CMA CGM Dock Smash Inquiry Slams Pilot

The United Kingdom Merchant Shipping (Accident Reporting and Investigation) Marine Accident Investigation Branch issued an investigation report on the allision of the UK-registered containership CMA CGM Centaurus with the quay in Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates,that resulted in collapse of a shore crane and subsequent injury of 10 persons.

At 1137 on 4 May 2017, Centaurus made heavy contact with the quay and two shore cranes while under pilotage.

The accident occurred because the ship was unable to attain a sufficiently high rate of turn into a basin in preparation for berthing. The pilot was unaware of the ship’s speed, and the ship’s bridge team were uncertain of the maximum speed required to complete the turn safely.

There was no agreed plan for the intended maneuver, and therefore no shared mental model between the bridge team and the pilot. Consequently, the pilot was operating in isolation without the support of the bridge team, allowing the pilot’s decision-making to become a single system point of failure.

The pilot’s performance was focused on efficiency, which influenced his decision to turn the ship into the basin without ensuring that the maneuver was conducted at a sufficiently slow speed to enable its safe completion, the report said.

The UK MAIB recommended that DP World UAE region to review and improve its management of pilotage and berthing operations in respect of large containership movements within the port of Jebel Ali.