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inside Passage. Hoonah is the only f ...
. This quality is due because of these vessels' small sizes thus making them both vital assets for the ferry system and the residents of these rural villages although currently the ''Aurora'' is not being utilized for this unique capacity.
External links
Official Alaska Marine Highway System website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aurora
Alaska Marine Highway System vessels
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
1977 ships
Ships built by Peterson Builders