Now, that has all changed with research being conducted at the Australian Maritime College’s Centre for Maritime Simulations.

The research is training seafarers and crews how to steer ships in a risk-free virtual environment.

Researcher Paul Brown and his research supervisor Professor Margareta Lutzhoft have created a virtual simulated Antarctic environment in which training can be conducted.

He said virtual training provided a raft of educational, economic and environmental benefits.

‘‘It would be too costly for the crew to do their ice training in Antarctica. The Aurora Australis uses 24,000 litres of fuel a day and that amount doubles to 45,000 litres per day when she is ice-breaking,’’ Mr Brown said.

‘‘As well as that cost, there is the wear and tear on the ship and the impact on the environment to take into account.

‘‘There’s no risk in programming this sort of training scenario in the simulator – the hazards are there but the ship doesn’t get damaged and there is no loss of income,’’ Mr Brown said.

In the next stage of the research Mr Brown will go to Antarctica to see how the Aurora Australis handles the different weather conditions, and he will record this data for input into the simulated model.

The three-year project is well-timed to meet the future training needs of companies such as P&O, which must comply with a new international code of safety for ships operating in polar waters, expected to be introduced in 2016.

Source: The Examiner