Chinese Collier Did Not Have Pilot On Board, Recalling Similar Wreck A Full 10 Years Ago

[hatrack]

When bulk coal carrier Shen Neng 1 ran aground on a shoal in Great Barrier Reef waters on Saturday it did not have a marine pilot aboard to guide it through. The vessel grounded on a reef 15 kilometres from the shipping channel it was supposed to traverse.

The incident has again sparked debate over whether pilots should be compulsory on vessels traversing the passage between the outer reef and the Queensland coastline. It's a debate that has gone on for decades.

A near-identical incident in 2000 saw a Malaysian-flagged container ship run aground on Sudbury Reef off Cairns. On November 2, 2000 the Bunga Teratai Satu ploughed into Sudbury Reef at full speed, its bow penetrating 100 metres onto the coral. The ship was refloated, without spilling fuel or cargo, on November 14, 2000. The incident again sparked media debate about the need for pilots on the large freighters which traverse the waters of the inner reef.

The official report into the grounding, by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, noted that "a detailed study of pilotage in the inner route of the Great Barrier Reef is currently being undertaken jointly by AMSA and the Queensland Department of Transport". Media reports at the time quoted the Marine Pilots Association, which said the question of reef pilotage had been reviewed three times since 1993, with no positive result. AAP is seeking comment from the Marine Pilots Association in relation to the latest grounding of the Shen Neng 1, currently aground off central Queensland and leaking oil.

EDIT

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/reef-pilot-controversy-has-long-history-20100404-rlg2.html

[TreasonousBastard]

1. Pilots cost money, and there is no shipowner on the planet that will...

spend a nickel it doesn't have to.

Every so often they even try to get rid of the Sandy Hook Pilots in New York Harbor.

[One_Life_To_Give]

2. Perhaps an expanded Vessel Tracking System is called for

From the Brisbane Times
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/environment/outrageous-for-coal-carrier-to-be-so-far-off-course-rudd-20100406-rng5.html

Mr Quirk also said the grounding happened outside the coverage area of a vessel tracking system, which would have alerted authorities about the ship straying off course.

"This area is outside that formal reporting system, so we don’t formally record these vessels on that track," he said.

At AUS$10,000 per trip for a Pilot to be on board. Ship owners should be happy to pay for the system rather than being forced to hire a Pilot.

on edit: The linked article implies that Bulk Carriers have been taking shortcuts thru restricted portions of the Reef. And apparently this Ship isn't just a random 9nm off course, but located within one of these "Short-Cuts".