Overreliance on an electronic chart, miscommunication, and an outdated

navigational chart, were all factors according to the National Transportation

Safety Board in a $2022$ docking accident involving a cruise ship that

resulted in $$2\mathrm{.}1$ million in damages and impacted cruise ship traffic in Sitka,

Alaska for most of the $2022$ cruise season. While none of the passengers

or crew were injured and the ship only suffered a minor hull indentation, the

report highlights issues that the NTSB believes require attention.

NTSB Cites

Miscommunication and

Outdated Chart in $$2$M

Docking Accident

Royal Caribbean International$$s cruise ship Radiance of the Seas, a $961-$

foot long ship that is $90,000$ gross tons, was maneuvering to dock in Sitka

on May $9,2022,$ when the ship backed into the mooring dolphin. As is

standard with all cruise ships in Alaska, there were four pilots aboard

working in shifts of two, but the master of the cruise ship along with the

cruise line had requested that the master and his crew moor and unmoor

the ship to refamiliarize themselves with Alaska ports following the COVID$19$ suspension of operations.

The master was at the controls with his full bridge team, and there was a

mooring team on the stern communicating to the bridge via radio. The

cruise ship was making a $180-$degree rotation, traveling at approximately $6$

knots, and using two bow thrusters and its two azipods. The master, staff

captain, and one of the pilots were on the port bridge wing, with the staff

captain managing the starboard bridge wing camera. On the bridge, the first

officer was at the forward console, the second officer was at another

console, and there were both a helmsman and a lookout, while the chief

officer and another pilot were on the starboard bridge wing.

As they were reversing and maneuvering, the camera reportedly froze due

to a hardware issue. The master was relying on callouts from the bosun

over the radio, assuming he was reporting the vessel$$s swing clearance

when instead the bosun was estimating the distance to the mooring

dolphin. The ship$$s starboard quarter struck the mooring dolphin damaging

three of the four pilings supporting it$.$

The NTSB determined the probable cause of the contact was the master

and bridge team$$s overreliance on an electronic chart to identify the pier$$s

position relative to their planned rotation location, and the master$$s

misunderstanding of the clearance distances to the pier being called by the

crewmember on the stern while the vessel was rotating. They found that the

crew of the Radiance of the Seas relied heavily, or solely, on the vessel$$s

electronic chart and information system $($ECDIS$)$ to plan and execute their

docking while they also had other navigational technologies, including

radars and cameras. Further, the bosun and master did not confirm the type

of distances that were being communicated during the docking. The first

officer had also stopped calling out the position relative to the dolphin based

on the ECDIS.

A contributing factor was also determined to be an outdated electronic

navigation chart that the cruise ship was using. In $2021,$ the terminal$$s pier

was extended by $395$ feet, including adding two dolphins, and an adjacent

floating dock, but it was never reported to the National Ocean and

Atmospheric Administration $($NOAA$),$ the agency in charge of updating U$.$S$.$

coastal nautical charts. NOAA had no record of the construction until NTSB

investigators informed them of the pier$$s extension after the incident.

NTSB investigators in the report released today cited two lessons learned

as a result of the investigation, voyage planning and reporting port or

terminal modifications. They write that, $$Reference points for maneuvering

should be identified, measured precisely, and reported clearly. Vessel

bridge teams should also ensure that they have the most up$-$to$-$date data

before getting underway and consult with the local pilot$($s$)$ on the accuracy

of navigation charts to ensure depictions of ports and$/$or terminals are

correct.$$

They also highlight the importance of ports and terminals immediately

reporting significant modifications to the appropriate hydrographic authority

so that charts can be updated.

Top photo by PhilipRJ $89--$ CC BY$-$SA $4\mathrm{.}0$ license

Effective Communication

$1.$ Identify the context in which the communication took place. Was it formal or

informal? $(3)$

$2.$ Identify an example of noise that interfered in the communication process. How could the communication between the master, pilots, and mooring crew

have been improved to prevent the miscommunication? $(4)$

$3.$ What steps could the cruise line take to enhance communication protocols

during docking maneuvers? $(4)$

Nonverbal Communication

$4.$ How did the failure of the camera on the starbridge wing impact the

nonverbal communication and situational awareness of the bridge team? $(3)$

$5.$ What nonverbal cues or body language from the pilots or mooring crew