[ 65 ] as the Calais-end bridge was swapped for the Dover-end bridge, a pattern that would be repeated throughout the delivery voyage. Rather than entering Singapore, P&O Pioneer remained in the Singapore anchorage using its dynamic positioning (DP) system although it had dropped anchor to comply with local byelaws. The DP system was used to keep the anchor cable well clear of the ABB Azipods®. The DP system is yet another added benefit of the Azipods® and this practice would be repeated each and every time P&O Pioneer was at anchorage. The 12-hour stop outside Singapore was meant to take on bunkers while crew joined — the brief was not to replace any of the delivery crew but rather for existing crew to further familiarise themselves with the ship. P&O Pioneer then headed for the Indian Ocean through the Malacca Strait, calling at Colombo in the early afternoon of 12 March. With bunkering completed, it left Colombo Port the following morning. Before entering the Arabian Sea, three maritime security guards from Ambrey Security were picked up in Galle, southwest Sri Lanka. The Indian Ocean High Risk Area (HRA) had been removed in January 2023, but better safe than sorry as P&O Ferries didn’t want to take any risks when transiting the Gulf of Aden at a 23.2-knot top speed. P&O Pioneer’s high speed and excellent manoeuvrability were undoubtedly an asset in this piracy prone area with the guards disembarking in the Red Sea. Next stop was Suez anchorage in the afternoon of 20 March. A Suez pilot boarded and mandatory manoeuvring trials ahead of the Suez Canal transit were performed after which P&O Pioneer proceeded to another anchorage where it waited for the rest of the afternoon and evening before joining the northbound canal convoy in the early morning of 21 March. To comply with Suez Canal rules, a portable projector light was delivered to the ship and a mast with signal lights installed on the helideck. The transit was performed on the Calais-end bridge but instead of going straight through the Canal, P&O Pioneer stopped in DP mode in the Great Bitter Lake at 10:30am. It was extremely busy in the Canal as the ship let the southbound convoy pass first before rejoining the northbound convoy at 3pm. “ The transit was performed on the Calais-end bridge but instead of going straight through the Canal, P&O Pioneer stopped in DP mode in the Great Bitter Lake” In transit on the Suez Canal SHIPBUILDING
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQ1NTk=