Vessel Operation

All posts relating to vessel operations including stowage planning, misdeclarations etc..

APL England reaches China for repairs

by Categories Maritime Disasters, News, Press Release, Shipping, Shipping and Freight, Vessel Operation Tags Leave a comment Estimated reading time = 3 minutes
containers overboard

On the 24th of May 2020, APL England, a container ship experienced a temporary loss of propulsion during heavy seas about 73 kilometres south-east of Sydney causing around 50 containers to fall overboard and leading to the collapse of around 74 containers within the stacks on board the ship..

After much debate and controversy over AMSA’s action holding the master of the ship personally responsible for the incident, the empty APL England was released on 19th of June and allowed to sail from Australia to undertake repairs in China.. 

The APL England arrived in China (Zhoushan) on the 4th of July and remains under AMSA detention while the vessel undergoes repairs..

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Governments pledge action for seafarers at crucial crew change summit

by Categories Maritime, Shipping, Vessel Operation Tags , , , 2 Comments Estimated reading time = 3 minutes
seafarers

IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim has welcomed the commitment of 12 countries to facilitate crew changes and achieve key worker designation for seafarers, following a virtual ministerial summit hosted by the UK Government on 9 July.

This step represents significant progress to help resolve a growing crisis facing the maritime industry, and enable hundreds of thousands of stranded seafarers to go home or join ships.

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Seafarers as Key Workers, but more importantly, Human Beings

by Categories Maritime, Opinion, Vessel Operation Tags , , 1 Comment Estimated reading time = 4 minutes
day of the seafarer

On International Day of the Seafarer, while it is imperative to designate seafarers as key workers, it is equally, if not more important, to recognise them as human beings with real needs.

Here is a touching tribute to the trials and tribulations that the seafarers go through on a day to day basis..

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APL England released

by Categories Maritime, Maritime Disasters, News, Ports & Terminals, Press Release, Vessel Operation Tags , , Leave a comment Estimated reading time = 3 minutes
shipping and freight news - shipping and freight resource

The APL England, a 5,780 TEU capacity containership which lost around 40 containers off the coast of New South Wales in Australia has been detained in Brisbane by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) since the 26th May..

After AMSA inspectors were satisfied that the ship was fit to sail, the empty APL England was released on 19th of June and allowed to sail from Australia to undertake repairs in China..

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Seafarers say enough is enough – ready to down tools

by Categories Maritime, Maritime Disasters, News, Vessel Operation Tags , , Leave a comment Estimated reading time = 6 minutes
seafarers crew change

If getting seafarers off these ships causes chaos in supply chains, if ports back up from Singapore to San Francisco, and if this causes ship insurance providers to pull their coverage and global trade to grind to a halt; then that is on the heads of politicians, not the world’s seafarers.

This is the message from Steve Cotton General Secretary of ITF reiterating that Seafarers have done their part in this COVID-19 pandemic, and plenty more. Enough is enough, it is time to go home now.

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Should ship Captains be personally responsible for the safety of cargo on board..??

by Categories Case Studies, Digitalisation, Opinion, Ports & Terminals, Questions and Answers, Technology, Vessel Operation Tags , , , 7 Comments Estimated reading time = 9 minutes
what is your opinion

The Master of the APL England was charged for offences relating to pollution and/or damage of the Australian marine environment as a result of poor cargo loading but has been allowed return home on certain bail conditions while the ship is still detained in Brisbane..

A look at some of the comments from some Captains, seafarers and industry experts on whether ship Captains be personally responsible for the safety of cargo on board..??

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The feel of the ship – Have you felt it..??

by Categories Opinion, Shipping, Vessel Operation Tags , , 1 Comment Estimated reading time = 14 minutes
Opinion Piece

I am not a seafarer, but I have had the privilege of being onboard different types of ships when I was handling them operationally many years ago..

There is something about some of the ships that I have worked on that has given me a sense of comfort and made me feel at home like I belonged there..

I said “some” ships because some ships didn’t give me that feeling and gave me a sense of uneasiness and I have felt like wanting to get out of there ASAP..

Mind you, I am talking about the “ship” and not about the people onboard the ship..

Well, it turns out that not just me or the ship’s crew that have a connection with the ship, but also Marine Pilots have or get this “feel of the ship” which they are navigating in and out of ports and it is quite important for them to get the feel of the ship..

I found this out when I got talking to Capt.Roberto Caballero Vega a Panama Canal Pilot of over 25 years who very kindly allowed me to reproduce his article about “The feel of the ship: The essence of Piloting” below..

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ZIM courts eCommerce market with the fastest service from South China to Los Angeles

by Categories News, Press Release, Shipping, Vessel Operation Tags , , Leave a comment Estimated reading time = 3 minutes
shipping and freight news - shipping and freight resource

Fresh from their recent positive results in Q1 2020, ZIM has launched a new service in record time to cater to the growing e-Commerce market demand..

The New service is a speedy, dedicated service from South China to Los Angeles US West Coast which will commence on the 22nd of June 2020..

The service aptly named the Speedy ZIM eCommerce Xpress (ZEX), is a custom made service for time-sensitive cargo with a transit time of only 12 days from Yantian and DaChan Bay in South China to Los Angeles in the US West Coast making it the fastest service in the market..

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UN Agencies issue plea to Governments for facilitation of crew changes

by Categories IMO, Maritime, News, Press Release, Shipping, Vessel Operation, Women in Shipping Tags , , , , , Leave a comment Estimated reading time = 4 minutes
Press Release - Shipping and Freight Resource

“The restrictions for crew change due to COVID-19 is unsustainable for the safety and wellbeing of over 150,000 seafarers who will require international flights to be changed over to and from the ships they work on from the middle of June 2020. These seafarers are having to extend their service onboard ships after many months at sea, unable to be replaced or repatriated after long tours of duty.”

This is the message from The Secretary-General of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) who issued a joint statement to enlist the support of Governments for the facilitation of crew changes in ports and airports in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Containers falling off ships while at sea – who is responsible..??

by Categories Freight Container, IMO, News, Press Release, Shipping, Vessel Operation Tags , , , , 3 Comments Estimated reading time = 7 minutes
containers falling

2019 was quite the year for maritime disasters with ships on fire, containers falling off ships etc.. 2020 seems to be hitting the industry in other ways which could also be considered a kind of maritime disaster..

But in what may be the first reported case of containers falling off ships in 2020, the APL England a 5,780 TEU capacity containership lost around 40 containers off the coast of New South Wales in Australia.. It has also been reported that around 74 containers are lying in a collapsed state within the stacks on board the ship..

Such incidents bring to the fore the question whether the ship register or ship registry is liable for containers falling off a ship and who is really responsible..

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Say hello to HMM Algeciras, the largest container vessel on earth

by Categories Maritime, News, Press Release, Shipping, Vessel Operation Tags , , Leave a comment Estimated reading time = 5 minutes
shipping and freight news

What started out as an effort to optimise on economy and efficiency with an environmental touch in 2013 with the introduction of the Triple E series ships soon became kind of a mine-is-bigger-than-yours showboating..

Between 2013 and 2019 there were 8 “largest container vessel in the world” title holders operated by some of the world’s largest container shipping lines..

The increase in TEU capacity in the last 6 years within this ULCV class is around 5,964 TEUs which is the size of a regular container vessel still operating in many of the world’s trades now..

On the 23rd of April 2020, HMM became the latest entrant to this size race when they held a naming ceremony for their first 24,000 TEU containership – the latest largest container ship on earth – the ‘HMM Algeciras’..

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