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AI Lookouts on the Bridge – Assistance, Authority, and the Mental Model

Vigilance on watch is not just ‘staring at screens.’ It is an active, continuous process of building and updating a mental model of the ship’s situation: What traffic is likely to appear? How are wind and current affecting us? What can our ship and crew do right now? What ‘smells wrong’ in the pattern of lights and echoes outside?

Meet the Digital Kraken: Why Coastal Autonomy Doesn’t Mean Crewless Deep-Sea Shipping Is Imminent

Autonomous ships exist. But ‘crewless, commercially routine, transoceanic shipping’ is a different species of problem. Once you’re out of sight of the coast, a kind of digital Kraken waits for anyone who thinks autonomy is ‘software + sensors.’ Not a monster in the mythological sense — a monster in the engineering sense: rare failures, degraded modes, and long stretches where the ship must survive without help.

Why Seafarers’ Fatigue Is Unique and More Dangerous Than in Other Transport Sectors

Fatigue in the transportation industry is a well-known issue, but seafarers face unique and far more dangerous challenges. The combination of prolonged work hours, isolated environments, irregular sleep patterns, and physical and psychological stress make fatigue among seafarers particularly hazardous. Multiple studies show that 43% of seafarers suffer from fatigue due to the working conditions onboard​. Unlike other transport sectors, fatigue at sea often results in catastrophic accidents that could have been prevented with better regulations and industry-wide acknowledgment of this critical issue.
Grounding of Ever Given

Grounding of MV Ever Given

In the early hours of Tuesday, 23 March 2021, the 20,000 TEU containership M/V EVER GIVEN grounded whilst transiting northbound through the Suez Canal. The grounding occurred in an area where traffic cannot pass in both directions, having as a result the closure of the Canal and an increasing backlog of ships waiting to transit.

The loss of HMNZS MANAWANUI

On Saturday 5 October 2024, the Ship was conducting survey operations on the southern side of Upolu, Samoa, in support of the upcoming CHOGM. The wind was from a direction of 120° at 20 -25 kts with a high sea state 3, and visibility at greater than 10 nm.
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