CIRCAC staff traveled to Seward October 25^th and 26^th to participate in the annual pre-winter meeting sponsored by Marathon Petroleum and Alaska Vocational and Technical Center (AVTEC). 

The week-long event is an opportunity for Cook Inlet operators to train on AVTEC’s world-class simulators.  give professional mariners and others an opportunity to practice safe on water procedures that are practically impossible to replicate in Cook Inlet. Teams are able to refine their own operations and communications strategies and needs while also experiencing new situations that build new skills.

Operators come from across the country; some have been working in Cook Inlet for decades while others will be experiencing their first winter in Alaska. At the end of the week, a host of interested parties from the U.S. Coast Guard to NOAA Ice Forecasters to tug and barge operators and responders get together for an open discussion about what to expect for the coming ice season.