The scheduled arrival in Brodick, Arran, on April 25, 2024, at 4.15 p.m. of the 'Isle of Arran' was delayed as it participated in an SAR operation and launched a fast rescue crraft. Also the Coastguard scrambled helicopters from Inverness and Stornoway, and RNLI lifeboats from Troon and Arran also rushed to the scene in the Firth of Clyde near Ardrossan. An RAF Poseidon plane was mobilized too. A fishing boat sank after smashing into a tanker between Ardrossan and Arran at around 3 p.m. The ‘RNLB Jim Moffat’ from Troon recovered the castaways from a liferaft. With initial casualty care being carried out by the volunteer lifeboat crews, the Troon lifeboat made best speed back to Troon to meet with the other partner emergency services at the lifeboat station. Once back at the lifeboat berth, the casualties were handed over to the care of the ambulance service and coastguard teams, and the lifeboat crew made the all-weather lifeboat ready for service with the assistance of the shore crew. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch, Police Scotland and MCA Survey and Inspection teams have been informed. Report with photos: https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/12550368/three-rescued-from-sinking-fishing-boat-after-horror-firth-of-clyde-crash/
News
NEWNEW POLAR BEAR
The 'Newnew Polar Bear' remains the prime suspect in causing damage to the Balticconnector gas pipeline between NATO members Finland and Estonia, Finnish investigators said on April 25, 2024. It has been over six months since substantial, human-made damage that caused a major drop in pressure was first detected in the Balticconnector pipeline in Finnish economic waters on Oct. 8. Finland and Estonia's gas system operators were forced to shut it down, disconnecting a crucial link between the Nordic and Baltic gas markets for several months. The pipeline, which runs across the Gulf of Finland between the Finnish town of Inkoo and the Estonian port of Paldiski, was reopened this week after multimillion-euro repair work. The National Bureau of Investigation, a branch of the Finnish police, said that it still believed that an anchor of the 'Newnew Polar Bear', which was en route to St. Petersburg, Russia, was dislodged and caused the damage detected in Balticconnector. The investigation has progressed, and there has been cooperation with the Chinese authorities probing the case. The Finnish investigators haven't said whether they believed the damage allegedly caused by the Chinese vessel was done intentionally or whether it was caused by incompetent seafaring. The Finnish maritime authorities said at the time of the incident they failed to establish radio contact with the captain of the 'Newnew Polar Bear' despite several attempts.
Itaqui
Brazil: Agriculture Officers Strike Federal agriculture officers decided to start the strike next Monday (22), which will directly affect trading involving perishable products and may cause delays in berthing and unberthing ships. Federal Revenue tax auditors also announced that they will intensify the general strike that has been ongoing since November last year, as reported in our previous newsletters. Next week, from the 22nd to the 26th of January, there will be no cargo clearance at the ports and airports of São Paulo and Bahia. This means that goods release services will be affected at Viracopos airport, the Port of Santos, Salvador customs (from the 23rd) and Guarulhos Airport. During the period, only perishable, live and dangerous cargo will be released at the sites, in addition to medicines and food, as they are considered essential. It is important to highlight that the import and export of goods of animal and plant origin require the consent and inspection of agricultural officers. The category's national union (Anffa Sindical) informed that the release of certificates and goods at ports, in this case, will respect the last day of the deadline set out in the rules of the Ministry of Agriculture. It is worth remembering that in the last meeting held on December 27th with Sindifisco Nacional, minister Fernando Haddad and the special secretary of Revenue, Robinson Barreirinhas, stated that they did not plan to make changes to the proposal presented for the payment of the efficiency bonus in 2024 , which motivated the continuation of the strike. The Superior Courts have already pacified the understanding that the strike movement cannot interrupt essential public services. Therefore, the functioning of the productive activity of shipowners/importers/exporters cannot be delayed by the Customs Inspectors' strike. Customs clearance must continue, regardless of the tax auditors' strike. The Judiciary has been intervening effectively on a case-by-case basis, in order to avoid the harmful effects of the Federal Revenue auditors' strike and maintain the regular activity of taxpayers at Brazilian customs. The strike could affect the port and customs sector. Our team is closely monitoring the situation in the North/Northeast ports and will inform you of any updates.
Kerch
Ukraine has managed a serious blow against the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Crimea on Nov 4, 2023, severely damaging the corvette 'Askold', that was docked at the Zaliv shipyard during successful attacks on the shipping and port infrastructure of the Zaliv shipyard in the temporarily occupied city of Kerch. The “Askold”, which is able to carry up to eight Kalibr or Onyx guided missiles, has been hit by at least one Ukrainian cruise missile. The upper part of the ship was significantly damaged. The damage and destruction of warships of this type is important for the security of Ukraine. Reports with photos: https://www.merkur.de/politik/ukraine-krieg-krim-schwarzmeerflotte-russland-flotte-kiew-moskau-zr-92657747.html https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/ukrainian-forces-hit-russian-ship-in-kerch-aftermath-photo/ar-AA1julmU?ocid=weather-verthp-feeds
ABEILLE NORMANDIE
Four persons have been arrested on suspicion of immigration offences after five migrants including a child died trying to cross the English Channel on April 23. The National Crime Agency (NCA) said an 18-year-old from Sudan was arrested on the evening of April 24 at Manston migrant processing centre, in Kent, and was now being questioned in custody. Officers also detained a 22-year-old Sudanese man and a 22-year-old man from South Sudan on April 24. They were arrested on suspicion of facilitating illegal immigration and entering the UK illegally. A 19-year-old man from Sudan initially arrested on April 23 has since been released without charge and was now being dealt with by immigration authorities. The 55 surviving boat passengers have already been interviewed and were expected to be spoken to further in the coming days. More than 400 migrants arrived in the UK on the day the group died. The agency and partners from Kent Police, Immigration Enforcement and Border Force were working with French counterparts to investigate the circumstances of the deadly incident on a beach near Wimereu. A dinghy carrying more than 100 people set off from Wimereux at around 6 a.m. but got into difficulty. Three men, a woman and a girl died. 49 people were rescued, but 58 others refused to leave the boat and continued their journey towards the UK, with several other boats later embarking on the crossing. The incident reportedly took place as rival migrant groups all tried to scramble into the boat, causing it to become heavily overcrowded.
ANGARA
China has provided a berth for the 'Angara', which is under US sanctions and transports weapons, in Zhoushan. The British Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) claimed that the Angara has been anchored in the port of Zhoushan in China's Zhejiang province since Feb 2024. According to the British think tank, since August last year, the vessel has transported thousands of containers to Russian ports, which allegedly contained weapons from North Korea. The presence of a Russian vessel under sanctions in a Chinese port was further evidence that China is helping Russia wage war, despite repeated warnings from the USA that such assistance is unacceptable. It is expected that China's support for Russian aggression will be the main topic of discussion during Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's visit to Beijing. The United States has warned allies of China's expanding support for Russia, including the provision of geospatial intelligence. Allegedly, China has provided Russia with satellite imagery, microelectronics, machine tools for manufacturing tank components, optics and rocket fuel, and expanded cooperation in the space sector. Report with photo: https://mind.ua/en/news/20272812-china-allows-russian-arms-ship-to-use-its-berth
Bizerte
A fire destroyed the opening motors of the BIZERTE port bridge on July 26, 2023. The port remained closed to navigation from that date untill November 19. 2023, date of the re-opening of the Port to navigation.
Kiel
At the last weekend, the port of Kiel reached the mark of one million cruise passengers in one season for the first time. On Sep 16, 2023,, the MSC EURIBIA, AIDANOVA and EXCELLENCE CORAL called at the PORT OF KIEL, and on Sep 17 the AIDABELLA and AIDALUNA visited the Ostsee Quay. Kiel had already seen a positive trend in the cruise business in recent years, which had been put on hold by the slump during the Corona pandemic. In addition to the strong presence of the major European cruise lines AIDA, Costa, MSC and TUI, in recent years North American shipping companies, such as Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Disney Cruise Line, have increasingly chosen Kiel as a cruise destination in the Baltic Sea region for their fleets. As recently as 2022, Kiel's seaport recorded its busiest season ever with 243 calls and 835,000 passengers. For the current season 2023, 222 cruise calls have been announced.
HMS DIAMOND
HMS 'Diamond' shot down a missile fired at a merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden by Iranian-backed Houthis on April 24, 2024. The warship used a Sea Viper missile system to shoot down the missile, Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said: “I want to thank the brave crew of HMS Diamond for her vital role in saving innocent lives and protecting international shipping from illegal Houthi attacks.”
LU ZHOU
Beached at Chittagong 06.04.24 https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=922708242980055&set=a.518272956756921
Kiel
The Port of Kiel concluded this year’s cruise season with the call of AIDA Cruises’ AIDAnova on Nov 4. The port welcomed a total of 215 ship calls from 26 companies and a total of 1,174,000 cruise passengers, marking the port’s busiest season ever. “We are closing the 2023 season with a good result. The development in the tourism industry shows a clear trend towards the cruise sector, which was also evident in Kiel this season. “For us, the main issue is to make maritime tourism more environmentally friendly on the port side. Shore power was the dominant topic for us and will continue to be so in the coming season,” said Dirk Claus, managing director of SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co. Among the ships that visited the port during 2023 was the 'Disney Dream', the first ship from Disney Cruise Line to be welcomed in Kiel, as well as MSC Cruises’ 'MSC Euribia'. Earlier this year, the port of Kiel achieved a milestone by becoming the first German port to supply a ship with liquidified natural gas. Since then, the' AIDAnova' and 'MSC Euribia' have regularly bunkered LNG in the port of Kiel.
Sevastopol
Ukrainian forces struck the Russian naval base in Sevastopol, in Russian-occupied Crimea 150 miles south of the Ukraine front line on Sep 13, 2023. Fires were raging across a drydock that exploded in the early morning, which cradled two warships, the Ropucha-class amphibious vessel 'Minsk' and the Kilo-class submarine 'Rostov on Don'. The Black Sea Fleet could lose two more of its roughly 30 large ships—ships it can’t replace until Russia’s wider war on Ukraine ends and Turkey reopens the Bosphorus Strait connecting the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. A nighttime drone-boat attack on the landing ship 'Olenegorsky Gornyak' in Novorossiysk, a port in southern Russia just 70 miles east of Russian-occupied Crimea, brought to four the number of major Black Sea Fleet warships the Ukrainian navy definitely has put out of action. The losses include the landing ship 'Saratov', blasted by a ballistic missile in March 2022; the cruiser 'Moskva', holed by an anti-ship missile the following month; the rescue ship 'Vasily Bekh', another victim of an anti-ship missile; and then the 'Olenegorsky Gornyak', which entered a drydock a few days after the Ukrainian attack—and may be out of the war, for good. The Ukrainians also have sank or badly damaged several Russian patrol boats and landing craft—and also recently ejected Russian forces from a pair of captured Ukrainian oil platforms that the Russians had been using as naval outposts in the western Black Sea. The sinkings and raids are a remarkable feat for a Ukrainian fleet that, after scuttling its sole frigate in the early hours of the Russian invasion in February 2022, apparently has just one large ship left: an aging landing ship that has been hiding out near the mouth of the Dnipro River and occasionally lobbing short-range rockets at Russian forces. The Ukrainian navy now effectively is a shipless navy, but no less dangerous for its lack of large hulls. Between its locally-made Neptune anti-ship missiles and Western-made Harpoon ASMs, as well as its missile-armed TB-2 drones and one-way drone boats, the Ukrainian navy isn’t just holding the Russian Black Sea Fleet at bay, it actively is beating back the fleet. Russian warships staging from Crimea are under constant assault; as of last month, ships in Russia proper are at risk, too. When Russian warships leave port, they do so briefly—usually only long enough to launch a few cruise missiles at Ukrainian cities. The Russian fleet’s security is going to get worse before it gets better. The number and variety of deep-strike weapons with which Ukrainian forces can attack the fleet steadily are growing. The Ukrainian industry is developing a new thousand-mile cruise missile; and the administration of U.S. president Joe Biden reportedly has signaled it will donate to Ukraine Army Tactical Missile System ballistic rockets that range as far as 190 miles. Either prospective new weapon could hit Sevastopol from the Ukrainian side of the front line. And the steady drumbeat of Ukrainian attacks on Russian ships is clear evidence that Ukrainian intelligence has no problem pinpointing the ships’ locations. Reports with photos and videos: https://gagadget.com/en/314212-one-of-the-best-vr-games-on-pc-half-life-shooter-until-19-september-alyx-costs-20-on-steam/ https://www.newsweek.com/photos-russian-landing-ship-submarine-damage-crimea-drydocks-hit-sevastopol-1826581