Abstract:
Northern region peninsular Malaysia is divided into 4 states which is Kedah,
Perak, Perlis and Pulau Pinang whereby each state has their own coastal
area for maritime activity. In this area, there are marine Aids to Navigation
such as Buoy, beacon and lighthouse. This aids to navigation which is very
important to guide maritime activities in their operation in sailing. By these
marine aids to navigation, navigator can avoid unwanted incidents and
ensure their safe navigation. However IMO implemented that each vessel
which have their voyage over 25 nautical miles must be equipped with
electrical navigational equipments such as Radar, GPS, AIS etc to avoid any
accidents for safe voyage and to determine their position. The vessel which
equipped with electrical navigational equipment do not rely on marine aids to
navigation while in open sea because AtoN can't be recognize exactly when
the vessel position exceeds than 25 miles from the AtoN where the visibility
range is reduced. However AtoN is very important to fishermen who has
operate in Zone B and above where they have no full navigational equipment
and AtoN which is also very important to vessels which experiences system
breakdowns. All merchants ship which enters into the port area relies on
AtoN especially buoy and beacon light to ensure their safety and their
position in the right way. Therefore MARDEPT plays an important role to
maintain availability functioning of the AtoN according to IALA
recommendation to ensure the safe operation for merchant ships and
fishermen.
