Helen Bentley, an advocate of US maritime industry, dies aged 92
HELEN Delich Bentley, who spent 24 years as maritime reporter and editor for the Baltimore Sun before chairing the US Federal Maritime Commission from 1969 to 1975, and later served 10 years as a Republican congresswoman from Maryland, died on August 6 at the age of 92.
Mrs Bentley had been in failing health for several months and died at her home in Timonium, Maryland, weeks after being diagnosed with brain cancer, reported the Journal of Commerce.
She was a steadfast advocate of the US-flag industry, and a critic of efforts to weaken US-flag cargo preference laws. At the FMC she criticised what she saw as predatory rate-cutting by government-controlled Russian carriers.
As a tireless promoter of the Port of Baltimore, the harbour was officially renamed the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore in 2006. CEO of the Maryland Port Administration, Jim White. He noted her work as an unofficial mediator in longshore labour negotiations over the years, and her advocacy on issues such as securing federal approval of Baltimore's 50-foot shipping channel.
Mrs Bentley grew up in Nevada and got a job on the Baltimore Sun in 1944.
The International Longshoremen's Association was striking every two or three years. American shipyards and US-flag carriers, still riding high after World War II, were deeply involved in maritime policy in Washington.
As a reporter, Mrs Bentley covered the industry's gritty underside as well as maritime issues in Washington. Her detailed newspaper reports became required reading for industry leaders and federal policymakers.
Mrs Bentley covered containerisation's formative years closely. She reported and analysed the new services, their market impact, and technical issues such as the development of the twistlock and debates over the standardisation of container sizes.
Her reporting was credited with helping push the US Defence Department towards use of containers, a step that not only smoothed the flow of military cargo but provided carriers with backhaul cargo that helped trans-Pacific containerisation take hold.
During the early years of President Richard Nixon's administration, she played a behind-the-scenes role in the development of the Merchant Marine Act of 1970, which provided government subsidies for construction of US-flag tankers and bulk carriers.
HELEN Delich Bentley, who spent 24 years as maritime reporter and editor for the Baltimore Sun before chairing the US Federal Maritime Commission from 1969 to 1975, and later served 10 years as a Republican congresswoman from Maryland, died on August 6 at the age of 92.
Mrs Bentley had been in failing health for several months and died at her home in Timonium, Maryland, weeks after being diagnosed with brain cancer, reported the Journal of Commerce.
She was a steadfast advocate of the US-flag industry, and a critic of efforts to weaken US-flag cargo preference laws. At the FMC she criticised what she saw as predatory rate-cutting by government-controlled Russian carriers.
As a tireless promoter of the Port of Baltimore, the harbour was officially renamed the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore in 2006. CEO of the Maryland Port Administration, Jim White. He noted her work as an unofficial mediator in longshore labour negotiations over the years, and her advocacy on issues such as securing federal approval of Baltimore's 50-foot shipping channel.
Mrs Bentley grew up in Nevada and got a job on the Baltimore Sun in 1944.
The International Longshoremen's Association was striking every two or three years. American shipyards and US-flag carriers, still riding high after World War II, were deeply involved in maritime policy in Washington.
As a reporter, Mrs Bentley covered the industry's gritty underside as well as maritime issues in Washington. Her detailed newspaper reports became required reading for industry leaders and federal policymakers.
Mrs Bentley covered containerisation's formative years closely. She reported and analysed the new services, their market impact, and technical issues such as the development of the twistlock and debates over the standardisation of container sizes.
Her reporting was credited with helping push the US Defence Department towards use of containers, a step that not only smoothed the flow of military cargo but provided carriers with backhaul cargo that helped trans-Pacific containerisation take hold.
During the early years of President Richard Nixon's administration, she played a behind-the-scenes role in the development of the Merchant Marine Act of 1970, which provided government subsidies for construction of US-flag tankers and bulk carriers.