Measures introduced to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have brought widespread disruption to normal crew change operations, with many seafarers prevented from disembarking or joining their vessels.

What challenges and restrictions do shipowners/operators face when arranging crew changes in Finland, and how have your local contacts helped to ease the situation?

Crew changes are classified as essential to society in Finland and there are no restrictions for crew changes. All vessels can conduct crew changes in Finnish ports as usual.

Further, since Russia closed all foreign air traffic, we have also arranged Russian crew repatriations from all over the world through the Finnish-Russian land border. We negotiated with the Finnish Border Guard that if we guarantee direct private transfers from Helsinki Airport to the Russian border and provide the means for the crew to cross the border, they would allow Russian crew to transit through Finland even during the lockdown. On the Russian side, with the help of GAC Russia, we have arranged transfers from the border to ensure the crew made it home safely.

How many crew change operations have you successfully executed since COVID-19 lockdowns started?

100+ crew members have joined vessels in Finland or have been repatriated with GAC Finland’s assistance.

Are there any specific crew change examples you wish to highlight?

Shortly after Russia closed its borders and airports to foreign traffic, many of our clients had Russian seafarers stuck at sea. GAC Finland and GAC Russia worked with the authorities in both countries and were able to arrange repatriation directly from Helsinki-Vantaa Airport to the crew members’ homes in Russia. GAC provided the complete package – visas, transit permissions, transfers and bicycles & necessary accessories to cross the border (as per Finnish and Russian law, the border cannot be crossed by foot). Our clients and their Russian crew have been very satisfied with this service – a mission that seemed impossible at first was made possible by GAC and their close cooperation with the relevant authorities.

There is great uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic; how long it will last, and what its impact will be. How are you managing this from a crew change and lay-ups perspective? What are your expectations for the coming months?

Seafarers are classified as key workers in Finland and crew changes are to be carried out as normally as possible. We will continue to arrange crew changes in tight cooperation with the Finnish authorities and our clients. Should any of our clients require to conduct crew changes, GAC Finland is always ready to provide support. Finland is a great option for crew changes, as there are no national restrictions on such operations.

For the latest updates about COVID-19 status/measures and the impact on shipping, including crew changes, in countries around the world, go to www.gac.com/coronavirus.