MARINE ACCIDENT REPORT: COLLISION OF THE U.S. TANKSHIP PISCES WITH THE GREEK BULK CARRIER TRADE MASTER, MILE 124 LOWER MISSISSIPPI RIVER, DECEMBER 27, 1980

Shortly after 1800 C.S.T., on December 27, 1980, the U.S. tankship PISCES and the Greek bulk carrier TRADE MASTER collided at about mile 124 above Head of Passes (AHP) in the Lower Mississippi River. As a result of the collision, the bow of the PISCES and the starboard side of the TRADE MASTER were damaged extensively. No one was injured, but damage to the vessels was estimated at $6.3 million. The TRADE MASTER also suffered a loss to its cargo of bauxite valued at about $500,000. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable causes of this accident were a precipitous attempt by the pilot of the PISCES to meet the TRADE MASTER port to port despite an established starboard to starboard meeting agreement, and the failure of both pilots to sound the danger singal and to reduce speed when they failed to understand or regarded as unsafe the action of the other vessel. Contributing to the accident was the congestion on the vessel bridge-to-bridge radiotelephone frequency in the Lower Mississippi River that made timely and effective radio communications between the pilots unreliable.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Report
• Corporate Authors:

  National Transportation Safety Board

  490 L'Enfant Plaza, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20594
• Publication Date: 1982-2-9

Media Info

• Pagination: 32 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bulk carriers; Crash investigation; Marine safety; Reports; Tankers; Water transportation crashes
• Geographic Terms: Mississippi River
• Old TRIS Terms: Pisces (Vessel); Trade master (Vessel)
• Subject Areas: Marine Transportation; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00649523
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Maritime Technical Information Facility
• Report/Paper Numbers: NTSB-MAR-82-02
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 21 1994 12:00AM