The Maneuvering And Navigation Of Ro-Ro Passenger Ships Under Special Circumstances In The Bohai Sea

The Bohai Sea is the key water area out of the "Four Areas and One Route" in the maritime safety administration of our country, while the ro-ro passenger ships are the key ships among the "Four types of passenger-related ships and One type of dangerous cargo carrier" in the Chinese shipping industry. The safe operation of ro~ro passenger ships in the Bohai Sea has become the focus of the shipping sector and has been attached great importance by the Party and the Government.As an experienced master mariner working on board ro~ro passenger ships in the Bohai Sea and the deputy general manager of Yantai Silver River Ferry Co., Ltd., which is engaged in the safety management of ro-ro passenger ships, and by taking advantage of his experience in sailing the ro-ro passenger ships of his Company which ply the route between Yantai and Dalian, this author has statistically induced the dynamic distribution of fog and fishing fleet along the Yantai-Dalian route in the Bohai Sea and conducted analysis and summary thereof, accurately counted the number of days in which ro-ro passenger ships in the Bohai Sea may encounter rough weather heavier than the issued permissible wind grade for navigation, and summarized the safe sailing precautions.In this paper, the major causes are analyzed of the serious and extraordinarily serious ro-ro passenger ship disasters in the Bohai Sea; the distribution of the meteorological and sea conditions and the law of their motion is introduced in detail; with the data, formula and cases cited, the maneuvering and sailing, under four exceptional circumstances, of ro-ro passenger ships plying the Yantai-Dalian route are expoundedsystematically in terms of maneuvering and navigation; the widely concerned issues are raised relating to the embarkation of "overweight, overheight and overwidth" vehicles, the impediment of ports and fairways by fishing vessels, the marine weather forecast for the Yantai-Dalian Route, the communication between merchant, navy and fishing vessels as well as the salvage capability. Meanwhile corresponding countermeasures and suggestions are provided. This paper will be of great significance in improving the ro~ro passenger ship' s masters and officers' ability of meeting emergencies and making decisions and in ensuring the safety of navigation of ro-ro passenger ships in the Bohai Sea, and will be of great value to the managerial personnel thereof.