Lifeline (ship)
.jpg) Lifeline (21 June 2018)
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Disputed | |
| Name | Lifeline |
| Namesake | Clupea |
| Builder | Hall, Russell & Company, Aberdeen |
| Yard number | 940[1] |
| Laid down | 1968 |
| Refit | 1988 |
| Homeport | Amsterdam |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Detained by Maltese authorities |
| Notes | Ownership, ship classification and Home Port documentation not in order as of June 2018, Lying at Malta |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 381.68 t (376 long tons) |
| Length | 32.1 m (105 ft 4 in) |
| Beam | 7.39 m (24 ft 3 in) |
| Draught | 3.51 m (11 ft 6 in) |
| Propulsion | Lister Blackstone ERS 8M 492 kW (660 hp) |
| Speed | 11.5 knots (13.2 mph; 21.3 km/h) |
| Endurance | 12 days |
| Complement | 16 |
Lifeline is a small rescue boat, formerly an inshore fisheries research vessel of the Fisheries Research Services currently seized by Maltese authorities due to disputed ownership, ship classification, home port documentation and flag registration. The captain, Claus-Peter Reisch appeared in a Maltese court charged with commanding an improperly registered ship and was released on a 10,000-euro bail[2][3].
History
Clupea was commissioned in 1968. Measuring 32 m (100 ft) and drawing 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in), she is a good size for conducting research inside the constricted space of a sea loch. For research in offshore areas and the North Sea, the larger, more modern, FRV Scotia is used.
Clupea has been replaced by FRV Alba-Na-Mara.[4] She has been sold to a private company.[citation needed]
In 2015 Clupea was sold to the German NGO Sea Watch, who has started a civil sea rescue service for refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean. The vessel was renamed Sea-Watch 2 in March 2016 and has been used for SAR missions. [5] In autumn 2016, the NGO 'Sea Watch' sold the ship to 'Mission Lifeline e.V.', a Service club based in Dresden. Its name now is Lifeline.[6] In June 2018, the Lifeline (with 239 migrants on board) is in the media as one of the ships being forbidden to enter an Italian harbour. Matteo Salvini, new Italian Minister of the Interior (Conte Cabinet), has ordered this blocking.[7]
Netherlands Minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen declared in late June 2018, that the Lifeline does not operate under the Netherlands flag. According to the statement, the existing registration of the vessel with the Koninklijk Nederlands Watersport Verbond was only a proof of ownership, which did not make the Netherlands the Flag state for the Lifeline.[8]
Clupea
As Clupea she was equipped with winches, reel drums and an A-frame, allowing her to tow a range of fishing gear. Deck cranes allow the deployment of water sampling equipment and benthic grabs.
She was based at the port of Fraserburgh and operated mainly on the Scottish west coast on behalf of the Scottish Executive.
As a small vessel requiring space for equipment and laboratories, Clupea had only accommodation for four officers, six crew and six scientists.
References
- ^ "Clupea". Aberdeen Built Ships. Retrieved 21 February 2010.
- ^ Malta detains second migrant rescue ship as hundreds die at sea - France 24
- ^ Lifeline's registration with a Dutch yacht club did not give it flag status, court hears.
- ^ "FRV Clupea". Trawler photos. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
- ^ "Sea-Watch buys new ship for SAR missions". Sea-Watch e.V. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
- ^ mission-lifeline.de
- ^ FAZ.net 24. Juni 2018: Weiteres Schiff mit Migranten wartet vor Italien auf Hafeneinfahrt
- ^ "'Migrantenschip staat geregistreerd bij Nederlands Watersportverbond'". nos.nl. Retrieved 23 June 2018.