Vessel Traffic Services News

Wärtsilä has supplied its latest simulator technology to the prestigious Sharjah Maritime Academy located in Khorfakkan, United Arab Emirates.The comprehensive suite of navigation, engineering, communications and Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) simulators includes full mission, part task and classroom trainers for all levels of training and research, as well as modelling and content creation tools to enable the highly skilled maritime faculty team to offer a complete range of services…

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is recommending new notification alarms and procedures for potential incursions on pipelines and a change to an anchorage off the California coast following a crude oil release in 2021 caused by ship anchors damaging an underwater pipeline.NTSB investigators determined that the oil leak, which began on October 1, 2021, in San Pedro Bay, resulted from an anchor strike on the pipeline that occurred eight months earlier, when anchors…

On July 1 the Port of Tyne launched a 'next-generation' Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) system to enhance VTS operator situational awareness and supports decision making.The system adheres to the standards set by the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA), covers the waters of the Port of Tyne in the UK, extending from six nautical miles out at sea to three nautical miles inland. It uses the Automatic Identification System (AIS)…

Recent storms that crossed the San Francisco Bay Area earlier this week left multiple vessels, docks, and barges adrift, causing navigational safety issues around the areaThree 60-foot deck barges were adrift, causing an allision with the 3rd Street Bridge at McCovey Cove leading to Mission Creek. U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Francisco's Prevention Department was made aware of the situation and broadcasted a Notice to Mariners, noting that the area was closed to navigation. A finalized assessment of the bridge is pending the completion of an inspection by engineers.

A grounding incident was avoided thanks to swift action by a team of harbor tugs and pilots aboard a Panamanian registered containership that lost power in Southampton, U.K., according to a local pilots group.At around 11 a.m. on January 26, the 20,000 TEU containership MOL Treasure departed the Port of Southampton bound for Le Harve, amid good, though gusty, weather conditions, with clear visibility and calm seas. But not more than an hour into the passage, the 400-meter-long MOL Treasure developed a significant reduction in engine power.An escort tug was already present…

An injured deckhand was medevaced from a ferry near Galveston, Texas, on Thursday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston command center watchstanders received notification at 2:42 p.m. relayed by Vessel Traffic Services Houston/Galveston personnel that a crew member aboard the John W. Johnson ferry had been struck in the face by the vessel's anchor chain after the ferry lost propulsion at the entrance to the Galveston Channel.A Coast Guard Station Galveston 45-foot Response Boat–Medium crew launched to provide assistance.Once on scene with the ferry…

On January 1, 2021, in an unusual New Year’s Day session, the Senate (following similar action by the House) overrode President Trump’s veto and enacted into law the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) (H.R. 6395). In addition to the provisions relating to the Department of Defense, the bill contains numerous maritime sections, including Authorization Acts for the Coast Guard (USCG), the Maritime Administration (MARAD), and the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC).Coast GuardThe Coast Guard Authorization Act allows for acquisition of an additional National Security Cutter…

A Marshall Islands-flagged tanker helped rescue two people from the water after their boat sank in the Torres Strait.At about 7:15 a.m. AEST on Thursday, a coastal pilot on board the tanker Godam contacted Townsville Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) to report a sighting of two people clinging to a timber plank in the water.The location for the sighting was about 10 kilometers southeast of Sue Islet, Warraber Reef. Conditions were rough with two to three meter swells with around 30…

International Maritime Organization (IMO)'s Sub-Committee on Navigation, Communications and Search and Rescue (NCSR) said that it will continue its ongoing work to review GMDSS requirements, to enable the use of modern communication systems in the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS), while removing requirements to carry obsolete systems.Search and rescue at sea depends on the integrated satellite and terrestrial radio-communication communications system - the GMDSS. The GMDSS is mandatory under the International convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).According to the Sub-Committee, the aim is to finalize the review in 2021, for submission to the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), so that SOLAS amendments can be adopted for entry into force in 2024.

As part of the Sea Traffic Management STM Validation project Costa Crociere, part of Carnival Corporation, integrated Costa and Aida ships to exchange information with other actors, utilizing STM supported standardised formats and interfaces. After verifying operations with these initial ships, the rest of the Carnival Corporation fleet has now been added.Costa developed STM support as part of their Fleet Operation Center software Neptune. This new functionality in Neptune allows Carnival to interact with other STM services…

Carnival Corp has implemented Sea Traffic Management (STM) into its fleet management and operations software to share voyage data with ports and other shipping companies. EU's STM Validation project has now been added to entire Carnival Corporation fleet, following a successful trial with Carnival's Costa and Aida-brand ships.Costa Crociere developed STM support as part of their Fleet Operation Center software Neptune. This new functionality in Neptune allows Carnival to interact with other STM services, ports and shore center operators, and to evaluate voyage optimization suggestions received by shore centers through the maritime digital…

The Finnish Transport Agency (FTA), which will become the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency (FTIA) on 1 January 2019, has issued updated instructions for winter navigation.The instructions for winter navigation have been created in collaboration with the industry, shipping companies, charterers, vessels, icebreakers, pilots and vessel traffic services.In accordance with Finland’s maritime strategy 2014–2022, the objective of these instructions is to ensure smooth, economically viable and internationally competitive Finnish foreign trade and domestic waterborne transport with short waiting times during the winter season.FTA is tasked with public office duties and the procurement associated with the assistance of winter navigation as well with the national coordination…

To recreational boaters, Aids to Navigation (ATON) are the familiar red and green buoys (and day markers) that line our inland waterways. What they might not be aware of is that buoys have been around since the days of the Roman and Egyptian empires. In the decades following the creation of our country, buoys in every shape and color began appearing in our waterways. It wasn’t until 1850 that Congress harmonized their deployment, thereby encouraging the familiar “Red, Right, Returning” mantra.

USACE and USCG collaborate to make inland waterways safer. The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), supported by Alion Science and Technology (Alion), has put forth considerable effort during the last two years to further extend the capabilities of the existing Automatic Identification System (AIS) network to improve the safety and efficiency of navigation along the inland rivers. The USACE works with the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and other agencies and stakeholders to operate and maintain the nation’s Marine Transportation System (MTS).

As one of the wonders of the natural world, many consider the Great Barrier Reef one of the Earth’s most beautiful places. The marine environment in the area is extremely sensitive and with around 4000 commercial vessels passing every year, it is important for the vessel services operators working onshore to keep track of the traffic at all times. That’s where Saab comes in. Comprising nearly 3000 individual reefs and almost 100 islands, the Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system. Located off the coast of Queensland, Australia it can be seen from space and is the world’s biggest single structure made by living organisms. It also requires protection. To help, Saab will contribute through a Vessel Traffic Management Information System, or VTMIS for short.

Kelvin Hughes has been acquired by HENSOLDT (formerly Airbus Defense Electronics) as a result of an agreement by its owners ECI Partners to sell its investment in the company. “Following the buyout from Smiths Group, ECI has been a consistent and supportive partner as we have consolidated our position as a global leader in surveillance and security radar solutions,” said Kelvin Hughes CEO, Russell Gould. Completion of the transaction remains subject to regulatory clearances. HENSOLDT, an independent sensor house, is a provider of radar and IFF systems on airborne, naval and land platforms.

The joint effort undertaken by a Disaster Management team at the Port of Ngqura has helped to avert a potential maritime disaster and ultimately saved the container vessel APL Austria, which caught fire last weekend. Transnet National Ports Authority, Transnet Port Terminals, the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Fire Department, South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA), South African Police Services (SAPS), National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) and a stevedoring company, worked together to battle the blaze, and the fire was eventually extinguished on Wednesday, February 15.

Pilbara Ports Authority has awarded a contract to Australian Maritime Systems Pty Ltd to design and install a Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) system in a new state-of-the-art shipping control tower in Port Hedland. The VTS system is a critical component of the new Integrated Marine Operations Centre (IMOC), which would help manage the safe and efficient movement of approximately 6,000 vessel movements through the port each year. “The fit-for-purpose VTS system integrates radar, radio, CCTV and scheduling information to oversee the increasing number of vessels through the port,” said CEO Roger Johnston. Australian Maritime Systems Pty Ltd is a global specialist in marine navigation and one of the country’s leading provider of VTS systems.

A recent visit to Cabo Verde November 30 to December 6 by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) provided an opportunity to meet various government agencies involved with maritime security and discuss the country’s future role in regional maritime security activities. Cabo Verde announced its intention to host the MultiNational Centre of Coordination (for Cabo Verde, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal) under the proposed operational framework to support the wider region’s maritime security Code of Conduct, which was signed by governments, including Cabo Verde, in 2013, to enhance cooperation to counter piracy and armed robbery at sea and other illicit maritime activity.

Kelvin Hughes has been awarded the contract for the second phase of a radar system installation by the Port of Marseille Fos in Southern France. The Enfield-based company supplied five SBS-700 radar systems earlier this year that were integrated with the port's Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS). The second phase has seen two more, identical models installed and commissioned at the port in July. Kelvin Hughes' SBS-700 radar system is specifically designed to meet the requirements of a Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) system as defined in IALA recommendation V-128.

A world leader in the design and supply of navigation and security surveillance systems, Kelvin Hughes has been contracted by French company AVON Communications to supply five of its SBS-700 radar systems for integration with the Marseille Fos Port Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS). The port is made up of two harbours, the ‘Eastern harbour’ with 1,000 hectares, located in the city of Marseille itself, and the ‘Western harbour’ with 12,000 hectares which is located in Fos, 70 km from the town.

Rear Adm. June E. Ryan, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Ninth District, was welcomed aboard the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Samuel Risley by Assistant Commissioner Julie Gascon and Captain Signe Gotfredsen of the Canadian Coast Guard, Central and Arctic Region Monday. After a relatively mild winter on the Great Lakes escorting ships through ice and preventing ice jams, the Samuel Risley was upbound through the Soo Locks and the St. Marys River to Lake Superior for further icebreaking at the Port of Thunder Bay and buoy-tending duties.

The Port of London Authority (PLA) is recruiting 12 new pilots this year to respond to increased traffic on the Thames. The PLA is looking for candidates with a Class 1 Unlimited Certificate of Competency. Other suitably qualified candidate who can demonstrate experience relative to marine pilotage will also be considered. The candidates will typically undertake a 28-week training course consisting of training on the PLA’s ship bridge simulator and tug simulator, training in Vessel Traffic Services and on board tugs and ships, with regular reviews, assessments and oral exams.