NSW Water Police launch, Alert

The next time modern-day pirates try to ply their trade off the NSW coast, the state's water police will be armed with a battery of satellite technology.

The NSW Water Police launch, Alert - the vessel that pursued the suspected drug-smuggling Korean freighter Pong Su along the state's coast in April - has begun testing satellite communications equipment that gives it a direct link to shore, turning the ship into a floating command post.

The pursuit and boarding of the Pong Su - which turned up a cache of drugs and a senior Korean official - provided valuable lessons for the NSW Water Police, marine area commander Terry Dalton said.

The ship was chased by the NSW Water Police, Customs and the Navy, before finally being boarded by elite SAS troops. During the pursuit of the Pong Su, the Alert remained at sea for three days.

"One of the issues raised at the end of the operation was our communication. While we were able to send back photos, we had no system dedicated to that requirement ," he said.

The new satellite system will allow police launches to send photos, email and live video to shore for analysis, providing functions similar to the system installed by the Australian Customs Services last year. Satellite phones will enable crew members to stay in touch with families while at sea for extended periods.

The system would allow a police launch to follow a suspect ship "from a discrete distance," sending back intelligence such as photographs to shore, Commander Dalton said.

It would also allow information to be forwarded to other agencies, such as Customs and the Australian Defence Force. "That was a shortcoming we identified as a result of the Pong Su job," he said. "There is no point having a vessel with long-range capability if it doesn't have the latest communications equipment."

Like the Customs system, NSW Police will use the Inmarsat satellite network, with the service sold through local reseller Xantic.

Sydney-based satellite specialist TC Communications was contracted for equipment and installation.

NSW Police expects to install the system on a second launch shortly, and the remaining seven long-range vessels will be equipment as funding becomes available. The Alert is one of five vessels worldwide selected for a maritime field evaluation trial with Inmarsat.

Inmarsat's David Warner said the shipping industry had growing data requirements.

Along with communications and general ship and cargo management, security - in the guise of the planned International Port and Shipping Security Code - was driving demand, he said.

Due to be in place mid next year, the code "really requires the ship and port facility to be able to determine each other's security status", he said.

* This article appeared in The Australian, August 19th, 2003