The Brisbane Times said the captain could face a fine of AUD 88,500 ($68,800) for sailing without a pilot into Hydrographer’s Passage.

The 154,000-dwt China Steel Developer (built 1998) had left Mackay on 1 January bound for Newcastle when it approached the restricted section, a court statement of facts said.

Captain Lu Chih-Ming told a local court that he made inquiries via radio of when a pilot would be boarding the China Steel Express Corp bulker.

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