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IN THIS ISSUE
1. Innocence at stake
2. Hormuz response
3. AI in maritime safety
4. ClassNK notation
5. Gulf meeting
6. Wind assistance
7. Alarm overload
8. China safety guidelines
9. Indefinite or perpetual?
10. Ceasefire approach
11. Digital identity
Notices & Miscellany
Readers’ responses to our articles are very welcome and, where suitable, will be reproduced. Write to: contactus@themaritimeadvocate.com
1. Innocence at stake
By Michael Grey
There are some strange and contradictory messages flying around in the barrages of invective being exchanged between the warring parties in the Middle East, many of them on the issue of passage through the dire straits of Hormuz. Tolls are being demanded by the Iranians, although only for the passage of approved ships, while an off-the-cuff remark by President Trump has hinted that he would not be averse to the US itself demanding some sort of passage fee.
The notion that an international waterway can be fenced off and innocent passage monetised like a canal must be fiercely resisted by all, as the precedent it would set in a generally unstable world would be altogether appalling. Admittedly, full-scale war inevitably overturns the “rules-based” order of navigation in peaceful times, but to contemplate any form of agreement long term, in which access to the Arabian Gulf would be subject to a passage toll, must be regarded as completely unacceptable. There are enough unstable administrations in the world which would see the idea of charging passing ships as a tremendous wheeze, which tells us that this should not be tolerated under any circumstances. There are already far too many interested parties (think of the environmental gang) which look upon the innocent passage of ships as a potential gold-mine.
This current confrontation will eventually end, but it must not impose any conditions on the passage of shipping through the straits, in which there are already clearly established routes and traffic separation zones on the Omani side. It is this system, designed with international agreement, for the safety of shipping, in congested waters, which must be restored, once the warring parties cease their hostilities. As with all such events, there are all sorts of lessons which this convulsion in world trade ought to be reinforcing, as any sensible government will surely be considering its manifold vulnerabilities. We have had, in short order, Covid, Ukraine and now the current conflict; all of which should have been flashing red lights as regards our supply chain security, our obvious and huge weaknesses in defence and the need to practise a greater degree of self- sufficiency, in everything from energy to foodstuffs.
This instability has surely demonstrated that most of the world’s conflicts are interconnected in some way, and however remote, affect us all, whether in the interruption of commodities we depend upon, like energy or fertilisers, or in the following tide of refugees, which eventually wash up on our shores. The Gulf states will doubtless be digesting hard lessons about their particular vulnerabilities and need to look to their own defences and alliances. Huge wealth is all very well, but if it can be compromised and switched off at source, with a few well-aimed missiles, there are some obvious missing links which require identification and drastic remedies. And what might be the feelings of the 20,000 seafarers still apparently aboard the trapped ships, watching their colleagues become targets from missiles and drones?
There were some very wise words last weekend from the Columbia Group’s CEO Mark O’Neil, who urged people to think about the cumulative consequences of the recent years and present hostilities, to recruitment and retention. Because it is not just what the current seafaring workforce is thinking, and especially those in present hazard in Gulf waters. Of course there are worried people stuck aboard ships, looking at the smoke and fire from the latest missile strikes and hoping that the next one does not have their co-ordinates entered. But there are plenty of others, who cannot get off their ships because of the chaos caused to airline schedules, and no reliefs in sight for the same reason.
Is this, they wonder, just another reprise of the Covid period, and perhaps the last straw, as they contemplate their increasingly unhappy and uncertain life at sea? And even more influential in our connected age will be the anguished messages on their devices from their loved ones ashore, expressing real worries about the risks they are running aboard their ships in dangerous places. Why would you put them through all this worry and grief? Is it not time you forgot about seafaring and took up something rather less stressful? It is a conversation, one might suggest, that is becoming a regular feature in these grim times.
Michael Grey is former editor of Lloyd’s List.
2. Hormuz response
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez has issued a statement in response to the ceasefire called in the Strait of Hormuz.
“For the health and wellbeing of seafarers and the global shipping industry, I welcome the ceasefire announced in the Middle East. I am already working with the relevant parties to implement an appropriate mechanism to ensure the safe transit of ships through the Strait of Hormuz. The priority now is to ensure an evacuation that guarantees the safety of navigation.”
The Secretary-General had previously urged states to support diplomatic efforts to secure the evacuation of around 20,000 seafarers stranded in the Persian Gulf, and enable humanitarian corridors for urgent assistance.
During a virtual meeting for Foreign Ministers from more than 40 countries hosted by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to discuss the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, Secretary-General Dominguez called on all parties to respect the rights and freedoms of navigation and stressed the paramount importance of the safety and wellbeing of seafarers.
He emphasized the need for de-escalation and operational maritime solutions rather than purely military approaches.
“Fragmented responses are no longer sufficient to resolve this crisis. What is urgently required is diplomatic engagement, practical and neutral solutions, and coordinated international action,” he said following the meeting.
“IMO is advancing a maritime evacuation framework built on coastal State cooperation, security guarantees and operational coordination, with the clear objective of releasing stranded vessels, enabling safe crew rotations and preventing an environmental disaster.”
IMO actions
Following an extraordinary session of the IMO Council on 18-19 March 2026, IMO has undertaken key actions:
Safe passage for seafarers
Ongoing discussions are being held by the IMO Secretary-General and representatives from the relevant States on the development of a safe passage framework to evacuate seafarers currently stranded in the Persian Gulf.
Support from coastal States
IMO is engaging States in the region that have stepped forward to secure supply lines to ships and facilitate humanitarian access for seafarers. Focal point information is available on IMO’s dedicated webpage.
Data collection and verification
The IMO website features an online hub that includes verified information on ship attacks, guidance from key industry bodies and international partners, contacts for stranded seafarers, as well as resources related to the global economic impact.
Supporting industry coordination
IMO maintains close communication with industry bodies (BIMCO, ICS, ITF, INTERTANKO, WSC and others) to share information and coordinate action where necessary.
UN Task Force on Strait of Hormuz
IMO is a member of a new dedicated Task Force established by the UN Secretary-General to work on technical mechanisms specifically designed to meet humanitarian needs in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Task Force is led by Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), and includes representatives from the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and others, alongside IMO.
3. AI in maritime safety
In the following opinion piece Anil Kumar Korupoju, Senior Surveyor, Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass) asks why AI in maritime safety requires class discipline.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly influencing how risk is interpreted and managed at sea. When digital systems contribute to collision awareness, trajectory forecasting, or structural monitoring, they transcend their roles as mere efficiency tools. By becoming integral to the vessel’s safety architecture, these systems now demand the same independent assurance and discipline accorded to other safety critical systems.
In clearly defined applications such as fuel optimisation or condition-based maintenance, AI is already delivering measurable benefit. The challenge arises when that confidence is carried into higher-stakes environments. Navigation in congested waters is shaped by ambiguity, sensor inconsistency and unpredictable behaviour from other vessels. These are not edge cases; they are everyday realities of maritime operations.
AI systems are developed, trained and tested within an intended scope of use and defined operating conditions. When vessels trade across different regions, seasons, and traffic densities, those conditions change. Sensors drift out of calibration, AIS feeds become inconsistent, and positioning signals degrade. Because performance usually degrades gradually rather than failing outright, it can create a deceptive sense of safety that encourages a dangerous over-reliance on automation. Until systems can demonstrate robust performance in rare but serious scenarios, supported by transparent reasoning and reliable fallback behaviour, removing the human from safety–critical decision-making would be premature.
Explainability of AI systems is therefore central to overcoming these limitations. On the bridge, decisions must be understood and justified. A numerical risk score alone provides little operational value. Officers need clarity on what data was considered, how uncertainty was handled, and why a particular risk was flagged. Without that clarity, the outcome is often either overreliance or outright dismissal of the system altogether.
For these reasons, AI systems that influence safety should be governed with the same discipline as traditional safety-critical systems. The maritime industry has long required independent scrutiny of structures, propulsion and fire protection. Digital systems shaping navigational or structural outcomes deserve an equivalent level of stewardship and oversight.
A credible assurance framework for onboard AI should include, at minimum, a document defining the system’s purpose, scope, data sources and limitations. Validation should reflect real routes, seasonal conditions, scenario coverage for ambiguous COLREGs situations, restricted visibility, fishing clusters, VTS interactions and operating profiles, not laboratory scenarios alone. Known failure modes including sensor dropouts, AIS spoofing, and degraded GNSS and their corresponding mitigation measures should be recorded alongside performance thresholds and acceptance criteria. Version histories and update records must be traceable, with the ability to revert to a previously validated version where necessary. Cyber protections, including authenticated interfaces and tamper-evident event data, should be foundational. Bridge procedures and crew training records should demonstrate that operators understand the system’s capabilities as well as its boundaries.
At IRClass, we establish rigorous governance and evidence criteria to certify that AI-enabled systems meet safety and reliability standards within their defined scope. Our approval process is risk-proportionate, spanning from exhaustive document scrutiny and simulation analysis to on-site commissioning and in-service audits. To ensure resilience, we require systems to implement traceable versioning and rollback, so a previously validated version can be restored quickly if performance drifts. Recognizing that AI is dynamic, our oversight extends beyond initial approval: we require re-assessment for significant updates, changes in the Operating Domain (ODD), or material KPI drift. Where compliance is demonstrated, we issue formal approvals with specific conditions of validity linked to the system’s intended use.
Cyber integrity is inseparable from this approval framework. Once AI outputs influence operational decisions, compromised data becomes a practical hazard. Controls such as authenticated time synchronisation, restricted access management, network separation and cross-checking between data sources reduce reliance on any single stream and strengthen resilience in spoof-prone or congested environments.
Structural health monitoring provides a useful parallel. Properly calibrated sensors and validated fatigue analytics can sharpen inspection planning and reduce unexpected downtime. But digital insight must still be reconciled with engineering judgement and physical verification. Data should inform decisions, not automate them without scrutiny.
Artificial intelligence will continue to advance and expand its role in maritime operations. The question is not whether to adopt it, but how to govern it as it enters safety-critical territory. Independent assurance is not a barrier to innovation; it is the mechanism through which digital capability earns sustained trust at sea.
4. ClassNK notation
ClassNK has granted its AUTO-Nav2(All) notation to domestic liner container ship Genbu, the only newly constructed autonomous ship under the MEGURI2040 Fully Autonomous Ship Program by The Nippon Foundation. This notation identifies ships equipped with an autonomous navigation system approved by ClassNK, and it marks the world’s first case of an autonomous navigation notation being assigned to a vessel operating on medium- to long-distance coastal routes. The vessel was constructed by Kyokuyo Shipyard Corporation, with ship management handled by IKOUS Corporation and operations conducted by Suzuyo Marine.
In recent years, the research and development of technology related to autonomous surface ships (MASS) has been actively carried out with the aims of improving safety by preventing human error and improving working conditions by reducing the workload on crew members. Particularly in Japan, autonomous ships are expected to contribute to securing daily routes to many inhabited remote islands and to the continuation of domestic shipping business due to the aging of seafarers. This notation is intended to support initiatives, toward the social implementation of these technologies reflecting the needs of the industry, from the standpoint of the classification society.
In order to address the new concept of autonomous and automated navigation systems, whose evaluation has been difficult under conventional regulatory frameworks, ClassNK released its “Guidelines for Automated/Autonomous Operation of ships.” These guidelines have been developed based on insights gained through various demonstration projects, and outline the requirements for each stage of conceptual design, design development, installation, and maintenance during the operation of automated/autonomous operation technologies.
The autonomous navigation system installed on this vessel has been developed through the efforts of the diverse companies participating in the consortium of the project. ClassNK conducted an examination of the system, based on its guidelines. Upon confirming it complies with the prescribed requirements, the AUTO-Nav2 (All) was affixed to the vessel. By obtaining this notation, the vessel is able to respond to the industry’s need for an official evaluation of highly safe automated navigation technologies and to externally demonstrate their reliability.
ClassNK will continue to contribute to the advancement of technologies related to autonomous ships through the development of appropriate standards and certification activities, with the aim of reducing the burden on seafarers, promoting work style reform, and ensuring the stability of maritime logistics.
5. Gulf meeting
The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) recently met representatives from Gulf States to address the ongoing conflict and its direct impact on seafarers and shipping in the Gulf.
The meeting came four weeks into the deadly conflict in which seafarers have been killed, ships have come under attack, and an estimated 20,000 seafarers remained stranded in conditions of fear and uncertainty, on ships unable to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
Discussions focused on urgent practical, joint initiatives aimed at supporting ships and crews currently impacted. These include:
• Introducing, as required, a reporting mechanism, via the International Maritime Organization (IMO), for ships to highlight their most immediate concerns for resupply so this can be communicated to Gulf State partners.
• Recognition of seafarers as key workers in accordance with the national law and the need to prioritise their replacement on board ships, where necessary and in accordance with the relevant international standards, to ensure that vessels in the affected region remain sufficiently manned and operational.
• Being able to quickly and safely disembark seafarers from vessels for medical reasons, as necessary.
These initiatives are intended to support both operational continuity for shipping and the immediate safety, protection and wellbeing of seafarers caught in the conflict zone.
Thomas A. Kazakos, Secretary General of the International Chamber of Shipping, said:
“Discussions with our partners in the Gulf States at this meeting were constructive and timely. Their support is essential to addressing the challenges facing seafarers and ships in the region and I was encouraged by their commitment to work with us to introduce solutions as required.
“Together, we have identified a series of practical and achievable steps, and we are committed to working in close partnership to safeguard seafarer welfare and maintain the flow of global trade.”
Stephen Cotton, General Secretary of the International Transport Workers’ Federation, said:
“Seafarers are on the frontline of this conflict, and right now too many are facing extremely difficult conditions. It is essential that they have access to food, clean water, fuel and medical care. These are not optional; they are fundamental rights.
“At the same time, no seafarer should be expected to remain in a conflict zone against their will. Those who want to go home must be able to do so safely and without delay, with arrangements in place to ensure safe crew changes and the continued operation of vessels.
“The ITF is working closely with shipowners and our industry partners, to support seafarers through this crisis. We are making sure their voices are heard and are bringing their demands directly to governments and industry to secure practical solutions that protect seafarers and the industry.”
During the meeting the representatives of the Gulf States to the IMO highlighted several issues, including that their respective governments have already begun and will continue to do everything in their capacity to support seafarers, emphasising the importance of concerted efforts to ensure that neither seafarers nor passengers onboard ships feel abandoned.They also highlighted that the current phase is different from the initial stages, and as such requires different measures. They also confirmed that logistical support will be implemented across the GCC States for ships that are unable to leave the Gulf region, and that crew changes will not face difficulties.
In cases where crew contracts or medical certificates expire, it was indicated that the GCC States may resort to exceptional measures like those taken during the COVID-19 pandemic to facilitate seafarers’ situation.
Moreover, they stressed the need to work closely with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and its Secretary-General, under the auspices of the resolutions of its Extraordinary Session (36), to ensure the establishment of a safe maritime corridor for the evacuation of ships, guarantee the safety of seafarers, and resume navigation in the Strait.
6. Wind assistance
EcoNavis Solutions is developing a next generation wind-assisted propulsion system designed to enhance the performance and commercial viability of Flettner-type rotor sails for deep-sea shipping.
The company’s Eco Rotor Sail introduces a patented tail-appendage device designed to increase thrust, reduce power demand, and widen the range of wind angles in which rotor sails can operate efficiently.
Flettner rotors – rotating cylindrical sails first introduced in the 1920s – are enjoying a comeback as shipowners seek credible ways to cut fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. But a major deterrent to much wider take-up is performance reliability when the wind direction changes. Anton Flettner’s underlying principle has changed little in more than a century.
The EcoNavis design, however, essentially broadens the rotor’s effective “wind window” by reshaping the wind flow in the rotor’s wake to deliver higher thrust with lower torque demand.
According to the Glasgow-based innovator, initial simulations indicate an increase in thrust of up to ten per cent alongside a five per cent reduction in torque.
The Eco Rotor Sail retains the conventional rotating cylinder but introduces a fixed aerodynamic appendage downstream to stabilise the airflow behind the rotor, reducing losses and allowing the system to continue generating thrust as wind conditions change.
“Flettner rotors already offer one of the highest lift-to-drag ratios among wind-assisted devices, with a relatively modest footprint, but the main drawback has been the narrow band of wind angles – typically beam and stern-quarter winds,” said EcoNavis CEO and founder Dr Batuhan Aktas. “The Eco Rotor Sail expands the range of wind angles over which the rotor can operate efficiently.”
Aktas said compared to existing rotors, the new design strengthens the case for the technology on larger commercial tonnage. “It offers more energy savings and lower operating costs,” he said.
“By recovering energy that would otherwise be lost and optimising the flow behind the rotor, we can provide a Flettner rotor design with a greater operational range. This means shipowners can have greater flexibility in route planning and more consistent performance over a typical trading year, without fundamental changes to vessel operations.
“If you can maintain performance across a wider range of conditions, you change how the technology is used. It becomes something operators can plan around, rather than something that depends on favourable weather,” Aktas said.
Eco Rotor Sail development is backed by a £100,000 research grant from Scottish Enterprise to take the £265,000 project through to validation and demonstration stages. The next phase will move into physical testing.
7. Alarm overload
A new report by Lloyd’s Register, Effective Alarm Management in the Maritime Industry, reveals how excessive alarms are overwhelming crews, offering one of the most detailed analyses in the industry, which is based on:
• Over 40 million alarm-related events examined
• 11 ships assessed across more than 2,000 days of operation
• Evidence showing sensors and equipment were incorrectly set up, or calibrated, which led to bombarding crews with false alarms.
As part of LR’s Digital Transformation Research Programme, the research findings show that simple, targeted interventions can dramatically reduce nuisance alarms, improve situational awareness, and allow crew to focus on the alarms that truly matter.
LR is continuing this research with industry stakeholders, aiming to ensure that developments to the IMO’s Engine Control Room Alert Management (ECRAM) performance standard are based on informed, pragmatic, and proven methods.
8. China safety guidelines
Master mariner Mamjit Handa has reminded us of the guidelines on shipping companies’ fulfilment of primary responsibility (Version 1) announced by the China Maritime Safety Administration in November last year.
“In order to thoroughly implement the important expositions, instructions and directives of President Xi Jinping on work safety, and to carry out the arrangements and requirements of the Ministry of Transport on transport sector work safety, these Guidelines are formulated to:
(1) provide guidance to shipping companies in fulfilling their primary responsibility for work safety;
(2 ) improve the dual prevention mechanism for graded risk control and hazard identification and rectification;
(3) strengthen safety management during key periods and for key ships;
(4) prevent and mitigate major safety risks arising from navigation and operations under adverse weather conditions, collisions between merchant ships and fishing ships, and ship– bridge collisions; enhance shore-based management and control over ship safety; and
(5) resolutely curb the occurrence of serious and extraordinarily serious waterborne traffic accidents”, the China MSA said in introductory remarks. For details see the China MSA.
9. Indefinite or perpetual?
In the latest London Calling newsletter Brian Perrott and Lee Forsyth considered the idea that “indefinite” does not mean “perpetual”.
The relevant contract related to a trade mark licence granted to an international architectural practice. The licensee considered the licence fee to be too high and contended that it had a right to terminate the contract on reasonable notice. The licensor disagreed.
The key provision in the contract provided as follows:
“This agreement shall commence on the Effective Date and shall continue indefinitely, unless terminated earlier in accordance with this clause 12.”
Clause 12 set out a right of termination for the licensor but did not make reference to termination by the licensee.
Decision
The Court of Appeal stated that “to describe the duration of a contract as indefinite is a fundamentally different thing from describing it as perpetual. They are not synonyms.” The use of the word “indefinitely”, in light of all circumstances, meant that the duration was indefinite i.e.
it was not perpetual and the arrangement could be brought to an end.
The court inferred that the parties intended that the contract could be terminated by either party on reasonable notice.
Comment
The case highlights the importance of clarity. If parties intend an agreement to be perpetual they should clearly state this.
Zaha Hadid Ltd v The Zaha Hadid Foundation [2026] EWCA Civ 192
10. Ceasefire approach
A two-week US-Iran ceasefire will not restore container shipping operations through the Strait of Hormuz to pre-conflict conditions, with ocean supply chain disruption and elevated rates expected to continue according to Xeneta.
Analysts at Xeneta – a leading ocean and air freight intelligence platform – expect carriers to take a cautious approach to the ceasefire. Alternative routings into the Gulf region, such as landbridges from Khor Fakkan, Sohar and Jeddah, will remain in place while carriers simultaneously carry out individual test voyages via the Strait of Hormuz.
Peter Sand, Chief Analyst, Xeneta, said: “The ceasefire should come with a dose of reality because there is unlikely to be a rapid return to normality for container shipping in the Middle East. Strait of Hormuz transits are likely to increase but how this transition is managed is yet to be seen because two weeks is a very short window of opportunity and there is no guarantee the ceasefire will hold.
“The conflict has displaced 250,000 TEU of weekly container shipping capacity and carriers have put a lot of effort and expense into establishing alternative routings to allow goods to flow into the region. You do not suddenly toss that out of the window because there is a two-week ceasefire.”
Closure of the Strait of Hormuz and alternative land routings has caused severe congestion and disruption at ports in the Middle East and neighboring regions.
Destine Ozuygur, Senior Analyst, said: “Weekly capacity to Jeddah and King Abdullah port has increased 19% as carriers introduce new services to connect the landbridge into the Gulf region.
“Even with alternative routings, there is huge schedule disruption at ports like Mundra, Nhava Sheva, and Khor Fakkan — and that is not going to go away overnight.
“This ceasefire does not resolve that capacity displacement — it simply creates a brief opportunity to move the most urgent freight.
“The priority will be clearing frustrated cargo that has accumulated at alternative ports — Nhava Sheva in particular — shipping it to Jebel Ali and getting out as quickly as possible.
“Carriers will be aware they risk ships becoming trapped in the Gulf once again if there is a sudden deterioration in the security situation.
Ozuygur also warned control of the Strait of Hormuz will have a long term impact on container shipping in the region.
She said: “There are huge operational question marks over a return to the Strait of Hormuz if it effectively turns into an Iranian tollbooth. How much will it cost? How will transits and payments be managed and will this delay carriers returning services to the region? Could some ships be denied transit even if they are willing to pay? This kind of uncertainty is not good for supply chains.”
Keeping supply chains moving comes at a cost, with shippers transporting goods from China to Jebel Ali, the Gulf’s largest container port, facing potential average spot rate increases of more than 270% compared to end of February.
Even on the trade from China to US West Coast, which transits the Pacific thousands of miles from the Middle East conflict, spot rates have increased 37%, partly due to congestion in the Middle East spreading to major Asia trans-shipment hubs such as Singapore, Tanjung Pelepas and Port Klang.
Sand said: “I would expect short-term rates to go a bit higher, simply because there is a two-week window of opportunity and everybody is in a rush.
“Falling oil prices should take some of the heat off fuel costs and put a cap on further emergency bunker surcharges from carriers, but this remains a critical situation and shippers should expect freight rates to remain elevated.”
11. Digital identity
Maritime Passport presented member states at the International Maritime Organization’s latest session of the Facilitation Committee (FAL 50) with a preview of its upcoming digital identity solution for seafarers. The government-grade technology will establish the world’s first truly digital passport for seafarers and empower Flag States around the world to maintain the security of their national waters.
“The maritime sector is accelerating its digital capabilities and we are on the cusp of a digital strategy approved by the IMO. As an ex-seafarer myself, I believe that this digital wave must also buoy up our crew,” said Maritime Passport co-founder Martin White. “Our solution – which is free for seafarers to use – will cut through the high administrative burden of finding, collating and sharing personal professional credentials, certifications and other relevant details to prove work eligibility. Our highly secure intuitive app makes this information available to Flag States, potential employers and other relevant stakeholders at the touch of a button.”
Invited to FAL 50 by the Bahamas Maritime Authority, the Maritime Passport team presented their solution to international delegates in the plenary hall and demonstrated the ease with which Flag States could integrate the platform into their operations to deliver not just quicker verification of professional credentials but also cost savings. Designed to connect operations across 193 countries, the Maritime Passport platform significantly reduces the administrative onus without introducing new risk.
“Our solution is built on global identification standards that are already well established in other sectors,” said Marcel Wendt, CTO for Maritime Passport. “Unlike some other offerings that aggregate or commercialise seafarer data, Maritime Passport is fundamentally a neutral digital technology layer which can work in harmony with existing certification, record keeping and identity verification frameworks at Flag States. Our system is designed to be the intersection of cutting edge technology, compliance and seafarer credentials, with gold-standard security at its heart.”
The presentation at FAL 50 underscored a pressing consensus that digital trust is the absolute foundation of modern maritime safety. This critical focus was reflected not only in the enthusiastic response regarding Maritime Passport’s real-world applications but also throughout the wider discussions taking place in the plenary sessions.
“We were truly honoured to be at FAL 50 and share our vision for a safer, more connected maritime community. By providing seafarers with a seamless digital pathway to manage their identity, for shipowners to confirm certification and skills, and equipping Flag States to verify credentials instantly, we are building a foundation of digital trust at the very heart of the global supply chain,” said Peter Phillips, Maritime Passport co-founder.
The Maritime Passport digital wallet will be available for individual Flag States to customise to their existing certification infrastructure in Q2, 2026.
Notices and Miscellany
Tug and salvage
The International Tug & Salvage Convention, Exhibition & Awards will take place from 19-21 May 2026 in Gothenburg. .The International Tug & Salvage Convention, Exhibition & Awards is the world’s premier biennial gathering of the tug, towage and salvage sectors. The conference programme and exhibition cover all the elements required for safe, sustainable and commercially successful operations. A truly international event, it is held every two years in a different, leading maritime hub. Since 1969, over 10,000 delegates and 1,350 exhibitors from more than 70 countries have taken part.
Middle East seminar
There will be a webinar on 14 April 2026, organised by Drewry, to discuss the impact of the Middle East conflict on the container shipping market and its stakeholders. The webinar will provide insight on how the industry is adapting to the current situation and what effects it may have on how the industry operates going forward. For more information see enquiries@drewry.co.uk.
London Shipping Law Centre event
A London Shipping Law Centre event will take place on April 16 at the IDRC in London to discuss the International Group’s LOIs and legal and practical considerations.
A distinguished panel of speakers will consider the background to and function of Letters of Indemnity and their latest (2023) revisions. How do they work in practice and is there scope for further improvement?
Specific issues that will be considered include:
• An introduction to LOIs and the 2023 revisions.
• Key considerations on the functioning of the LOIs from a practitioner’s perspective, including:
o Problems arising when the cargo is discharged to a bonded warehouse pending delivery;
o The impact of the right to compel the posting of security;
o The changed landscape for mis-delivery claims following the Sienna the impact on claims under the LOI;
o The inter-play with Claims Co-operation Agreements.
• Are there improvements needed to the structure or detailed wording of the LOIs which call for further revision?
For further information email: shipping@shippinglbc.com
Please notify the Editor of your appointments, promotions, new office openings and other important happenings: contactus@themaritimeadvocate.com
And finally,
With thanks to Paul Dixon
A friend was thinking about buying a new house in the country and asked me to come out and look at it.
We found the town, but we couldn’t locate the road.
We drove over to city hall, where a community get-together was going on, and asked around, but no one had heard of the road.
Even the policemen and fire personnel were stumped.
We went to city hall and consulted a map, with no luck, until finally one young man came to our aid.
He pointed to the map, showing us exactly how to get there.
I thanked the young man and asked if he was with the police or fire department.
“Neither,” he replied. “I deliver pizzas.”
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