GREAT CIRCLE ROUTE

Fish Aggregating Device (FAD)

Catching up on nautical news this morning we read that the Australian Maritime Authorities have removed the MS Shen Neng from the sandbar off The Great Barrier Reef. It seems that damage from oil has been kept to a minimum which is a relief. NAUTICAL LOG awaits further data as to other damage from the actual grounding apparently at full speed.

We were also interested to learn that the pirate ship MS Steve Irwin called at Pitcairn Island which is on the great circle route from New Zealand to Panama. The now retired island communications officer Tom Christian MBE is a former shipmate of mine. We sailed aboard the TSS Tamahine in New Zealand some 51 years ago he as Radio Officer me as a brand new Third Officer. Tom and his wife recently returned to Pitcairn after a long stay in New Zealand. It is good to read of the SS-PG doing some nice things for a change and NAUTICAL LOG is sure it was a interesting experience for the MS Steve Irwin crew and of course Pitcairn's residents had a chance for trading. With the demise of the Trans-Pacific passenger ships calls at Pitcairn must be few and far between these days.

A second report tells of a Fish Aggregating Device (FAD) found some 400 nautical miles from Galapagos, it was fitted with a satellite transponder. The MS Steve Irwin crew recovered the equipment, destroyed it and recorded the serial number of the transponder. This would seem to be a good thing and certainly a lot better type of work than ramming ships.

Good Watch.

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