Are containers a real threat?

They can be. If you keep an eye on the marine news sites (like
marinelink.com and others) or even NOTAM's you'll see frequent reports
about ships loosing containers. I've heard more rumours of folks
hitting containers than actual reports though. We hit something about
mid-ocean on a trip from San Diego to Hilo back in 2000, damaging our
rudder. Not sure what it was, as we never saw it. Could have been a
container.

I doubt if your RADAR would help much with a floating container. Unless
it was empty and just hit the water, it'll probably be floating just
barely above (or below) the surface. Not a very good RADAR target.

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