The Sylvan Arrow was found guilty of discharging an oily mixture into the sea west of Wilson’s Promontory, Victoria on 18 December 1999.

A charter vessel with passengers was conducting a cruise around Sydney Harbour when it narrowly missed an unlit runabout at night. The vessel ran aground, and two attempts to tow the vessel off the sandbank were unsuccessful. The investigation found that the master did not risk-assess the route and respective conditions. The vessel safety management system provided the master with no clear direction on safe routes to follow. The command, control, and communication with and between the crew in relation to emergency procedures and response was ineffective.

This marine notice outlines AMSA’s expectations for vessel owners and operators when considering appropriate crewing, maintenance of watchkeeping standards and provision of minimum hours of rest, ensuring seafarer fitness for duty. 

Our regulatory program is prepared annually and contains details of planned and completed changes to our regulatory instruments.

The IMO has agreed that marking requirements should be developed for commercial fishing gear.

AMSA has a fair, and non-discriminatory procurement complaints handling process.

You need to keep your certificate of recognition current to keep working as an international seafarer in Australia. Make sure you renew your overseas (primary) STCW certificate before applying to revalidate your CoR.

Reminding those who own, operate or are on board Australian ships, about offences under Australian sanction laws. The information has been prepared by the Australian Sanctions Office.

We are the Australian Government agency responsible for implementing the 1 January 2020 low sulphur fuel regulation as set out in the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL).

Consultation Report – October 2022

The Sanko Harvest struck a reef off Esperance, Western Australia on 14 February 1991, and broke up over the next fortnight.

Our search and rescue incidents from 2013–14.

On 6 October 2022, two crewmembers were setting cray pots on the port and starboard side of a fishing vessel. During one setting, the crewmember’s foot (on the port side) became entangled in the cray pot’s rope dragging them over the side. The second crewmember raised the alarm and the master immediately stopped the vessel and instructed the crewmember to attach the line to the pot winch. The master and crewmember, having conducted regular emergency procedure drills, quickly raised the person overboard (PoB) via the pot winch, deployed the overboard ladder, and cut the rope. The PoB sustained some water in the lungs but was otherwise unharmed.

The North-East Shipping Management Plan (NE SMP) identifies actions based on information regarding the nature of shipping activity in the north-east region.

Domestic commercial fishing vessels may transit between the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) around Norfolk island and the Australian mainland.