Tassie Devil strikes

The type III FFV an Indonesian fishing vessel. She was allowed to proceed on her way. Photo by ABCIS Quentin Mushins

By ABCIS Quentin Mushins

On the morning of May 19 while HMAS Launceston (LCDR Michael Gough) was patrolling the waters to the north of Ashmore Island she detected a significant radar contact heading south, inside the “Disputed Zone”.

The Fremantle went to boarding stations and manoeuvred to intercept the vessel.

She quickly closed the target, which was identified as a Foreign Fishing vessel (FFV).

The boarding party was quick to react and boarded the vessel as soon as “carry on the boarding party” was piped. It identified the FFV as a Type III Indonesian Gill-netter.

A thorough search by the boarding party found approximately 100 live crayfish and 6 baby shark in a large tank and 2 tonnes of frozen shark fin was found in the vessel’s freezers.

As the FFV had no “Hookah” (surface supplied breathing apparatus) onboard and was north of the Provisional Fishing and Enforcement Line (PFSEL) there were no grounds for apprehension.

She was allowed to proceed and Launceston returned to her patrol.

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