Summary of Working Paper No. 101-1998

1.1.2. “Operational Aspects, Volume 3”

By Alexander Baskin, Vladimir Vasilyev, Evgeny Yakshevich and Albert Shigabutdinov, Central Marine Research and Design Institute, St. Petersburg; Arkady Busuyev, Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, St. Petersburg

This report consists of two parts. The first part has been carried out by CNIIMF, the second part - AARI.

Part 1 (CNIIMF)

In the Report the results of work, generalising changes and current statue of operational aspects on the first phase are presented. Short content of the work parts us listed below.

The draft of the document, worked out by members of current project "Statute of the Safety Management System of the Russian Federation", including elements of safety in the Arctic is presented. Now this document is used by the Russian Administration while certification of shipping companies to fit the requirements of International Safety Management Code. During the recent years new unclassified materials on cartographic support to navigation on the NSR appeared. Charts and editions are printed in Russian and English languages. Detailed analysis of Charts Catalogue is included. Information on electronic charts manufacturers is also provided.

Data on exploitation of satellite navigation systems in the NSR region, especially of GPS and GLONASS are included. The perspective scheme of communication system functioning in the Russian Arctic is proposed. Recommendations are made on the composition and purpose of communication equipment aboard ships and coast radio centres on the NSR. A list of radio stations to be fitted with radiotelex facilities is given. The Arctic points and polar stations equipment with VHF radiotelephone stations are listed. Infrastructure data on the NSR is further described. Information on aids to navigation, hydrographic support, pilotage, short description of Arctic ports is provided.

Mathematical software and methodological support for ice simulation training, ships and play areas models, problems of ships models are described.

The work on developing requirements of the Russian Marine fleet to the ice passport of new generation was also carried out. This work on the basis of the analysis of ice damageability of hull structures suggests the introduction of additional calculations of local strength of bildge and forepeak into the scheme of determination of safe speeds. Authors of the report suggested to the Russian Administration new recommendations of crew actions in emergency. Some parts of this document, concerning Arctic sailing, are included in the report.

Part II. AARI

Within the frames of the reported research the concept and principles of dividing the NSR zone into regions according to the difficulties and safety of shipping are elaborated (1993/94). In 1994/95 the concept of dividing the environmental conditions in the NSR eastern segment into types was elaborated and the first stage of work was executed. In 1995/96 similar research was carried out for the western segment between the Novaya Zemlya straits (the traverse of the Zhelaniya Cape) up to 125o of eastern longitude. In contrast to the eastern segment where the main obstacle for shipping is drifting ice, at the western one the most significant difficulties are connected with sailing through fast ice in the B. Vilkitsky Strait and to the west of it. In this connection the typical conditions of fast ice formation in this region were under consideration. To divide the NSR into regions and natural conditions into types all available ice observation data were used. While dividing the NSR into regions for the first time, the calculated values of operational and safe speeds of ice shipping were used along with characteristics of environmental conditions. The methods for calculating the operational speeds in particular ice conditions have been elaborated by AARI. In 1994/95 the results of operational speed calculations for different types of ice conditions were presented in the report. Thus when estimating the safety of the NSR shipping it is necessary to take into account the probability of hard conditions in different segments of the Route as well as the performance indicators of shipping (speed, time expenditure, forced demurrages, accidents, etc.) connected with these conditions.

In 1995/96 the elaboration of mathematical support of "Onboard Ice Passport" was completed. "Onboard Ice Passport" gives an opportunity to determine the safe speed in particular ice conditions during free sailing or following an icebreaker along the lead. The information provided by the ice passport gives a technically substantiated estimate of the necessity of icebreaker pilotage under particular operational conditions.

In 1994/95 the generalisation of damage data for all regions of the NSR was executed, the segments of maximum damage probability were revealed (Reports, 1993-1994 and 1994-1995). In 1995/96 attention was paid to the damages which practically give continuous growth in number. Such kind of damages were, as a rule, residual deformations of the side framing and plating. The designing rules for ice belt of all the classification societies are based on the assumption that any damage is a result of a single ice impact. In 1995/96 the calculations of probable damage accumulation for a particular ship were executed for two regions of the NSR.