Now Ye're Talking - To A Merchant Navy Officer

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

Omackeral wrote: »

Weird question but is being at sea claustrophobic because you're trapped on a vessel or agoraphobic because you're literally a dot in the vast ocean? I know that's a bit of an oxymoron but can you see both sides?

Also, have you see All Is Lost starring Robert Redford (actually it just stars him). He's a man stranded in the South Indian Ocean, I think that's where it is, all by himself. It's a strange enough flick. You touched on the Captain Phillips movie. Did you enjoy it?

Ps- Look at me.... I am the Captain now.

I get what you're saying. No I don't get claustrophobic but you do get sick of each other. I go for a stroll around on deck early afternoon to clear my head. Yeah I guess you can feel a bit insignificant. I get this a bit at night actually. I swear you won't see the stars better than in the middle of the ocean on a clear night. The scale of the ocean around you and stars above, you can't help but feel tiny. I like this though. Especially if I'm worrying about some jobs to do onboard I just step out on the bridge wing and think to myself how insignificant that job is in the grand scheme of things.

I haven't seen that film, I must watch it sometime. Captain Philip's was okay. A bit american for me but like I said it was accurate enough. If it keeps up the pressure on governments to fight piracy it's all good with me.

Tabnabs

MN guys always have a wealth of stories, what's the scariest or most hilarious situation you got yourself into when ashore?

(Eg. being escorted back to the ship with your hands up and an AK47 in your back, smuggling spirits to Nordic dockworkers, stealing mementos for the officers bar, that kind of thing.)

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

ken76 wrote: »

Is there a woman in every port?

I really thought this question would come sooner. Before I went to sea I thought this was a bit of an urban legend. It's most defenitely not. Outside Europe and America the local brothel will be frequented by the crew. I think irish men and probably western European men have far more respect for the women in their lives than most other nationalities. I very often see the Filipinos buying a sim card off the local business man to call home to the wife and asking for directions to the brothel 30 minutes later. Have I ever employed the services of a hooker? Honestly no. I'm not religious but I think my Catholic upbringing has had a stronger effect on me than I thought. I just never felt comfortable with the idea, even when I was single. In Indonesia for example the hookers actually come onboard with immigration and the port officials. It's a big problem if you refuse them entry onboard. Literally cargo operations would not start and you'd undoubtedly be fined for some made up issue officials would find on the vessel.

oleras

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA wrote: »

We had one chief engineer who got sacked for getting hammered. We keep the alcohol and cigarettes locked up in what we call the bond store. The crew will ask the officer (or cadet unofficially) in charge of the store for their two beers. The chief exerting his authority convinced the cadet to give him a slab instead. Around midnight he call the cadet's cabin and asked for more. The cadet said no and the chief told him to go f**k himself. At 0300 we heard the chief over the p.a system saying he hates us and f**k the captain etc. We went to his cabin and found the chief langers with beer cans and an empty wine bottle or two all over his floor. He started swinging at people and we locked him in his cabin until the morning. Turns out after the cadet said no he had gone downstairs and kicked the bond store door in. He was sacked by the captain the next day after forty years with the company. That'd be the closest to a breakdown but I've certainly sailed with people who weren't all there.

On this, my dad, he passed away in '85 started in thr Royal Danish navy and when he finished up with them he went down the Merchant route as a Chief Engineer.

That story about the beer really brought me back ! he would stroll down every morning and sign out a 24pack, I am sure in the 70's it was a lot more relaxed and as Chief he would have avoided any heavy work if it did come up in the engine room !

He had some great stories, one in particular.

I dont know what line he was with at the time, Nor and Maersk i think were the main 2 but sailing down to Australia and there was serious issues with the Captain and the crew, the Captain ended up going missing, presumably overboard...The whole crew were replaced when they landed and they had to make there own way back.

My mother got to see a lot of the world through it also, the lines used to pay for her to fly out and meet the ships.

He certainly did not like the ratings on board, treated them like second class citizens, give them an inch he used to say ! I am sure that institutional racism doesn't go on anymore though...different times !

Thanks very much for taking the time to answer these, great reading.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

Tabnabs wrote: »

With the advent of laptops and ipads, is the porn locker still used or a thing of the past now?

What about your job security, is being a western European & highly paid officer a disadvantage still?

Yeah it's all digital these days. Most middle east countries and Russia ban porn onboard. You should delete it before entering port as they will check and confiscate your laptop if they find it.

Yeah it can be tricky to start off. Senior officer's are still prodominantly European. Cruise ships will always have jobs for western Europeans because they like white officers. The offshore industry also prefers Europeans. It is perfectly acceptable too employ two people onboard doing the same job and pay them differently depending on nationality and skin colour. It's wrong I know but that's the way it is. Most westerners starting out now are in the passenger industry.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Great thread...
When you complete your time on a ship are you pretty much off at that port which could be anywhere in the world or do they try to get you back to a port close to Ireland? Do you then have to finance your own way home or does the ship owner look after that?

You have the option to stay in the country but the company are legally obliged to repatriate you back home at the end of your contract at their expense. They will try to get you off in a port close to your home but usually a few European offices and Filipinos join and go home together so you'll never be close to home for everyone.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

Tabnabs wrote: »

MN guys always have a wealth of stories, what's the scariest or most hilarious situation you got yourself into when ashore?

(Eg. being escorted back to the ship with your hands up and an AK47 in your back, smuggling spirits to Nordic dockworkers, stealing mementos for the officers bar, that kind of thing.)

Haha I could go on forever but the one that sticks out in my mind happened a good few years back in Norway. We were in port at Christmas in this little town with no security in port. Over the holidays cargo operations stopped as the dockers were off. We all decided to go up the road on Christmas eve and go on the piss. I dont remember much of the night but the next morning the police came to ship. They asked to see the captain so I brought them up to his cabin and they asked him if some of the crew went ashore. He said yes but we were all well behaved. The police officer then asked him if he'd seen the Christmas tree in the village square. The captain said yes it's very nice. The police officer said I know it is were very fond of it, but now it's gone. We think your crew stole it. The captain started arguing saying no they didn't he was in town with the crew last night, we would never do that. The officer let him rattle on and when he'd finished he asked him to look out the window. Sitting up beside the mid ship crane onboard was the Christmas tree and a trail of needles in the snow along the dock leading back to the town square. We were ordered to put the tree back and made a significant donation to the town's community center. The office to this day have no idea what happened.

Long Gone

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA wrote: »

Haha I could go on forever but the one that sticks out in my mind happened a good few years back in Norway. We were in port at Christmas in this little town with no security in port. Over the holidays cargo operations stopped as the dockers were off. We all decided to go up the road on Christmas eve and go on the piss. I dont remember much of the night but the next morning the police came to ship. They asked to see the captain so I brought them up to his cabin and they asked him if some of the crew went ashore. He said yes but we were all well behaved. The police officer then asked him if he'd seen the Christmas tree in the village square. The captain said yes it's very nice. The police officer said I know it is were very fond of it, but now it's gone. We think your crew stole it. The captain started arguing saying no they didn't he was in town with the crew last night, we would never do that. The officer let him rattle on and when he'd finished he asked him to look out the window. Sitting up beside the mid ship crane onboard was the Christmas tree and a trail of needles in the snow along the dock leading back to the town square. We were ordered to put the tree back and made a significant donation to the town's community center. The office to this day have no idea what happened.

Maybe the local police had "planted" the evidence ? .

John_Rambo

Great thread.

Is the discipline regime quiet military? I know there's got to be a degree of military like respect for authority on board. Do the crew call you "sir" or yes "first officer" etc...? How does the likes of yourself get on with the engineers? They are have a good degree of education, do they hang out with you?

You're responsibilities are immense. The paper work and man-management is formidable. So... what exactly does the captain/skipper do?

Gloomtastic!

And to follow on from above question. Would you like to be Captain?

CardBordWindow

My dad was in the MN years ago. I remember him saying that there was a tradition of 'initiation' for sailors who crossed the equator for the first time. Heads would be shaved, half a beard shaved, eyebrows removed for example.

Does this still happen, or was this tradition left back in the 80s?


He also told a story of a guy on the boat who had a drug problem, and would sell all of his stuff before they entered port, so he'd have more money for drugs. Have you ever seen any issues with drug use onboard? Would it be tolerated?

Cathmandooo

Fascinating answers, thanks for doing this thread!

Does everyone have their own bedroom / cabin / quarters? Would they all be of similar size?

What do ye wear on a daily basis? Do all your clothes go through a dryer or do you have a nice clothes line on deck?

bjork

Do ye jump in to the sea for a swim every so often?

SEPT 23 1989

Have you ever been hit by a rogue wave?

TommyOM

Who is the most interesting character that you have met during your years at sea?

ken76

What happens if someone dies at sea but you are far from land ?

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

John_Rambo wrote: »

Great thread.

Is the discipline regime quiet military? I know there's got to be a degree of military like respect for authority on board. Do the crew call you "sir" or yes "first officer" etc...? How does the likes of yourself get on with the engineers? They are have a good degree of education, do they hang out with you?

You're responsibilities are immense. The paper work and man-management is formidable. So... what exactly does the captain/skipper do?

It is a bit. Officers and crew have separate mess rooms and smoking rooms which enforces a divide. The crew would call me sir or chief. I call my crew by name except the other senior officers I would say chief or captain. I sort of mix and match with my juniors by name or rank. It depends on the situation and how long you've been together. By the end of a contract it's very casual. We only wear uniform when we have a pilot or company official onboard. In port officers wear white boiler suits on duty and crew orange when on duty. At sea it's your own clothes. Where I work that would be shorts and a t shirt.

I get on grand with the engineers. There is a bit of us versus them onboard. They feel like they work harder and vis versa. It's harmless really. The engineering officers are just as educated as the deck Department. As to hanging out together not really. The crew hang out a good bit but the officers not so much.

Yeah I have a lot of responsibility and it may seem like the captain doesn't do a whole lot but he is ultimately responsible for everything. He is the the link between the ship and shore and everything goes through him.The captain spends most of his time answering emails from the office and the other two hundred emails that come in a day. Internet on a ship was a great thing for the crew but a disaster for the captain. In the old days we would send and receive about three telexes a day. Now with email, messages come to the ship in their hundreds at all times of the day. And everyone wants an answer immediately.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

Gloomtastic! wrote: »

And to follow on from above question. Would you like to be Captain?

Yes. The chief officer is a really demanding rank. So if I've got this far I might as well go all the way and get the title too! I'd like to one day have command of a vessel.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

CardBordWindow wrote: »

My dad was in the MN years ago. I remember him saying that there was a tradition of 'initiation' for sailors who crossed the equator for the first time. Heads would be shaved, half a beard shaved, eyebrows removed for example.

Does this still happen, or was this tradition left back in the 80s?



He also told a story of a guy on the boat who had a drug problem, and would sell all of his stuff before they entered port, so he'd have more money for drugs. Have you ever seen any issues with drug use onboard? Would it be tolerated?

Yeah that is still common. Crossing the line (the equator) is the big one. Usually it's a bbq with a bit of hazing. Depends on the crew really. If the new guy is a messer he'll lose his eyebrows. If he's quiet probably just a bag of flour over his head or something. normally the cadet's get the worst hazing because their not officers yet and the crew have a little go at them while they still can.

Drugs aren't a problem. We are frequently drug tested and it is an instant dismissal offence. You'd be a very foolish man to keep drugs onboard a vessel trading in lots of different countries. Even a small amount of weed counts as international drug trafficking. In many countries that will cost you your life.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

Cathmandooo wrote: »

Fascinating answers, thanks for doing this thread!

Does everyone have their own bedroom / cabin / quarters? Would they all be of similar size?

What do ye wear on a daily basis? Do all your clothes go through a dryer or do you have a nice clothes line on deck?

Yes all crew by law must have their own cabin. This isn't the case on passenger vessels but for cargo ships certainly. No the captain and chief engineers have the biggest cabins. Then the other senior officers, then junior officers etc. The higher the rank the bigger and nicer the cabin.

You can wear whatever you like at sea when indoors. If your on deck or in port it's boiler suits, hard hats, steel capped boots etc. During pilotage it's white shirt and black pants. Theres usually a drying room in the laundry room. There are dryers as well but I don't use them as they destroy my clothes.

Chloris

So you know, what was that German battleship doing in Cork harbour last week?

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

bjork wrote: »

Do ye jump in to the sea for a swim every so often?

Officially no. I have done it a few times at anchor on Sunday in South America. We'd put down the rope ladder and just jump off the side. One tim in Costa Rica we were swimming away fine until a crewmember onboard shouted shark. I spun round and saw a fin about ten meters away from me. I swam so fast to the ladder I would have given Michael Phelps a run for his money. Turns out it was only a dolphin and said crew member found himself doing some of the less desirable jobs for the next week.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

SEPT 23 1989 wrote: »

Have you ever been hit by a rogue wave?

No. I've never experienced a big wave just randomly on its own. You do hear of it but personally I've never experienced it.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

TommyOM wrote: »

Who is the most interesting character that you have met during your years at sea?

I've met plenty of great characters at sea. A lot I wouldn't want to sail with again either too. I had one captain who was so calm and collected. He had a great way of dealing with everyone and everything seemed so easy to him. He would be someone I would look up to and try to emulate.

TommyOM

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA wrote: »

I've met plenty of great characters at sea. A lot I wouldn't want to sail with again either too. I had one captain who was so calm and collected. He had a great way of dealing with everyone and everything seemed so easy to him. He would be someone I would look up to and try to emulate.

Tell us more about the ones you wouldn't sail with again

Thank you for responding.

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA

ken76 wrote: »

What happens if someone dies at sea but you are far from land ?

You used to bury them at sea. if you do so there's a whole protocol to follow as it's an extremely sensitive situation. These days it would be very unwise to bury the body at sea. The police in the next port would be very suspicious of a ship arriving with a death onboard and no body to examine. If it happened today you'd put him in the vegetable fridge and try and land him ashore In the next port. A lot of countries will not accept a body without a family member being present so it is tricky. The main thing is to document the death very carefully and respect the dead crewmember.On cruise ships they would have their own morgue as it's a common occurrence.

Orim

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA wrote: »

On cruise ships they would have their own morgue as it's a common occurrence.

I assume this is just down to the greater numbers on a cruise ship? Or are they secret death traps?

I remember reading, in a fictional story, about Navies and the Merchant Navy not getting on. Navy looking down on the Merchant Navy and Merchant Navy thinking the Navy are stuck up, kind of thing. Any truth in this or does everyone just get on with things.

the nikkei is rising

What happens in a mutiny situation? I assume there's a lot more crew on board than officers and with the natural divide I imagine things can become heated from time to time.

John_Rambo

I'm A Merchant Navy Officer AMA wrote: »

Yeah I have a lot of responsibility and it may seem like the captain doesn't do a whole lot but he is ultimately responsible for everything.

Amazing, can't believe the responsibilities on your shoulders. They obviously don't/can't release you from college half baked. The failure rate is probably pretty high... and then there's years of experience.

Has anyone ever asked you to "bring us back a parrot"? (Dublin thing) Does anyone have a pet on board? Ships cat, dog, parrot? Is it true there's nothing like sailing in to your home port?

Sorry, this is getting very cliched now.

And thanks for the new years harmony by the way. Always the highlight of our 12 midnight hearing you lot blast.

fred funk }{

What is the one item of food and drink you miss the most when at sea?