Finnish Coast Guard finds submarine report credible

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The Coast Guard units for Western Finland confirm that a foreign submarine may well have ventured into Finnish waters off the Åland Islands last week. The suspected submarine was seen from the bridge of the passenger ferry Roslagen, and the ship had to make a sharp turn to avoid a collision.
      Captain Ari Laaksonen, deputy commander of the Coast Guard of Western Finland, said that the reports indicate that a submarine is likely to have been moving in the area. The information is based on the observations made by the captain, and two other members of the crew of the Roslagen, who saw two masts of the suspected underwater craft above the surface.
      Laaksonen speaks only of one submarine in the area, and adds that the Coast Guard was not able to make a positive identification.
      The event is the first such sighting in many years in Finnish waters. Laaksonen adds that if the submarine had been on the surface with its flag unfurled, it would have had the right to pass through the area - assuming that no danger is caused.
     
The sighting was in Finnish territorial waters, which extend to the waters of Sweden. Finland also has a narrower internal territorial water zone, where foreign military vessels are not allowed. Warships are also banned from the demilitarised Åland Islands.
      Military vessels regardless of nationality have the right to pass through the area. Laaksonen says that Coast Guard vessels usually show up in such cases to identify ships in passage.
      On Thursday last week, the Roslagen was en route from Sweden to Åland when its radar detected an unknown object near the Gisslan lighthouse, more than seven kilometres inside Finnish waters.
      On the bridge, two separate masts were seen protruding about 1.5 metres above surface at a distance of about 700 metres from the ship. Both masts had radar antennas. The two vessels were seen to be on collision course, and at 5:03 p.m. the Roslagen made a sharp turn.
      The incident was reported to the Coast Guard, which arrived to inspect the situation without avail.
     
News about the incident was not made public until Tuesday. Laaksonen says that there was a break in communications among officials. It was unclear if it was the Coast Guard or the Navy that was supposed to make an official public statement on the incident.
      "We investigated the matter, as we always do whenever there is a report. From Good Friday onward we answered all who asked questions. On Tuesday evening we issued a press release, after the media began actively inquiring about the event", Laaksonen explains.
      Esa Saari, head of the Archipelago Sea inspection unit of the safety operations of the Finnish Maritime Administration, says that semi-submerged submarines that operate unannounced near passenger vessels pose a real safety hazard to shipping. "Fortunately the Roslagen managed to avert a collision."


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Passenger ferry reports sighting of two submarines near Åland (14.4.2004)

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