LUMUT: The State Fisheries Department is installing tracking devices on some 700 boats here as part of an Automatic Identification System (AIS).
The initiative is being carried out in stages on fishing boats for zone B which covers areas 5 to 12 nautical miles (22.2km) off the mainland.
A department spokesman said the device is being mounted on some 200 trawlers, starting with those off Pangkor island.
“The first phase of the installation exercise is expected to be completed in July.
“The usage of AIS will be made mandatory for fishermen for zone B as part of the requirement in renewing license. However, (the requirement) will only be regulated once the installation of the system is completed.
“With the system, boat owners will be more aware of their vessels’ whereabouts,” he said, adding that other states, including Kedah, Selangor and Terengganu are also in the midst of installing AIS on zone B fishing boats.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) district director Captain Wan Mat Wan Abdullah said vessels mounted with the device would be visible on radar within 30 nautical miles from their base.
“This will make enforcement, as well as search and rescue (SAR) missions, easier for the authorities,” he told the New Straits Times.
The instant a distress signal is sent by a vessel through AIS, the MMEA is able to track the boat’s location and speed, which could help in a SAR operation.
It could also determine if a boat has crossed international borders.
It was reported that the government will install the AIS on 2,630 zone B fishing vessels following a spate of cases of detention by foreign authorities for alleged encroachment.