Background
Trackwell is the secure, cloud hosted interface used by the WCPFC Secretariat to visualize and manage VMS position reports across the Convention Area. All vessels operating on the high seas must report to the Commission VMS via a WCPFCapproved, activated Mobile Transceiver Unit (MTU)/Automatic Location Communicator (ALC) either directly or via the FFA VMS for vessels on the FFA Good Standing List. To access Trackwell, CCM users must obtain VMS View or Editor access from their Party Admin. Users can contact the Secretariat at vms@wcpfc.int if they experience any issues
For vessels reporting directly to the Commission, ensure the vessel Active in the RFV and that the approved MTU/ALC is recorded and active; vessels reporting through FFA will appear once verified (FFA Activated).
After signing in, authorized users can search for vessels, view recent tracks and timestamps, and apply filters/time windows to support monitoring and compliance tasks. If positions are missing or delayed, users should first check the VRST to see whether the vessel shows as STOP. They can then contact vms@wcpfc.int if the Secretariat has not already reached out regarding actions to re-establish routine reporting, and/or contact the service provider as relevant.
Step 1: Login to the Trackwell VMS with assigned username and password at https://vms.wcpfc.int/login.
Step 2: There are 5 tabs as shown in the image below; Monitor, Events, Map, Vessels and Reports. The Monitor tab lists the vessel entry/exit alerts and VMS related issues. The Events tab shows the vessel notification alerts e.g. if a vessel has stopped reporting or if there are vessel entry and exit or MTU issues. The Maps tab provides a live, visual display of vessels operating in the Convention Area during the past 32hrs. It also provides a historical display of vessel positions for any requested date range. The Vessels tab provides a search box where the vessel name can be entered, and the current position can be displayed if it is currently reporting to the WPCFC VMS. The Reports tab provides statistical reports of different types e.g. count of issues processed in a period by vessel type, manual positions statistics and number of vessels at sea, etc.
Step 3: Searching for vessels on Trackwell. The Vessels tab provides a search box where the vessel name can be entered, and the current position can be displayed if it is currently reporting to the WPCFC VMS. Make sure you provide the name exactly as it appears on the RFV. Click on the Vessels tab and enter the vessel name in search box (see below):
Step 4: The Vessel’s recent reported positions will appear in the area highlighted with the yellow arrows
Step 5: Displaying the vessel map.
a.) Navigate to the map tab and select live map:
b.) Select the Area selector and tick the WCPFC, 100nm zone, FFA_EEZ or any desired area or combination of areas (this will be impacted by the level of access you have as a CCM:
c.) Click on the side tab upper right to expand and view vessels reporting in the past 32 hours:
d.) Expanded view:
Step 6: Displaying and Viewing Vessel Historical Tracks/Data
a) Disable live view by sliding button to the left:
b) Enter vessel name in Search, and date range then click:
c) Click on the three dots and it will display the Show Trail button for you to click on to view the vessel’s track.
d) Click on any part of the vessel’s track to show details and you can also zoom in and zoom out of the vessel tracks:
e) Click anywhere as shown in red box in Image 1 and you will be able to view data details shown in Image 2:
Image1.
Image 2.
g) Click on the three dots in upper right corner where yellow arrow is shown and it will give you a drop-down menu options to export data:
