DeepDraft Conversations

Can better ship design reduce fuel consumption without compromising operational capability? In this episode, The DeepDraft examines Tsuneishi's AEROLINE and Fresh Air Intake System (FAIS), two approaches to improving vessel efficiency through aerodynamic design and engine intake optimisation. The discussion explores potential fuel savings, practical operating conditions and the wider question...

During a SIRE 2.0 inspection, an experienced officer with a full beard could not get his breathing-apparatus mask to seal. Our explanation was that he wasn’t assigned to the fire party. But who takes over when the designated firefighters are exhausted or unavailable? Based on Capt. Raghu Sharma’s DeepDraft analysis, this episode examines mask fit, facial hair and the practical limits of a ship’s e...

A thermocol float passed close alongside a vessel drifting off Indonesia and later disappeared from view. A check aft revealed why: a substantial rope associated with it had reached the propeller area. In this episode, we look at rumpon, the fishing arrangements commonly encountered in Indonesian waters, and why the visible float may be only a small part of the operational hazard. The discussion c...

A ship can be easy to see at night and still be difficult to read. In this episode, we look at how deck lights, accommodation lighting and floodlights can interfere with the navigation lights that bridge teams rely on to judge vessel aspect, movement and collision risk. The discussion also considers what the COLREGs require and why the complete night-time appearance of a modern ship deserves more...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/09/20/hormuz-control-cyber-risk-shipboard-competence-september-20-2026/ This episode of the DeepDraft Weekly Maritime Brief covers the September 20, 2026 edition: Hormuz control, Saudi crude disruption, sanctions exposure, tanker cyber risk, Bab el-Mandeb protection planning and shipboard competence under SIRE 2.0. The central operating signal is cl...

The deck seal’s appearance and its HVPQ entry did not agree. Checking the maker’s manual raised a question with consequences for operation, troubleshooting and inspection. This episode of DeepDraft Conversations explores the confusion between wet and semi-dry deck seals, and why crews need to understand the design actually fitted. Read the full analysis by Capt. Raghu Sharma: https://thedeepdraft....

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/09/13/bab-el-mandeb-gulf-tanker-risk-september-13-2026/ Two chokepoints now carry active control pressure. In the Red Sea, Houthi movement around Bab el-Mandeb has pushed routing confidence, naval coordination, insurance cover, and crew-risk acceptance back into the centre of voyage planning. In the Gulf, tanker strikes, reduced Hormuz traffic, and...

Why is CO₂ on the enclosed space entry permit? This episode explores the questions around oil tanker gas testing, SIRE 2.0 and the reasoning behind safety checklists. Read the full DeepDraft analysis: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/09/07/co%e2%82%82-on-oil-tanker-entry-permits-safety-requirement-or-checklist-overreach/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribe...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/09/06/hormuz-tanker-strikes-ais-silence-maritime-security-september-6-2026/ This week’s DeepDraft Weekly Maritime Brief covers Hormuz tanker strikes, AIS-off transits, SIDR fatalities, Black Sea CPC loading risk, vessel seizure in Svalbard, and wider maritime security pressure. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other s...

A tanker switches off AIS while passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Public tracking stops, yet the vessel remains detectable by radar, satellites and other surveillance systems. This episode examines what “going dark” actually achieves, why legitimate security decisions can resemble concealment, and how a broken AIS track can become a compliance problem for the Master and company. Read the full...

https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/30/hormuz-confidence-black-sea-booking-risk-august-30-2026/ Hormuz has not returned to normal operating confidence. Tanker warnings, low Strait traffic, Black Sea incidents, Panama Canal restrictions and rising freight pressure are now moving into the same commercial risk file. This Weekly Maritime Brief also connects those operating pressures with DeepDraft’s late...

Fire wires were intended to let tugs pull tankers away from a burning berth. But after decades of crew injuries and no documented emergency use, are they still a safety control or simply a protected procedure? This episode examines why emergency tow-off capability may need to be engineered into the ship-terminal system rather than left to crews handling heavy steel wire. Read the full DeepDraft an...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/23/armed-ship-pressure-chokepoint-control-august-23-2026/ Merchant shipping is being pushed toward protection decisions as Hormuz control, Somali piracy, Panama Canal slot pressure and Venezuelan tanker-loading delays tighten voyage approval, insurance review and crew-safety planning. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this wi...

Merchant ships can detect a drone, report it and prepare for impact. What they usually cannot do is stop it. This episode examines why armed ships are returning, where conventional maritime security guidance reaches its limit, and why protection from military threats cannot be left entirely to Masters and civilian crews. Read the full analysis: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/17/the-return-of-arm...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/16/hormuz-route-risk-canal-cost-pressure-august-16-2026/ Hormuz route risk is now carrying through to cost, crew exposure, pollution response, and shipboard control. This week’s DeepDraft Weekly Maritime Brief covers further ADNOC-affiliated tanker attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, Bab el-Mandeb crew-risk exposure, Black Sea disruption at Novoross...

Ship kites may reduce fuel consumption, but what happens once traffic builds, the weather changes or the vessel needs to alter course? This episode looks at airborne wind propulsion from the bridge and deck level, including kite recovery, manoeuvring limitations, tether failure, emergency procedures and crew training. Read the full DeepDraft article: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/10/airborne-wi...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/09/deepdraft-weekly-tanker-transfer-checks-chokepoint-disruption-august-9-2026/ Tanker transfer verification, Hormuz route uncertainty, Red Sea targeting, Yanbu exposure, and China port disruption are now shaping the same maritime operating week. This episode looks at why shipboard cargo-transfer checks and external voyage-risk controls need to b...

Bonding within a tanker and electrical isolation between ships are different safety controls. This episode examines static-charge risks, insulating flanges, unintended electrical paths, ICCP, and what officers must physically verify before cargo transfer. Read the full DeepDraft analysis: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/08/03/bonding-is-not-insulation-cargo-transfer-checklist/ This is a public episo...

SDMBL, LDBF, WLL and winch brake setting belong to the same mooring system, but they are not interchangeable. This episode explains what each figure means, where it comes from and why the familiar “60%” can still cause confusion onboard. Read the full article: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/07/27/meg-4-mooring-numbers-why-ships-are-still-getting-confused/ This is a public episode. If you would like...

When I was sailing as Chief Officer, brake testing was commonly understood in relation to the mooring line’s MBL. The brake was tested, the operating position marked, and the familiar figure onboard was 60%. MEG4 formalised Ship Design MBL as the reference and introduced clearer distinctions between the figures used in the mooring system. This video explains SDMBL, LDBF, WLL and winch brake settin...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/07/26/vessel-level-risk-chokepoints-ecdis-july-26-2026/ Hormuz, Red Sea, South China Sea, Black Sea and Gulf of Aden risk escalated this week, while DeepDraft’s latest analysis examined why updated ECDIS does not always mean the correction picture is understood. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or ge...

A green update report does not prove that every correction affecting the passage has been identified. This episode examines AIO, EP notices, No Overlay areas, date-dependent corrections and the limits of automatic route checking. Read Capt. Raghu Sharma’s full analysis: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/07/20/ecdis-corrections-aio-ep-no-overlay/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss t...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/07/19/hormuz-closure-bab-el-mandeb-eu-ets-july-19-2026/ Hormuz closure, U.S. blockade enforcement, Bab el-Mandeb threats, Gulf of Aden boarding risk and Ukraine port attacks have turned this week’s maritime picture into a multi-theatre voyage-control problem. This episode also covers EU ETS changes and DeepDraft’s latest analysis on bridge visual-re...

An unusual SSS-bow, angled bridge windows and a collision investigated by the MAIB. This episode examines whether bridge design can influence visual judgement during a close-quarters situation. Read the full DeepDraft analysis: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/07/09/when-bridge-windows-look-the-wrong-way/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access...

Full Weekly Brief: https://thedeepdraft.com/2026/07/12/hormuz-vlcc-sts-voyage-control-july-12-2026/ Hormuz transit risk, Red Sea routing decisions, Kerch passage disruption, and VLCC STS control margins all point to one issue: whether voyages can still be kept inside a controlled operating envelope. This episode reviews the week’s main maritime developments and connects them to DeepDraft’s analysi...