Migrants Don't Need Cruise Ships

By Captain John Dalby, CEO of Marine Risk Management 

As events unfold in the Mediterranean, hundreds, if not thousands, of migrants are dying on a weekly basis. The maritime community and humanitarian organizations are beginning to question the E.U. response to these tragic events. 

The current approach basically consists of a fractured response in which naval warships and commercial merchant vessels are haphazardly scurrying around within the limits of radars and UAVs. 

The cost of this reactionary response is costing governments, especially the Italians, millions of dollars each week; not to mention the costs incurred by commercial shipping companies, which are less equipped for these massive rescue tasks.

Last week, a 2,000-passenger cruise ship berthed at Kos with the sole intention of registering migrants on that island. Can we now expect to see a fleet of passenger ships being deployed at other locations that migrants arrive, such as Lampedusa, Valetta and Augusta? Apart from the limited capacity and focus of the move, what must that exercise be costing in addition to the £500,000 ($780,000) reportedly being paid to the vessel’s owner? 

Europe is facing an almost insurmountable task, a humanitarian challenge that must be addressed: quickly, efficiently and – above all – effectively.

The vital and valuable work being undertaken by NGOs such as Sea Watch, Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) and Medecin sans Frontieres cannot be other than applauded. The generosity of these organizations and their donors, the bravery of their crews, and their high degree of professionalism, warms the hearts of all true seafarers – upholding, as they do, the very best traditions of this ancient profession.

However, the limited effectiveness of current government and civilian initiatives is demonstrated by the number of deaths reported almost daily in the media, and it is undoubtedly due to the limited capabilities of the waterborne forces being deployed. Operationally, radar at or near sea level has a limited range. Drones or UAVs boast a slightly longer range but with limited endurance and payload for sensors.

Neither the human eye nor radar can detect a person floating in the water for much more than a few hundred meters – if at all. All are adversely affected to a greater or lesser degree by poor weather including moderate sea states.

The relatively slow speed of many vessels means a vessel could take up to five or six hours to reach a distressed craft which could be too late for many of the unfortunate people on board. Even a one hour delay could be critical and prove the difference between life and death.

Governments and government agencies face tight financial controls and limitations, and there is a complete lack of nation-state maritime patrol aircraft resources. Nevertheless, what is required is a highly sophisticated airborne approach to this problem. 

An aircraft equipped with military grade sensors could be immediately deployed to detect, locate and guide seaborne assets, via the maritime rescue coordination center in Rome, to the location of migrant vessels.

Such a platform, flying at 10,000 feet, can accurately cover a sea area of around 130,000 square miles at any one time, and pinpoint a human head from 10 miles, and a RIB from 20 miles. 

Such a coordinated and integrated approach could turn the tide of migrant deaths almost immediately. Furthermore, such patrols could also identify vessels of all types, sizes and construction before they even set off from their beach embarkation point. This could be achieved day or night, in most weather and visibility conditions and with 100 percent cloud cover.

It would cost less than one-tenth of the Kos cruise ship charter. It would also mean a huge reduction in fuel costs of the vessels engaged in rescues.

By far the biggest satisfaction to be gained, however, will be the saving of untold hundreds, if not thousands, of human lives: men, women and children escaping the horrors of war and destruction. No price or value can be placed on that result.