November 2023 - one year of sailing

Skipper Wim Jan Boon has now sailed a full season on the RV Adriaen Coenen. And to great satisfaction. The ship is used for all kinds of support activities for the scientists. Exactly what it is meant for: to quickly transport people and equipment to various locations in the Wadden Sea.

Recently the ship has been used a on several occassions to transport press. They like to do interviews on the water, and the manoeuvrable RV Adriaen Coenen can easily meet the wishes of these journalists and camera crew.  Furthermore, the ship is also used by NIOZ technicians, for example, to test equipment in the water before they are used on the larger research vessels.

Hereby a small photo impression of the recent months:

October 20222 - the first months

The new support vessel RV Adriaen Coenen has been in operation for a few months now, and Skipper Wim Jan Boon is ready to share some of his initial experiences. “It took some getting used to at first, of course. You have to become familiar with the ‘user manual’; the vessel’s specific characteristics and where everything is located. All of the equipment and electronics also had to be set and adjusted. But I’m gradually becoming familiar with the vessel, and I’m very excited about it.”

Skipper Boon sails around 3 times per week, generally over the western Wadden Sea, bringing personnel and supplies from Texel to Griend, Richel or Harlingen. “The Adriaen Coenen is much quieter than the old Stern. That’s not just more pleasant for those on board, but also for the surroundings.”

The vessel is also used for tasks such as anchoring frames for measurement instruments. “Another big advantage of the Coenen is that it can easily remain stationary by means of station keeping. At first, I thought it would be difficult with the hydrojets. But it turns out they work just fine.”  “We’ll be picking up the Wadtoren soon. I’m curious how that will work out with this new vessel, but I have every confidence in it”, concludes Skipper Wim Jan Boon.