A Hydrofoil can be expected to suddenly veer out of control once every
two years, while a catamaran might lose control once every eight years,
according to a study carried out by the Department of Transport. On average,
one in 25 of these instances of loss of control would lead to a collision.
In 1989 a high-speed catamaran ran out of control in Hong Kong harbour,
sinking six other vessels and killing four people. It ended up mounting
the harbour wall. The subsequent court of inquiry criticised the lack of
a particular kind of risk analysis known as Failure Mode Effect Analysis
(This Week, 6 July 1991).
The Department of Transport’s study, commissioned in March 1992, recommends
that safety analysis of this type should be part of the certification of
high-speed passenger ships. The department is urging the International Maritime
Organization to include these analyses in its planned safety code for high-speed
craft.
