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SPIRIT OF ADVENTURE TRUST SAFETY AND SEAMANSHIP BY DEAN LAWRENCE, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER I n a departure from our normal articles relating to the Spirit of Adventure programmes, we would like to comment on safety and seamanship and how it relates to the Spirit of Adventure and the operation of the Spirit of New Zealand. As an organisation that is routinely entrusted with the safety and well-being of 40 young New Zealanders, we take our safety procedures very seriously and look to minimise risk for the trainees on board. Of course we still want to ensure they are challenged, taken out of their comfort zone and afforded every opportunity to flourish, but do so in a safe environment. As part of our safety philosophy, we regularly review incidents from around the world that may relate to the work we do, review the causes and look to take on board the lessons learnt and to mitigate the occurrence of such an incident on board the Spirit of New Zealand. There have been two occasions in recent years where sail training ships with young trainees on board have foundered and sunk, the latest being the sinking of the barquentine Concordia off the coast of Brazil. As a consequence, our marine director has taken some time to review the facts and reports around the incident and reviewed those findings against the practices or training standards we use at the Spirit. f t e w nt e at Given similar circumstances on board our ship, our crew would be able to take the correct steps to ensure a similar occurrence did not happen, I am pleased to say. Furthermore, we do not need to change any of our current procedures, though the masters and mates on board the Spirit of New Zealand have been briefed on why the Concordia incident occurred. rd he It should be noted that while she was operating out of Canada, she was operating under the flag state of Bermuda. The Spirit of New Zealand operates under a New Zealand flag and New Zealand standards. The following is taken from the Canadian Transportation Safety Board's report into the capsizing of the Concordia. The barquentine was carrying 42 Canadian students last year when she sank. She was not hit by a so-called micro-burst, as claimed by the crew, but rather it was the inexperience of the crew and the lack of action by the officers during a squall that caused her to capsize. The report recommended stability guidance training for officers, as well as efforts to bring in new international standards to help SKIPPER SCHOLARSHIP In association with the Spirit of Adventure Trust, Professional Skipper magazine offers readers the opportunity to nominate young men and women for two introductory ten-day youth development voyage, that may lead to a Spirit cadetship for inshore masters qualifications. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT KEITH. Email: keith@skipper.co.nz Phone 09 5334336 or write to the editor c/- of this magazine. 62 Professional Skipper January/February 2012 officers assess the risk of a knockdown or capsize at sea. It said the officers and crew did not fully understand the danger they were in, and as a result they did not take the necessary measures, such as reducing sail or changing direction, which could have prevented the knockdown. Our marine director at the Spirit of Adventure Trust, Paul Leppington, says now the report has been released, the discussion will focus on the shortcomings of the crew and the inevitable blame that ensues after such an event. and su The simple problem is the connection of the human factors that crew and operate these sailing vessels. Most ships are well able to stand punishment and severe weather if loaded and handled correctly. Their basic design is usually well regulated, with classification societies dictating scantling sizes and basic hull design and stability, says Leppington, who is a senior master with the trust. The basic flaw in the system is training. When sailing vessels ruled the oceans and were the universal type of ship, all seafarers were used to sailing and handling large sailing vessels, with only the type of sail rig and the cargoes varying. Nowadays the vast majority of seafarers are trained for motor ships travelling fast over the world's oceans, where even navigation has been relegated to automated systems. Watchkeepers in charge of sailing th th ab w r d d w W vessels should be skilled in the art of sailing and be outside on deck in contact with their environment, not as in this case, in wheelhouses, fiddling with the radar and the autopilot. The second mate on the Concordia did indeed lose the ship, not because he had not read the ship's stability information, but because he didn't look back at a squall, understand the consequences of the changes and do what he should have done - taken some sail off and run downwind. This is basic seamanship for a person skilled in sail. The Spirit of Adventure Trust continues to recruit and train crews in the art of sailing vessels, and only those who have attained the required level of competency in handling sailing vessels are placed in a watchkeeping position. Due to their skills, crew trained on the Spirit are soughtafter by other organisations operating similar vessels. Dean Lawrence is the chief executive officer of the Spirit of Adventure Trust