Reviews & Ratings for the Arne

**Title: Suspicious Anchoring of 'Arne' Raises Concerns Near Subsea Cables Off Ireland** On March 20, the cargo ship 'Arne', heading towards the Russian port of Murmansk, drew the attention of Air Corps personnel as it anchored suspiciously near vital subsea cables off the west coast of Ireland, specifically off County Mayo. During its navigational journey, the vessel was seen towing its anchor while underway, prompting further scrutiny. The 'Arne' is known for its regular voyages transporting alumina from the Aughinish Alumina facility in County Limerick to Russia, having recently loaded a shipment prior to the unusual anchoring incident. The location where the anchor was dropped is notably close to the AEC-1 data cable corridor, which serves as a crucial link between Ireland and the United States. This incident follows a prior issue the vessel experienced while operating in German waters, where it lost its anchor, resulting in damage to undersea cables. Following the anchor loss, German police officials boarded the 'Arne', only to discover the anchor was missing along with significant portions of its anchor cable. While transporting alumina to Russia is currently legal and does not violate sanctions, certain shipments have triggered heightened scrutiny from European security agencies, given the sensitive nature of maritime activities in the region. Notably, the 'Arne' had previously docked at Aughinish on December 25 and departed for St. Petersburg on January 1. Upon returning to European waters, it was intercepted by German authorities near the Kiel Canal and escorted for further inspections. This recent incident raises questions about maritime security and the potential implications for undersea infrastructure, emphasizing the ongoing vigilance required in monitoring shipping activities in strategic waters.

The 'Arne', which had raised the suspicions of German authorities in February, has now been tracked twice by Ireland’s Defense Forces. The Irish Naval Service and Air Corps were put on alert as the ship was thought to possibly be acting suspiciously near undersea cables on March 20. The ship docked in the port of Aughinish on the southwest coast near Limerick en route from Sagunto, where it had sailed on March 15. The Air Corps tracked the vessel in part due to a previous incident off the northeast coast of Ireland. It was identified as suspicious after the German authorities reported stopping it on Feb 24 in Kiel, missing its port side anchor. After an investigation, the German authorities had permitted the vessel to continue its voyage. The Irish authorities then detected the same ship off the northeast coast and the Air Corps was sent to investigate. A surveillance airplane filmed the vessel dropping its anchor. The Irish Defense Force contacted the ship ordering it to stop its anchoring and back away from the sensitive area with the cables. On March 25 the ship left Foynes en route to the Russian port of St. Petersburg with an ETA as of March 31.

The "Arne", which was escorted into the Kiel Fjord accompanied by the patrol ship "Neustadt" and the Danish patrol boat "Luna" on Feb 22 due to the suspicion of sabotage and missing the port side anchor, is actually crossing the Bay of Biscay with an ETA in Sevilla as of March 2. it remained unclear to date, whether the "Arne" had damaged an underground data cable not far from the Swedish island of Gotland, which was the reason why the federal police went on board for three hours and questioned the crew about the missing anchor. The investigation is an ongoing procedure. For operational reasons, no information was provided at this time. The search for the missing anchor was continuing in parallel with the investigation. If it is found near the damaged cable, this would be a crucial clue.

On Feb 22, 2025, the 'Arne', en route from St. Petersburg, Russia, to Sevilla, was stopped on the Kiel Fjord for ths suspicion of having damaged a data cable off Gotland, where the ship was monitored on the morning of Feb 20. It had slowed down its speed and was surveyed by the Danish Navy since Feb 21. It was noticed that the port side bow anchor was missing. Where the anchor was lost, remained unclear. On the evening, the Federal German Police deployed the patrol boat 'Neustadt' from Rostock, which escorted the 'Arne' to Kiel, jointly with the Danish patrol boat 'Luna'. On the Kiel Fjord a boarding team of the 'Neustadt' went on board and investigated the ship and the crew for three hours. As there was no reason for a further detention, the ship was released on Feb 22 at 1 p.m. and entered the Kiel Canal with an ETA at the port of destination as of March 2. There was no information regarding the whereabouts of the anchor and the chain. The investigations were going on. Report with photos: https://www.kn-online.de/schleswig-holstein/frachter-ohne-anker-in-kiel-bundespolizei-stoppt-verdaechtiges-schiff-QPWF2MB4RJAKFCWP2PQLFFQOQE.html