MASTER AND MMP MEMBERS ABOARD AND INTERESTED PERSONS THE MASTERS, MATES AND PILOTS' -- WHEELHOUSE WEEKLY

Bridging the Information Gap With E-News You Can Use

VOLUME 5. . . . . NUMBER 52. . . December 28, 2001

STORIES COVERED

REMINDER: MM&P NEW YEAR’S CLOSINGS

MM&P HQ and Plans will be closed one-half day on Dec. 31 and all day on Jan.1. All Offshore Port offices, Great Lakes and Rivers Port offices and Pacific Maritime Region offices will be closed on Dec.31 and Jan.1.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

MARAD ISSUES ADVISORY ON SUEZ CANAL FOR US-FLAG VESSELS

On Dec.21, the US Maritime Administration issued MARAD Advisory 01-08 to operators of US-flag vessels regarding vessel reporting to the NATO Shipping Center for Merchant Ships Transiting the Suez Canal. The Advisory is as follows:

1. A newly formed NATO Shipping Center in Northwood, UK has recently been activated to support NATO Naval forces deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean.  These forces are establishing a deterrent naval presence and conducting surveillance and monitoring operations.  It is intended that the Shipping Center provide shipping information to the warships while also acting as a point of contact for the merchant marine.

2. The strategic significance of the Suez Canal during the current conflict is the prime reason for the naval deployment to the region and there is presently no intelligence of an increased terrorist threat.  The surveillance operation and activation of the Center have been discussed with Lloyds of London who have indicated that a deterrent naval presence would have a beneficial stabilizing influence on insurance premiums in the region.

3. In order for the Shipping Center to be effective the cooperation of the merchant marine of NATO and Partner Countries is required.  Specifically, details are requested of ships intending to transit the Suez Canal, or which have completed the North bound transit, between Longitude 28° East and Port Said, EG.  (Longitude 28° East passes through the Isle of Rhodes, GR).

4. The data reported by these countries will be on a voluntary basis only and will not cover all shipping that transits the Suez Canal; but it will be a very significant proportion.  The duration of the reporting period will initially be until 1 May 2002.

5. In order to give adequate time for the data to be compiled and sent to the NATO warships, the information is required 24 hours in advance.  Provision of this information will assist in the compilation of an accurate shipping plot for the surveillance and monitoring of shipping by NATO naval forces in the region.  It will also reduce VHF traffic between merchant and naval vessels.

6. The preferred method for merchant vessels to report to the Shipping Center is by e-mail.  Alternate means are by fax or telephone. E-mail: shipingcentre@eastlant.nato.int
Fax: +44 1923 843575; Phone: +44 1923 843574.

7. On the first report to the Shipping Center, all the below information is requested.  On subsequent reports only numbers 1, 5 and 19-24 are required.

Section A, Ship Data
1. Ship’s Name (with every report)
2. International Call Sign
3. Type of Vessel
4. Flag of Registry
5. IMO Number (with every report)
6. Port of Registry
7. Length Overall (m)
8. Vessel’s Width (m)
9. Maximum Draft (for present voyage in m)
10. Gross Tonnage
11. Service Speed (for this voyage in knots)
12. Physical Description of Vessel (for optical recognition)
13. MMSI Number
14. Spare
15. INMARSAT Phone
16. INMARSAT Fax
17. INMARSAT Telex
18. E-mail Address

Section B, Voyage Data
19, Intended Movement, Description of Passage
20. Last Port, Country of Call Including Date/Time of Departure
21. Next Port, Country of Call Including Date/Time of  Arrival
22. Current Position with Date/Time
23. Date/Time and Position Entering Surveillance Area (28E or Port Said)
Date/Time and Position Exiting Surveillance Area (28E or Port Said)
24. Date/Time Start Canal Transit
Date/Time End Canal Transit
25. Spare

Section C, Operator Data
26. Name of Ship Owner/Operator Including Addresses, Name of Charterer (if any) with Address and Point of Contact
27. Fax Numbers of the Above
28. Telephone Numbers of the Above
29. E-mail addresses of the Above

Section D, Cargo Data
30. General Nature of Cargo

For further info regarding this Advisory, contact the Maritime Administration, Office of Ship Operations, Division of Operations Support, Code MAR-613 Room 2122, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20590; Telephone (202) 366-5735, Fax (202) 366-3954.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

US TRACKING VESSELS IN MEDITERRANEAN SEA

News reports say the US is tracking ships that have left ports in Africa and are in the Mediterranean that may be involved in smuggling goods to finance terrorist groups.

Authorities, according to wire reports, are now working through technical and legal issues to decide if the ships, which are also suspected of carrying supplies to make weapons of mass destruction, should be boarded at sea or inspected when they try to dock, said the officer, who has been taking part in high-level daily intelligence briefings in Europe.

The ships are being tracked by the US Sixth Fleet naval forces, which operate in the Mediterranean, and other assets including satellites and AWACS aircraft. They are currently in areas ranging from North Africa to the Middle East, and most are suspected of being owned by, or carrying economic cargo to benefit Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network.
 

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

$5.9 BILLION USCG AUTHORIZATION PASSES HOUSE

The House of Representatives passed a $5.9 billion Coast Guard authorization bill (H.R. 3507) on Dec. 20 by voice vote. The bill would authorize $823 million more than what the president requested, due to the Sept. 11 attacks. Before Sept. 11, the measure was just $300 million more than the president’s request.

The bill combines the pre-Sept. 11 USCG authorization (H.R. 1699) with two other Coast Guard bills–H.R. 1098, which expands the America Merchant Marine Memorial Wall of Honor, and H.R. 1099, which aims to improve vessel safety. The House and Senate have adjourned until Jan. 23, 2002.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

SOLAS AND MARPOL AMENDMENTS GO INTO EFFECT ON JAN. 1

As part of the IMO's continuing work to update and amend the regulatory framework surrounding international shipping, the following amendments to SOLAS and MARPOL become effective on January 1, 2002:

May 2000 amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), for helicopter landing areas is amended to require a helicopter landing area only for ro-ro passenger ships.

May 2000 amendments to the 1988 SOLAS Protocol–The amendments add the words "bulk carrier" under the heading "type of ship" in the form of the Cargo Ship Safety Construction Certificate, Cargo Ship Safety Equipment Certificate and Cargo Ship Safety Certificate given in the appendix to the Annex to the Protocol of 1988 relating to SOLAS. This means that the options for type of ships for these certificates are now given as: Bulk carrier, Oil tanker, Chemical tanker, Gas carrier, and Cargo ship other than any of the above.

April 2000 amendments to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto (MARPOL 73/78) The amendment to Annex III (Prevention of Pollution by Harmful Substances Carried by Sea in Packaged Form) deletes tainting as a criterion for marine pollutants from the Guidelines for the identification of harmful substances in packaged form.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

WASHINGTON STREET MARINE OFFICERS CORP. ELECT DIRECTORS

The newly elected Board of Directors of the Washington Street Marine Officers Corporation has been pursuing the corporation’s assets with the intent of dissolving the corporation and distributing the assets to members of WSMOC. The judge in the case has given the former director until Jan. 19 to surrender the property and records of WSMOC or he will issue orders to obtain them.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

CORRECTED EMAIL ADDRESS FOR FREE 2002 CALENDAR

The correct Email address for the free 2002 Ceridian calendar is 2002calendar@ceridian.com. As previously reported, Ceridian Life Balance, the EAP provider for the MM&P Plans, is offering free 2002 wall calendars that contain monthly helpful hints on maintaining balance in your daily life.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

MITAGS ACADEMIC NOTES


HOLIDAY SCHEDULE: Classes will resume at MITAGS on Monday, January 7. Over the holidays the number of administrative staff members in the office will be reduced, but, with the exceptions of weekends, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, there will be someone in the office to respond to your calls to the admissions number, (443) 989-3226. If no one happens to answer your call, leave a voice-mail message.  Emails to admissions will also be checked several times a day.

RENEWAL WEEK: Note that the week of Feb. 18 has a grouping of “renewal” offerings. Radar renewal, HAZMAT Seminar, EAP, and the new DOT Drug & Alcohol training will be offered in a 1-week package.  This package will be offered again in May. Other possible combinations are also being explored.

NEW MSC COURSE: Beginning with the week of Feb 4, MITAGS plans to introduce the 1-day MSC Environmental Protection (ENVPRO) course on Fridays following the 4-day Small Arms class. This will afford members the opportunity to earn Small Arms, Anti-Terrorism Threat Awareness (Level I), and Environmental Protection certificates in one week.

Schedule through June 2002 is being maintained on the website at www.mitags.org. Hard copies of the Jan-June 2002 schedule have been mailed to the halls. For additional course info, contact Mary Matlock at voice: 443-989-3226 or Email: admissions@mitags.org.

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly
 

MM&P MARKET WATCH AS OF 12-27 CLOSE

 D O W
 N A S D A Q
 10,131.30
+146.20 for the week
 1,976.42
 +57.88 for the week
 Vanguard 500 Index Fund (VFINX)
 107.10
 Vanguard Extended Market Index Fund (VEXMX)
23.07
 Vanguard International Growth Fund (VWIGX)
 14.85
 Vanguard Morgan Growth Fund (VMRGX)
 14.67
 Vanguard Windsor II Fund (VWNFX)
 25.62
 Vanguard GNMA Fund (VFIIX)
10.33
 Chase Growth Fund (CHASX)
14.69
 Fidelity Asset Manager (FASMX)
15.52
 Fidelity Growth and Income (FGRIX)
 37.63
Fidelity Magellan Fund (FMAGX)
 104.93
 Spartan US Equity Index Fund (FUSEX)
  40.96

MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly

The MM&P Wheelhouse Weekly is the official electronic newsletter of the International Organization of Masters, Mates, and Pilots, ILA, AFL-CIO, 700 Maritime Blvd., Linthicum Heights, MD 21090-1941. Phone: 410-850-8700; Fax: 410-850-0973; Email: iommp@bridgedeck.org. For further info contact John Peige at jpeige@bridgedeck.org. The Wheelhouse Weekly is sent via Email to MM&P-contracted vessels at sea, broadcast worldwide via FEC marine telex and is posted on our web page under "News" at: http://www.bridgedeck.org.

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