GT USA Wilmington (GTW) has welcomed the arrival of the USS
DELAWARE (SSN 791) to the Port of Wilmington on its maiden call to its namesake State.

On the berth to oversee the arrival of the USS DELAWARE were Delaware’s Governor John Carney and Secretary of State, Jeffrey Bullock, along with representatives of the US Navy.

GT USA Wilmington’s Chief Executive Officer, Joe Cruise, stood alongside the dignitaries to meet Captain of the Boat, Commander Matthew G. Horton, USN. The captain took time to meet with each of the dignitaries before continuing with his regular duties.

The USS DELAWARE (SSN 791) is a Virginia-class attack submarine. She was christened in October 2018 but, because of public health concerns caused by the covid-19 pandemic, the submarine’s commissioning ceremony, scheduled for early 2020, had to be postponed. The ceremony is now going ahead on Saturday April 2nd, 2022, in the presence of her sponsor, First Lady of the United States, Dr. Jill Biden.

Joe Cruise expressed how  great a honor it is for the Port of Wilmington to receive the USS DELAWARE and host the Commissioning Commemoration Ceremony in a warm welcome speech.

Since their arrival the submarine, its captain and crew have been involved in the preparations for the ceremony. However, they have also made time to be gracious hosts to numerous groups from in and around the Wilmington area by taking them on tours of the vessel.

Several GT USA Wilmington employees were lucky enough to be given a tour of the inside of the submarine. At the end of the tour Joe Cruise presented Commander Horton with a plaque to mark the maiden call of the USS DELAWARE to the Port of Wilmington.

The tour itself was conducted by the Weapons Officer who guided the group through the submarine, including the torpedo room, the state-of-the-art bridge, engine room, mess hall and crew quarters.

Joe Cruise expressed joy at the amazing experience they had being privileged to be able to have the USS DELAWARE and her crew at the Port of Wilmington on course of the week..

Michael Hall, Chief Operations Officer of GT USA Wilmington commented on how remarkable remarkable the boat is, the level of technology on board and also the skillset of the crew that operates it as extremely impressive.

The Port of Wilmington is one of the United States’ primary gateways for fresh fruits. Its 2021-2022 winter fruit season is in the final and imports are regularly inbound from Morocco and Chile.

The Port of Wilmington has worked hard to put itself in a good position to take advantage of new business from all over the world due to the supply chain crisis. The work has been rewarded with an increase in throughput of cargoes such as juices, rice, lumber and plywood. The Port’s berths and terminal remain uncongested, unlike many ports along the east and west coasts.

About GT USA Wilmington

GT USA Wilmington is a U.S. division of Gulftainer, a privately owned, independent terminal operator and logistics company with operations and business interests in the Middle East and the United States. The company signed a 50-year agreement to manage operations at the Port of Wilmington. This agreement marks Gulftainer’s second venture in the United States and follows the signing of a 35-year agreement with the Canaveral Port Authority in Florida. For more information, go to www.gulftainer.com/US.

About the Port of Wilmington, DELAWARE

Founded in 1923, the Port of Wilmington is a full service Mid-Atlantic seaport on the Delaware River strategically located to provide overnight access to 200 million North American consumers. Wilmington ranks as North America’s top banana port and the nation’s leading gateway for imports of fresh fruit and juice concentrates. The Port was one of the original certified ‘360 Quality’ marine terminals in the United States and is Safe Quality Food (SQF) certified, underscoring its high-quality handling standards for perishable cargo. An economic engine for the State of Delaware and the region, business activity at the Port creates over 5,900 family sustaining jobs and annually generates $436 million in business revenue, $409 million in personal income and $41 million in local taxes. The Port is operated by GT USA Wilmington, LLC.