THE ICE NAVIGATION MANUAL

   A constantly increasing number of the merchant vessels find themselves chartered to operation in Arctic waters, creating a real and significant demand for the newly constructed ice-classed vessels. Subject requirement is commonly applicable to the vessels that operate in the low temperatures or in the iced waters, with their crew duly trained to man such sort of vessels, and it has already brought about by numerous factors including likelihood of the shipping trade routes that are opening up in the Arctic region, coming on-stream of the terminals in northern regions, and a significant increase in cruise traffic in Arctic region.

   All above mentioned factors are directly contributing to the requirements for the ship crews to have access to all required and available technical knowledge from the ice pilots and navigators. Operating a vessel in iced sea required higher standards of training combined with the practical experience. This combination will allow the required development of the skills and professional knowledge and proper understanding in order to competently and efficiently manage the safe passage of the vessel.

   Safe navigation of the vessel in ice comes as a result of the experience in the winter navigation combined with the ability of the crew to perform the proper interpretation of the available reports and select the best route on the basis of the behavior and characteristics of the ice...