Two days after the 'Aidamar' set off from Antigua to cross the Atlantic on March 24, 2024, the ship had to turn back towards the Caribbean due to a medical emergency on board. On March 27 at around 2 p.m. the ship reached a position near the island of Tortola (British Virgin Islands) and was within helicopter range, so that the patient could be hoisted for medical care ashore. A short time after the patient was taken off, the 'AIDAmar' resumed heading east towards the Azores. Due to the medical emergency she was now around two days late. The next destination was now scheduled to be Ponta Delgada on the island of Saõ Miguel on April 1. At the same time, however, this meant that the stay in Praia da Victoria of Terceira on March 31 had to be cancelled. After arriving in Ponta Delgada, the AIDAmar will return to its original itinerary.
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HT8
On March 27 the 'HT 8' was back to its normal work in the Schwentine estuary following the successful defusing of an air mine weighing on the Kiel Fjord the previous day by the explosive ordnance disposal service defused a bomb on the Kiel Fjord. It was the largest unexploded bomb from the Second World War ever found in Schleswig-Holstein. Around 170 people from Kiel-Holtenau and around 1,500 people from Heikendorf had to leave their homes at 10 a.m. for several hours for the time of the defusing. At 2:05 p.m. the detonators were removed and detonated in the water. At 2:20 p.m. the team announced the successful defusing. The police boat 'Falshöft' brought the crew of the work boat back on board. At 2:38 p.m. shipping was allowed again on the Kiel Fjord. At 3:31 p.m. the blockbuster bomb arrived safely in Kiel-Holtenau. The unexploded bomb was loaded onto a transporter and prepared for the transport to Groß-Nordsee. Video: https://www.ndr.de/fernsehen/sendungen/schleswig-holstein_1800/Entschaerfung-einer-Luftmine-in-der-Kieler-Foerde,shmag114954.html
SAKHALIN ISLAND
The 'Sakhalin Island', the seventh and final tanker carrying Sokol oil and sanctioned by the U.S., arrived at the port of Tianjin and berthed at the Shihua Crude Oil Terminal on March 27 at 5.30 a.m. UTC, discharge its Russian oil cargo. The six other sanctioned tankers offloaded their Sokol oil cargo in China earlier in March, pushing China's March imports of seaborne Russian oil to a record high. The 'Sakhalin Island' started making its way to theTianjin late on MArch 25 after floating off the coast of nearby Shandong province for more than three weeks. Russia has been struggling with a Sokol glut amid ramped up U.S. sanctions. More than 10 million barrels of the oil supplied by Sakhalin-1, a unit of Rosneft (ROSN.MM), have been floating in storage over the past three months amid payment difficulties and sanctions on shipping firms and vessels carrying the crude. India, the top buyer of Russian crude in 2023, has retreated from purchases amid tighter sanctions, giving top global oil importer China the opportunity to scoop up the light sweet grade from Russia to replace costly Iranian supply. Chinese companies that received Sokol crude in March include Sinopec, PetroChina , Sinochem, CNOOC and independent refiners in Shandong. China's seaborne Russian crude imports were set to hit a record high in March at 1.816 million barrels per day, boosted by record imports of Far East Russian grades including 440,000 bpd of Sokol and 967,000 bpd of ESPO. Apart from the 'Sakhalin Island', the six other vessels that offloaded Sokol crude in China in MArch were the 'Krymsk', 'Liteyny Prospect', 'Nellis', 'NS Antarctic', 'NS Century' and 'NS Lion'. The tankers, except the 'NS Century', offloaded their cargo within temporary waiver periods from U.S. sanctions. All tankers are operated by companies tied to Sovcomflot. The U.S. has imposed sanctions on Russia's leading tanker group for violating a $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian crude oil exports. Aftr unloading their cargo, the 'Krymsk' and 'Liteneyny Prospect' were anchored off Nakhodka, while the 'Nellis', 'NS Antarctic' and 'NS Lion' were outside Yeosu. The 'NS Century' anchored off Qingdao.
HT8
On March 26, 2024, the 'HT 8' was used for the defusal of a 1.8 ton air mine in the Kiel Fjord off the Naval Depot in Kiel-Gaarden. At 10 a.m. divers went down and prepared the bomb, which was then lifted and placed on the pontoon by a crane. The bomb was assessed and secured on board at 11 a.m. Short time later the work boat started moving, escorted by the water police, and reached the defusing position on the Holtenau roadsted. The Kiel Fjord was barred for any ship traffic. The crew of the “HT8” lowered the two legs hydraulically at around noon, to give the “HT8” the necessary stability for the work. Preparations were made for the crew to be evacuated using a dinghy. Of the 11 people on board, only the two defusers remain on board. The divers and crew were taken out of the restricted area. Defusing only begins when the crew is out of the restricted area. Liveblog with photos: https://www.kn-online.de/lokales/kiel/kiel-bombe-auf-der-foerde-wird-dienstag-entschaerft-QMG3SOPXG2IRZY5NKZMQS3QSNU.html
CALEDONIAN ISLES
Due to the 'Caledonian Isles' having to undertake significant steelwork repairs at the Cammmell Laird Yard in Birkenhead since Feb 11m 2924, Calmac have reviewed the deployment plans for the summer period. The 'Isle of Arran' will continue to operate to and from Ardrossan. The 'Alfred' will operate to and from Troon from March 29 up to and including Aug 21. During this time, the 'Alfred' will carry all vehicle types except for Motorhomes/Caravans and Coaches. Customers with these vehicle types were asked to travel on the 'Isle of Arran' sailings.