NAUTICAL LOG

UPDATE: March 05, 2013. The Sistine Chapel in the Vatican has now been closed to the Public as it is being prepared for the Conclave to elect a new Pope when the date is decided upon.  Some additional Cardinals have now arrived in Rome, Italy.  Of the 115 Cardinal Electors only 107 had been present, it appears all are now in Rome or on their way to the Congregation of Cardinals currently Meeting twice each day.  It is understood these Meetings will be held once a day from now on.  From remarks made in Media interviews it appears that some Cardinal Electors are uncomfortable with the current format of the title being used to address Benedict XVI, it would also appear that at present this is having an effect on the overall proceedings.  We have a historical event without precedent and the Conclave must not be rushed if the Roman Catholic Church is to survive its current disasters and move towards a revised future with clarity and strength gu...

Here at NAUTICAL LOG we have just received an important piece of information from our contact within the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS/SSAL).  Please note this data is presently unconfirmed however we have reason to believe it is correct so we decided to publish.  It is after all what is needed after the reckless stupidity of ramming a loaded tanker by the prime sycophant who captains, with appalling seamanship, the SSCS pirate ship MS Bob Barker.  SSCS/SSAL pirate operations report the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) operated 140 metre MS Shirase AGB 5003 a JMSDF manned icebreaker has arrived at the location of the JWF.  She is equipped with three (3) large helicopters which are weapons capable. It is clear that after the insanity of actions by the SSCS/SSAL pirate fleet the Japanese have finally decided that a strong response is needed.  Any further vessel ramming and one would suspect the SSCS/SSAL pirate vessels will...

  In MY BLOG LIST NAUTICAL LOG has added a new link to an interesting website and for some an important one International Cruise Victims .  We were directed to this website through Cruise Law News the website of a maritime lawyer in Miami, Fl. He has just posted a short article about the desire of the United States Government to more closely control the cruise ships sailing out of United States Ports.  His article gives the impression that there is no control by the Federal Government at present over the foreign-flagged and foreign registered companies operating these cruise ships.   These vessels all sail under IMO-STCW Regulations which apply equally to all ships whether they are U.S. flagged or foreign-flagged vessels, the Regulations are enforced by the Flag State and by USCG as the Port State in United States Ports.   The suggestion that this U.S. control is to raise standards is nonsense it is actually...

  UPDATE: February 27, 2013. The United States Court of Appeals for the 9th. District in Washington upheld the Injunction confirming the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) are pirates.  This makes their Operation Zero Tolerance a pirate operation subject to full punishment as such under International Maritime Law (IML).   NAUTICAL LOG  hopes that the JMSDF MS Shirase AGB 5003 is indeed with the JWF and exercises her right under IML and the Interpol Red Notice to board the SSCS/SSAL vessels and detain both Paul Watson and since he was at the time of ramming captaining the MS Bob Barker  his prime sycophant Peter Hammerstedt.  They should then be brought to Japan for trial and punishment under IML for Acts of Piracy.  It is past time for this annual nonsense to be shut down.  Further NAUTICAL LOG would suggest to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Esq. that he read the Appeals Court Ruling and reconsider his totally inappropriate rema...

UPDATE (2): MS Steve Irwin, Sam Simon, and Bob Barker crowding the tanker, well within the 500 metre Injunction distance. MS Bob Barker close alongside the MT Sun Laurel while underway. Impact the MS Bob Barker rams the MT Sun Laurel underway at sea. Insanity!     Now NAUTICAL LOG believes these photos show the SSCS/SSAL pirate ships a lot closer than the 500 metre distance of the U.S. Ninth District Court Injunction that Paul Watson said his pirate fleet would observe this 2013 whaling season.  The final shot shows the MS Bob Barker in contact with the MT Sun Laurel a loaded tanker on the High Seas, an act of supreme stupidity by the prime sycophant captaining the vessel. The Sea Shepherd Australia Limited Director Brown needs to sit down and do some serious reading in Maritime Law before shooting off at the lip!!  Most particularly those relative to the carriage of fuel at sea when in the Southern Ocean and the Injunction against the S...

THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE Hit the law books   As was expected by all parties involved in that disgusting voyage of the Carnival Corporation cruise ship MS Carnival Triumph the lawsuits are starting to be filed.  In fact at least one passenger was interviewed by the TV Media, along with his lawyer whom one believes is from Texas.  As was stated also on national TV by another lawyer this is most likely a complete waste of time and that lawyer should know, based in Miami, FL he used to represent for the cruise lines.  There were occasions when he boarded cruise ships in which NAUTICAL LOG was either a Navigation Officer or Safety Officer.  He no doubt prepared or at least assisted in preparing the ultimate protection for a cruise ship the back of the passage ticket printed in small print - you never bothered to read and understand that right - big mistake! While NAUTICAL LOG does have a Diploma in Law and taught Maritime Law to Mast...

NLIN #2 2013: The following M-Notice is now available at www.dft.gov.uk/mca if you have any problems call 023 8032 9391 MIN 450 (M)   The Government Support for Maritime Training Scheme (SMarT) - Additional funding for generic Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS) and High Voltage (HV) training between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013. Good Watch

As the USCG Inquiry on the Bounty , an uninspected dockside attraction, proceeds with testimony from the surviving Chief Mate it is very disturbing to read of her poor condition.  A Code of Silence existed about her true condition which is tragically deplorable but is all too common in privately owned vessels.  One has to wonder why she should have been at sea at all, certainly not trying to sail around the East Coast hurricane Sandy on an inshore track through the dangerous semi-circle, and having sailed without valid ships papers or a coastal transire.  Rather than repeat the data coming out of the Inquiry NAUTICAL LOG would like to direct you to the Blog " gCaptain " which has excellent coverage by professional seafarers and not Media persons. The interest of NAUTICAL LOG stems from my long friendship with Tom Christian of Pitcairn Island which began when we were fellow Officers in TSS Tamahine of the Union Steamship Company of New Zeal...

UPDATE: Monday, February 11, 2013. As a result of our Post below NAUTICAL LOG received from our European Union correspondent word that the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) will make two (2) official visits to the Republic of the Philippines this year to survey their maritime industry. This is in addition to their monitoring of the industry on a less formal basis. For some time there has been growing concern on points which NAUTICAL LOG raised during his sea career and mentioned again in the Post below.  The reputation of the STCW qualifications, known to be suspect, issued by nautical training facilities in the Philippines is at a very low ebb.  In fact there is so much concern now that these visits by EMSA will secure the fate of the Philippines to continue supplying crew to sea-going vessels.  In 2014 a decision will be made by EMSA whether to continue to recognise the STCW paperwork and Certificates of Competency/Licenses issued by the R...

NAUTICAL LOG is sitting here laughing so hard he nearly fell out of his rocking chair.   With acknowledgement to The Maritime Executive report on the latest nonsense from Sea Shepherd Australia (SSAL).  With the partial demise of "Wats-his-name" we were lamenting that there would be no more laughs at his flamboyant bombastic writings from the MS Steve Irwin but we are saved !  This new guy is perhaps even better or at least as good and then there are those sycophants that "Wats-his-name" has mentored who absolutely adore him and his words. This is a photo from a previous season of the SSCS pirate vessels surrounding the MT Sun Laurel.   Under the U.S. Ninth District Court Injunction they may not now be closer than 500 metres.  Under maritime safety regulations a tanker should be given a two (2) nautical mile safety zone Clearly these SSCS pirate vessels are not keeping that two (2) nautical miles safety distance.   It appears th...

NLIN #1 2013: The following M-Notices are now available from the MCA-UK.  If you have difficulties call 023 8032 9391 MGN 463 (M) Life Saving Appliances:- Marine Evacuation Systems (MES) - Servicing and Deployment Guidelines. MGN 464 (M+F) Life Saving Appliances:- Lifeboats & Rescue boats - Weight Increase from Water Ingress. NAUTICAL LOG NOTE:   this is extremely important data as there have been several accidents in different classes of vessels some of which caused including loss of seafarers lives. Good Watch.

As we thought and mentioned in our recent Post (INTERCEPT) the Sea Shepherd pirate group ( now under Australian National Command Authority !! ) have violated the U.S. Ninth District Circuit Court Injunction.  Readers will recall that the Injunction imposed on the SSCS pirate fleet the duty of remaining 500 metres from any Japanese Whaling Fleet (JWF) vessel.  However the SSCS/SSAL DVV2 Brigitte Bardot  under command of Jean Yves Terlain violated that order already.  To quote from The Age a leading Australian newspaper; "In the first test of the conservation group's shift of its anti-whaling campaign to Australian hands, the lawyer ( Mr. Neupert for the JWF ) claims the Bardot closed on the harpoon ship MS Yushin Maru No. 3 ............ and came within 18.5 metres on January 29, 2013." The Group's lawyer says that SSCS has no shareholding or control in Sea Shepherd Australia Limited (SSAL) which is run by Australian Bob Brown the former Greens Party ...