75
standalone with discreet or fully covert antennas that are invulnerable to pirate attack by virtue of their form and location. This allows control elements to keep track of progress and current status of multiple vessels remotely, with no input needed from the crew, and many are delivered with panic buttons to raise the alarm in a single action and swing into place contingency planning. “There are many tracking systems out there and dedicated counter piracy solutions are the only way to go if you want it to bear fruit when it really matters – during an incursion with lives at risk and valuable assets under threat. A good solution will allow you to locate a vessel under pirate control with your crew and cargo on board and also potentially allow ATALANTA or other Counter-Piracy assets to send the closest appropriate vessel to assist as quickly as possible. Quality tracking solutions also bring additional benefit when communications are expensive or non existent – you can calculate fuel costs, servicing requirements and accurate arrival times to stand up arrival and unloading procedures based on the information the tracking system is sending as part of its security duties. Leading maritime insurance companies are also starting to take notice of the example of leading vehicle insurers and effectively reducing the risk to the vessel by installing a quality tracking solution, end client premiums are reduced and competition is distanced in a single move. “Secondly, consider the installation of dedicated citadel communications. Do consider what this means in a real world scenario – it has to work from inside a metal box in the ocean often in a noisy environment and as far as traditional communications go, that’s a tall order.
“Data messaging is the first level of contact with the outside world and when combined with a location, speed and bearing, these basic means of communication really do up the odds of a quick closure to
“ many owners and operators are installing citadels or safe rooms on board as a last resort or safe haven for the crew should an incursion take place ”
the incident. Higher spec systems installed on fleets allow masters under lockdown to navigate using electronic charts, locate similarly fitted vessels nearest to them, and communicate over data messaging and voice from the safety of a citadel. Voice is a huge benefit to crews under a stressful scenario, and having direct contact with the ATALANTA taskforce or the vessel command element is invaluable. Often, data or text messaging can be misinterpreted and during an incursion voice tone on its own or duress words can raise the alarm without putting the crew at further risk. Top of the range systems will allow command elements to remotely control a range of vessel parameters – for example drop anchor - along with other vessel controls dependant on its specification and build. “The upshot is that as many layers of security as there are available to owners and masters – some are more critical than others when under threat from a pirate incursion and citadel communications are up there at the top along with food and water as a critical life support function”.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156