News has reached NAUTICAL LOG by several sources of a collision between the Costa Cruises MS Costa Classica passenger ship and the Belgian Flag State MS Lowlands Longevity a bulk carrier. The damage to the passenger ship is along the starboard side well above the waterline.
It appears both vessels were in the deep water channel of the Yangtze River and both were in bound. According to the Shanghai Maritime Safety Bureau (SMSB) "liner lost control due to a power glitch". This is the sort of statement made when too deep an investigation would lead to possible embarrassment to the local authorities. NAUTICAL LOG surmises that the pilots were aboard each vessel and this is, once again, a case of things going wrong when Master is in Command and Pilot is advising the Bridge Team.
NAUTICAL LOG suspects that the 'liner' was overtaking the bulk carrier, got too close alongside and the vessels were 'sucked' together by water displacement causing the impact damage. The SMSB remark saves face for the Shanghai Pilots www.sn-pilots.com.cn/ involved - so important in Asia.
Good Watch.
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