Page 17 - Demo

Navigating the 435 mile long Straits of Malacca and Singapore (SOMS) can be one of the toughest tests any bridge and navigating officer will have to undertake during their seafaring career. Responsible for moving about one third of the world’s traded goods, the SOMS is a crucial trading artery. But while there are international requirements regulating vessels’safeoperationandnavigation,the challenges posed by the extreme flow of traffic means that even the most experienced of officers will find themselves tested to the extreme.Not only do paper charts and electronic navigational charts (ENC) have to be up to date, there are various local characteristics found in the SOMS such as the challenges created by cross-traffic, involving smallAs Capt Rashidul Hasan, Senior LPSQ Superintendent at Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (Singapore), emphasised, safe navigation is the number one priority if accidents are to be avoided. This means that during transit times the bridge has to be well manned with the right competency and the right preparation undertaken on non-related matters,therebyensuringthat bridge officers are not distracted during the all- important transit period.“The amount of traffic is so high in the area that the chances of an accident are heightened if the correct procedures are not followed. Insufficient bridge manning levels, poorly maintained equipment as well as extra concerns over piracy and vessel security all add to crew stress andStrengthening your bridge team as you approach the Straits is a major requirement, according to Capt Atul Vatsa, Senior Manager, Marine Standards & Vetting at Thome Ship Management. Especially when you consider the jobs that will need to be done, such as navigating, lookout, radar monitoring; helmsman needed for manual steering; not to mentiontheneedfortheMaster,two bridge officers and one helmsman being present on the bridge during Bridge Level Three timings.But as Capt Vatsa, who is also a member of the MPA-SSA Safety of Navigation Working Group, said, training is so important, but training of the bridge teams is a continuous process.“We give this responsibility to thelocal craft whose personnel are not familiar with internationally agreed regulations and practices of seafarers. So vigilance and navigational awareness are paramount if the safety of the vessel and the environment is to be preserved.Insufficient bridge manning levels, poorly maintained equipment as well as extra concerns over piracy and vessel security all add to crew stress and fatigue levels which can lead to accidents if not tackled correctlyfatigue levels which can lead to accidents if not tackled correctly,” he said.Capt Hasan is well qualified to speak about the issues of navigating the SOMS, having transited the straits many times during his 20-year sea-going career. “I was Master on Aframaxes and as Chief mate I was passing through on VLCCs and Product Tankers,” he told WAVES.As any Master or navigating officer will tell you, it is not just the proliferation of passing traffic that needs to be taken into consideration but also changing weather conditions. Sudden thunderstorms with heavy rain may occur during the monsoon periods between June and August and between October to December and cause visibility to be severely restricted. During periods of restricted visibility, shipmasters are advised to keep a proper lookout and navigate with caution.master where he can judge his team. We also employ enhanced bridge leadership training which trains the teams in certain scenarios we have experienced in these waters before. We test them against these scenarios in the simulator so they can be trained safely on night time or bad weather navigation. It is a continuous and cyclical process, so every day something new comes up and we cansee how they handle it on the simulator,” he said.“If you have a fully-laden VLCC transiting, then the route to Horsburg Light is critical because after you pass through One Fathom Bank, you have to keep in the deep water lane. The bridge needs to be vigilant because it is a narrow passage. We have identified in our system, certain critical areas of passage that we insist VLCCS undertake in the daytime,” he said.FEATURESISSUE 51 | WAVES|15