UK Publication Writer Witherby Buys a Ship to Survey Strategic Straits
The nautical publication and training company Witherby Group that has been equipping the shipping industry with nautical and navigational materials has acquired a new oceanographic research vessel to carry out coastal survey work in the strategic Sunda and Lombok Straits, on contract to the government of Indonesia.
The new vessel, which was the first research ship of the Schmidt Oceanographic Research Institute, will be named MV Sea Ranger (ex name Lone Ranger). The 78-meter vessel was originally built as one of the world’s largest ocean-going salvage ships.
As a company that has for close to three centuries built experience in publishing operational and navigational guidance and technical standards for the shipping industry, Witherby says the vessel will be instrumental in advancing its work going into the future. Sea Ranger will replace MV Astra, a small research boat that has since been sold. In 2022, Astra made history as the first sub-24-meter motor-powered vessel to circumnavigate the globe. The journey of around 27,000 nautical miles was completed in a record five months.
Sea Ranger is currently undergoing reactivation and refit works as well as stress testing all of the equipment onboard before entering service next year. The 1973-built ship has a proven capability for global operations, having carried out expeditions as far south as Antarctica.
The ship is expected to support maritime knowledge and safety through research directly linked to shipboard operations and strengthen the delivery of computer-based training programs.
The vessel will be entering service in time for a project to write technical guides for safe passage in the Lombok and Sunda straits, among other strategic choke points. Witherby is also creating new editions for other key waterways, such as an expanded Suez Canal guide.
In May, the firm signed a memorandum of agreement with Indonesia’s Directorate General of Sea Transportation to jointly publish a passage planning guide for the Lombok and Sunda straits, which are vital connectors between the Indian Ocean and the Java Sea. The straits are increasingly becoming important global shipping corridors, with traffic through the constrained waters continuing to grow. The guide will be a critical resource for domestic and international vessels seeking safe and compliant passage.
Witherby intends to utilize Sea Ranger to conduct comprehensive testing and review of the guides. The vessel is also expected to play a central role in enabling Witherby to expand and improve its publications on maritime security, environmental protection and shipboard operations by providing facilities for research on emerging security issues, environmental compliance and energy efficiency solutions.
“All research will be conducted with the goal of continuous improvement of shipboard systems and reporting, using and building further on Witherbys' substantial knowledge and experience for the benefit of the shipping industry,” said Witherby.
Top image: Sea Ranger, seen here as Lone Ranger, circa 2018 (Raphael Belly / VesselFinder)