Redefining Domain Awareness for the New Normal
Nairobi, Kenya: It was almost 21 years ago when my wife came up with the bright idea of visiting Africa – specifically Kenya – for the purpose of taking a photo safari. At the time, I did not necessarily share her burning passion to see the great Wildebeest migration from a Land Rover while domiciled at night in a canvas tent. “We’re going to get hurt in the bush, get a blood transfusion and die of AIDS,” I told her flatly. This (very effective) stalling technique worked for about two years. Eventually – and she is relentless – I gave in and off we went in the late summer of 1991. Today, we are still alive to tell about the adventure; no worse for wear and tear.
As it turned out, we had a great time and subsequently returned to the Dark Continent in 1993 and 1995, visiting a myriad of countries during those two trips. Along the way, we have seen and experienced some incredible things there. There is truly no place like Africa. By 1999, however, we had two small children and despite having officially been bitten by the “Africa Bug,” we also knew that that there would be no more trips across the pond for a long time to come. Fast forward to the Fall of 2009: Only my wife could propose another trip to Kenya, this time with the kids along, in the midst of the worst economic downturn in many decades. Beyond my immediate doubts as to how we would pay for it if things at home got any worse (and they did), I naturally found myself pondering the safety aspects of such a trip, especially given the Somali piracy situation.
Blips on the RADAR
“Exactly which camps and lodges are we going to be visiting?” I asked. And, after collecting that information, I sat down with a good quality map of Kenya and its immediate coastal neighbor, Somalia. As a maritime journalist, I am reasonably well plugged into the region’s offshore piracy situation. Perhaps a little too close to it, I decided, especially after determining that we would likely never be less than a few hundred miles of Somalia, and even further from the coastal city of Mombasa. Still, and even as we boarded our departure flight in mid-June, my internal RADAR was fully energized and I felt a certain degree of apprehension about the trip. The U.S. Coast Guard calls this condition as a heightened sense of “Domain Awareness.” Whatever it was, my caution was justified.
Getting There is Half the Fun
Our initial plans called for the usual route through London, followed by a direct flight to Nairobi on British Airways. Under the general category of “the best laid plans of mice and men,” we eventually had to cancel those reservations (again at no small cost) when the Iceland volcano kept burping up large volumes of ash while at the same time, the BA flight attendants decided that the summer travel season would be an excellent time start some labor unrest. It clearly hasn’t been a good quarter for anything “British.” We ended up on Emirates Airlines from JFK to Dubai and then to Nairobi after a short layover at perhaps the cleanest and most opulent airport I have ever visited. These UAE people do not lack for money.
Emirates is an excellent airline. Along with a very professional in-flight crew, the jets were also easily the most modern and comfortable models that I have even been on. Flying “Coach” afforded great legroom, decent food and an in-seat entertainment system that featured dozens of movies, games, music, news, Internet and two fixed, external camera views. My 12-year old son did not complain even once during more than 18 hours of flight time. I amused myself by doing crossword puzzles and occasionally clicking into the camera that showed the terrain directly underneath the aircraft at all times. It was over Iraq that my domain awareness, already at a heightened level, rose to still another, higher plateau.
Midway through the Dubai-Nairobi leg, I casually clicked the downward camera view and found myself staring at the landscape painted below. Superimposed over the camera view, text pointed out cities like Baghdad and Mosul and the now famous Tigris River. I sat up a little and studied the screen intently for more than a few minutes before moving on to something else. I also found myself thankful that I was (safe?) at least 39,000 feet above those memorable landscapes and wondered how many others before me had looked at the same view from 5,000 feet through a bomb scope. Nevertheless, and by the time we had landed and disembarked at Nairobi, I had almost forgotten about it. In any event, something more real was about to take precedence.
Within twelve hours of checking into our hotel in the Karen district of Nairobi, the local politics got a little closer to home when someone lobbed three hand grenades into a crowded political rally in the downtown area. The blasts killed at least five and injured scores more in the Kenyan Capitol, with no clear indication of why or who might have done it. Speculation ranged from a Somali influence all the way to some sort of Islamic/Christian disagreement. Whatever it was, it was unsettling, especially remembering the 1998 East Africa U.S. embassy bombings.
Predictably, the incident also brought forth a barrage of E-mails from home, asking, “Are you anywhere near this?” I assured everyone via Blackberry (which now works nicely in Kenya) that we were fine and safely ensconced in a well-secured boutique hotel about 15 miles away. We didn’t tell the kids and immediately secured a driver for the day, instead of using taxis in and out of town. It was money well spent. Within a day’s time, we were hundreds of miles into the African bush, enjoying a spectacular holiday.
The New Reality in Kenya
I don’t want you to get the wrong idea: I could argue that I am as safe or safer on safari in Kenya as I might be strolling down the street in Chicago or New York. That’s not to say there aren’t problems in Kenya – there are. We noticed more than a few changes in this East African nation since our last visit in 1995. Among them, the proliferation of security services here was impressive. In the city, it was clear that the precautions were necessary. In the bush, a couple of Masai warriors were sufficient; standing watch over our tent at night against any predators that might find their way into camp. I also made a point of not attending any political rallies. Good tip if you are going.
The new number one industry in Kenya is, not surprisingly, tourism. You might say that because of number one, the number two industry seems to be providing security. Acutely aware of damaging their reputation as a top safari destination in Africa, Kenya has stepped up admirably to make sure it stays that way. That effort hasn’t prevented minor hiccups along the way and the combination of a sour economy and the Somali pirate situation has served to dampen the hospitality trades here, particularly along the coast where Mombasa is a popular beach destination. Our host couple at one lodge – avid sailors with a yacht based in Mombasa – advised us that offshore recreation in the areas immediately adjacent to Somali waters was to be undertaken only at your own risk. In fact, we made this trip at this time primarily because (a.) the children were finally old enough to appreciate it and (b.) the prices were sufficiently depressed. To be sure, it was the end of the off-season here, but the majority of the places we visited were also under-booked despite an early Wildebeest migration in the Mara.
Domain Awareness: A dangerous, but manageable world…
We returned from Kenya backtracking over the same route that we had arrived; over Somalia, the Horn of Africa and then through Iraq. I once again spent a fair bit of time peering through the airliner’s downward camera to see all of it. Having done it once before, I have to admit that I was a bit nervous to do it again. In retrospect, my initial fears about an African vacation back in 1991 now seemed a bit silly. That said, and having just completed a fourth trip to the continent – fifteen years down the road from the first three – my continued instinct to exercise caution was not.
I wouldn’t bet against a return trip for us to Africa, especially if my wife has anything to say about it. We’ve got our eye on Namibia and perhaps a return to Botswana, as well. She’ll plan and execute her usual meticulous trip plan, using lessons learned from previous efforts and digging up mountains of literature on her target destinations. I’m also betting that professional maritime planners everywhere could learn a lot from her. I know that I have.
It was the Coast Guard’s ADM James Loy who, more than a dozen years ago, first properly defined the concept of Domain Awareness as it relates to all things maritime. He told this writer, "We live in a dangerous world. Domain awareness is a critical part of mitigating these dangers." The former Coast Guard Commandant didn't coin the name "domain awareness," but he was, perhaps, ahead of his time in realizing what was to come next. In the time that has transpired since, I have taken his advice to heart. That sort of attitude transcends all lines of business. Certainly, it has a permanent place on the world’s collective waterfront. – MarPro.
Joseph Keefe is the lead commentator of MaritimeProfessional.com. He and his wife are already planning the next safari to Africa. He can be reached at jkeefe@maritimeprofessional.com. MaritimeProfessional is the largest business networking site devoted to the marine industry. Each day thousands of industry professionals around the world log on to network, connect, and communicate.