The M/V Tustumena canceled its sailings for Thursday May 28 and Friday May 29 due to mechanical issues with the bow thruster. According to a service notice posted on the Alaska Marine Highway System’s website, the Tusty should be back in service by the morning of May 30.
The cancellations come at a challenging time for rescheduling. The Tustumena is slated for a chain run starting Wednesday, June 3, meaning that she will be headed to the Aleutian Islands and won’t return to Kodiak until the night of June 8.
According to a notice posted on Facebook by the local ferry terminal manager Amanda Becker, space onboard the Tusty to and from Kodiak is “incredibly full” both before and after the chain run, and passengers with vehicles may not be able to rebook until late June depending on the vehicle’s size.
Becker wrote on Facebook that passengers affected by the cancellations are welcome to show up for standby on Saturday or Monday, June 1, but that they will not be guaranteed a spot.
Although this is the first malfunction-induced cancellation of the season, it is one of many in the vessel’s long history. At 62 years old, the Tusty has more than doubled her expected service lifespan, and is the oldest active mainliner ferry in the state’s fleet. The ferry spent extended time in the shipyard at the beginning of 2024 and had to be brought back in for repairs at the beginning of that October, resulting in nearly a week of cancellations.
A build contract for the Tustumena replacement project went out to bid at the end of January. According to AMHS Public Information Officer Gabe Strong, the bidding period has been extended to June 25 to allow bidders more time to put together their applications. The new ferry is scheduled to be finished by the end of January 2029 according to the bid notice.
To see the latest Tustumena sailing schedule and cancellations, go online to https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/.
