organization's website, but they underscored the need to assure mariners that Ice Patrol was still 

 on the job. 



The year 2005 tied 1924 as the sixth-lightest year on record. Lessons learned from 1999 

 provided the basis for improving processes for the 2005 season. Throughout the entire season, IIP 

 processed a mere 125 icebergs through the Berg Analysis and Prediction System (BAPS); the 

 average for 2002 to 2004 was 2,486 targets. Still, Ice Patrol leadership ultimately decided not to 

 open the ice season after carefully considering the following factors: 



(1) The iceberg population south of 48°N, 



(2) CIS was providing daily ice information, 



(3) The need to keep mariners informed, 



(4) Personnel readiness — that is, the need to train both reconnaissance and Operations Center 

 watch personnel. 



Ice Patrol reconnaissance flights had revealed that there was no iceberg threat to 

 transatlantic shipping, and mariners approaching the Grand Banks and Canadian waters still had a 

 source for iceberg information through the CIS daily iceberg product. Moreover, applying a 

 lesson learned from the 1999 season, IIP began disseminating a weekly message in accordance 

 with the published "Announcement of Services." These messages assured the maritime 

 community that Ice Patrol was actively monitoring iceberg danger and that a ship traveling along 

 the most economical great-circle transatlantic shipping route between Europe and North America 

 would not encounter ice. 



Personnel readiness posed another concern altogether. By late May — well after a normal 

 ice season usually begins — several new IIP members had not yet seen an iceberg, let alone 

 produced and disseminated a daily LAKI product. Creative and dedicated staff devised an 

 innovative solution to ensure that personnel and equipment were ready to assimilate iceberg 

 reports, run the drift and deterioration models, and send out accurate, timely LAKI products. This 

 inspired the creation of a "mock" ice season for training. This simulated ice season employed all 

 personnel during a three-week period in September 2005, long after any potential iceberg threat 

 had subsided. During the first week of the mock season, all personnel had the opportunity to 

 create and actually transmit test products via NAVTEX and HF-radio graphical fax charts. To 

 avoid confusion in the maritime community, IIP made it clear that these products were only for 

 training. The second and third weeks of the season tested and trained watch standers on every 

 aspect of Operations Center functions, including iceberg merging and deleting, drawing the 

 LAKI, and processing icebergs reported outside the LAKI. This successful training evolution 

 resulted in the qualification of six watch personnel and advanced the knowledge of all who 

 participated. This tool will be employed during future post- and preseasons to ensure that the 

 workforce maintains peak readiness for each season. 



A Crucial Decision 



Establishing the LAKI and commencing daily warnings is one of the most critical choices 

 made by the Ice Patrol Commander. If a season is opened too early, there is the potential that 

 HP's credibility and mariners' confidence in its products will suffer; too late and there is a risk 

 that critical safety information will not reach the mariner on time. The Commander must consider 

 many factors to make this call, including sea-surface temperatures, the state of the Labrador 

 Current, location of the iceberg population, sea-ice extent and concentration, and reports from 



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