New Zealand’s Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) has released its final report on the July 2023 Achilles Bulker incident, revealing that poor welding during maintenance led to the vessel losing its rudder and narrowly avoiding grounding near Tauranga. Investigators traced the failure to weak, porous welds on the rudder pintle assembly, which allowed the pintle to drop out, triggering catastrophic rudder failure. The TAIC is now urging shipyards, shipowners, operators, insurers, and classification societies to adopt robust quality assurance procedures for rudder installation and maintenance, and is working with global regulators to promote higher standards.

Select the link to read the full article.