Japan P&I Club has obtained recent navigation warnings of the China Waters issued by China MSA. The navigation warnings regard well exploration, optical fiber cables installation and geological exploration of Bohai Strait Sea-Crossing Passage Project.
As the American Club says, Pandiman Philippines Inc., the Club’s correspondents in Manila, provided the following reminder regarding the hazards associated with the carriage of nickel ore, as the seasonal export of this dangerous cargo from the Philippines gets underway.
1st July marks the First World Marine Aids to Navigation Day. The day is established by IALA, and aims to promote greater awareness to mariners and the wider public regarding the crucial role of Aids to Navigation to ensure a safe and efficient navigation.
UK MAIB focuses on a collision accident concerning a luxury catamaran and a ferry. The catamaran tried to avoid the collision but its port side made heavy contact with the ferry. The Safety Digest notes that passage planning is of a great importance for better-safety conditions.
Australia’s Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) issued an investigation report on the grounding of the Australian Border Force cutter Roebuck Bay (ABFC Roebuck Bay) on Henry Reef, Queensland, in September 2017. The report identified an amendment on the passage plan which led the vessel to the reef and poor use of ECDIS.
On the occasion of the International Day of the Seafarer on 25 June, a total of 14 maritime organizations sent a formal letter to the US Coast Guard Commandant Karl Schultz, requesting the issue of ‘deliberate interference’ with America’s GPS to be resolved.
As part of its efforts to building a safer and more combat-effective force on the aftermath of two deadly collisions in 2017, the US Navy announced that 19 sailors graduated from the updated Quartermaster (QM) “A” School curriculum on 20 June.
Maritime Blockchain Labs has created a consortium, aiming to explore the use of blockchain in order to address the dangers and challenges regarding the declaration and handling of dangerous goods. The consortium will establish a prototype to analyze the possibility for distributed ledger technology to address the challenges that stakeholders face in the supply chain.
The Iranian Director General of Coast and Ports engineering announced the launch of a new version of the Integrated Coastal, Ports and Maritime Information System with new features and a virtual training course. In this course, the definitions and basic concepts of GIS, familiarity with the general and specialized tools of the PMO-GIS system, familiarity with the various types of general and specialized reporting is provided in a WebGIS environment.
While Automatic Identification System (AIS) is designed to mitigate collisions and enhance situational awareness by exchanging real-time vessel information, this navigational tool can degrade or even disrupt other users’ systems if it is non-compliant with adopted international standards, USCG warned.
