NAUTICAL LOG

This morning an item crossed my desk about something which is such a rare event I thought it worth writing a Post. NAUTICAL LOG has previously written about the incident which occurred on November 07, 2007. On that foggy morning Mr. John Cota, a San Francisco Compulsory Pilot, was piloting the MS "Cosco Busan" when he slammed it into the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Perhaps you will recall the deplorable subsequent treatment of her Chinese Master, the crew and the disgraceful comment in the NTSB Report of the incident. In March 2009 Mr. Cota did the honourable thing and pleaded guilty. On Friday July 17, 2009 he was sentenced to 10 months in prison. The report NAUTICAL LOG received stated, "U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston sentenced John Cota to the maximum sentence Friday for two misdemeanor environmental crimes of illegally discharging oil in the bay and killing thousands of birds." It is interesting that Mr. Cota was punished for an environmental ...

Pointe du Hoc In June 2009 my Grandson visited his birth country of France. Being a United States Citizen he visited Normandy to learn firsthand the price of freedom for both France and the United States. These are some of his 200 photographs. So Marlon, merci/thank you, we appreciate your love of both countries. It is good to have a reminder of this country's sacrifice for other Nations from the generation growing towards adulthood. Photographs courtesy of Marlon Gadea, 15. Sainte Mere Eglise Beach Landing craft Good Watch

This is a NAUTICAL LOG article. It serves as informational guidance only. To operate a vessel you must refer to, understand and follow the Rules as published by your particular Government in compliance to IMO Regulations and SOLAS. Reading in other maritime Blogs which republish a variety of reports and watching the so called news media, NAUTICAL LOG has noticed something worth commenting on. Many times it seems after an incident it transpires that the passengers were not informed or did not understand the Safety Instructions. Also quite often in the photos passengers are sitting and are equipped inappropriately. With a background in Cruise Ships and many years as a Safety Officer in them I thought perhaps it would be helpful to write a Post on that subject. First lets have a look at the background Legislation. It begins with the requirements resulting from the IMCO SOLAS Conferences starting in the 1950's. Here in the United States the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the La...

At the beginning of this two Post series NAUTICAL LOG mentioned a proposed change to the IMO 'Guidelines'. This Proposal is based on passage planning data currently being developed, the NTSB Report on the MS "Cosco Busan" incident, and the unique professional knowledge of the various Port Authorities Pilotage Services around the world. Currently it is required by IMO that a vessel develop their Voyage Plan coverage from berth to berth. Now while this is possible it may well be that, as in the case of the MS "Cosco Busan ", the Master and Officers are not familiar with the Port in question. In their case it was the Port of San Fransisco, certainly not the easiest Port to enter with its strong currents and tides. Once the vessel arrives and picks up the Compulsory Pilot they have on board an expert in every detail of the Port. The vessel's Bridge Team has to integrate the Pilot, exchange information and monitor his/her every manoeuvre without having a fr...

This is a NAUTICAL LOG article only. To operate under an actual prepared Plan the navigator MUST refer to IMO RESOLUTION A.893 (21) Annex 25 of SOLAS V. General Investigations show that human error contributes to 80% of navigational incidents. Most incidents happen because of simple mistakes using the navigational equipment. Interpretation of the available data, rather than equipment deficiency, basic navigational skills or ability to use the equipment, is the principle cause. It is imperative to adhere to the IMO Guidelines addressed in the previous Post. Masters and Watchkeepers should take measures to ensure they appreciate and reduce risks, ensure that all the vessel's navigation is planned in adequate detail with contingency plans ensure that there is a systematic organized Bridge Team on Watch comprehensive briefing of all concerned with navigation, both Officers and Ratings close and continuous monitoring of the vessel's position use different methods to plot the vesse...

Note this is a NAUTICAL LOG article only. To prepare an actual Voyage or Passage Plan the navigator MUST refer to "GUIDELINES FOR VOYAGE PLANNING" IMO RESOLUTION A.893 (21) Annex 25 of SOLAS V. At the beginning of June 2009 Jeppesen Navigation ( see our LINK LIST below ) announced it had reached an agreement with the Chilean Naval Hydrographic Office to publish Jeppesen Marine Pilotage Charts covering Chilean waters. In our consulting capacity NAUTICAL LOG had cause to review voyage and passage planning generally. This in turn led to a complete review of IMO Resolution A.893 (21) Annex 25 of SOLAS V - Guidelines for Voyage Planning. Recently there was a disgraceful, scathing, biased NTSB Report on the MS. "Cosco Busan" incident in which that vessel, under Compulsory Pilotage, rammed a bridge support in San Francisco Harbor. The NTSB Report was saved only by the dissent attachment by Member Deborah A. P. Hersman. One of the issues discussed was the responsibilit...

Some interesting data that came across our desk at NAUTICAL LOG this morning. The UK Hydrographic Office www.ukho.gov.uk/ has published Chart Q6099 covering the Red Sea, Horn of Africa, and Persian Gulf. This chart can be used for planning the passage through that principle piracy area. It has the recommended passage routes marked and information on how and whom to contact to both inform of your transit and call for assistance. This should be a great help to the OOW as everything will be in one place for route planning, navigation, transit contact points and information for calling in the event of an attack. The United Kingdom Hydrographic Office website can be found in the Link List below and an electronic copy of Chart Q6099 can be downloaded from UKHO. Good Watch.