 Outline of the Arctic Sea
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name |
|
| Owner | Arctic Runner Shipping Inc. |
| Operator | Great Lakes Feeder Lines[1] |
| Port of registry |
|
| Builder | Sedef Shipyard, Istanbul, Turkey |
| Yard number | 84 |
| Launched | 22 March 1991 |
| Christened | 1997 |
| Completed | 1992[2] |
| Identification | IMO number: 8912792[3] |
| Fate | Decommissioned |
| Status | In Alang, India to be scrapped |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 97.80 m[2] |
| Beam | 17.33 m[2] |
| Height | 38.0 m (from keel) |
| Draught | 6.01 m (summer) |
| Depth | 7.01 m[2] |
| Ice class | 1A |
| Installed power | 4560 HP / 3360 kW |
| Propulsion | 1 diesel engine[2] |
| Speed | 12.50 knots (23.15 km/h; 14.38 mph)[2] |
| Crew | 15 |
The MV Arctic Sea is a cargo ship formerly registered in Malta that was reported missing between late July and mid-August 2009 en route from Finland to Algeria, manned by a Russian crew and declared to be carrying a cargo of timber. Hijackers allegedly boarded the ship off the coast of Sweden on 24 July 2009. The incident was not immediately reported, and contact with the ship was lost on or after 30 July. The Arctic Sea did not arrive at its scheduled port in Algeria and was reportedly located near Cape Verde instead on 14 August. On 17 August, it was seized by the Russian Navy. An investigation into the incident was started amidst speculation regarding the ship's actual cargo, and there were allegations of a cover-up by Russian authorities. The Arctic Sea was towed into harbor in the Maltese capital of Valletta on 29 October 2009.[4]
The ship's alleged hijacking and subsequent events have remained difficult to understand, as no credible explanation has been presented of its disappearance and Russian authorities' conduct during and after the ship's capture.[5][6] If confirmed to be an act of piracy, the hijacking of Arctic Sea would be the first known of its kind in Northern European waters for centuries.[7]
The Russian court found all of the alleged hijackers to be guilty of piracy, but this has not led commentators to be any "closer to knowing what actually happened".[8]
- ^ "shipspec". 25 March 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2010. Retrieved 25 March 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Arctic Sea Specifications". TradeWinds. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ^ "Equasis". 1 April 2009. Retrieved 12 August 2009.
- ^ "'Mystery ship' returns to Malta". BBC News. 29 October 2009. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ^ "The Continuing Saga of the 'Arctic Sea'". Der Spiegel. 19 October 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
- ^ Tyler Brûlé (1 January 2010). "The mysteries of our dying decade". Financial Times. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
- ^ Halpin, Tony; Sammut, Austin (30 October 2009). "The Arctic Sea ends mystery voyage in Malta with Russian guards". Times Online. London. Retrieved 6 January 2010.[dead link]
- ^ "Arctic Sea ship hijackers jailed by Russian court". BBC News. 24 March 2011.