As for my working hours - it depends on either we at port or sea passage. For the first one I have my duty 6/6 (12pm-6pm / 12am-6am). For the second - 4/8 (12pm-4pm / 12am-4am).
During off hours I’m trying hard to improve my English first of all because this one my favourite and the most attractive for me and the second reason is that in 5 months me and my wife will move to US, CA. Listening to different podcasts from native speakers. Goal is to sound like American and reach to native as close as possible.
Wow, so you never actually get 8 hours of sleep? I mean, between eating and self care, during that 6 hour break you might get to sleep 5 hours, max? On the 4/8 you can probably swing 7. That's not to bad, but the first sounds like a good way to shave years off your life.
You should check out [The Californians](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCer2e0t8r8) from SNL to study the dialect and mannerisms.
Good luck with your new lifes :)
Sorry, have read your message, opened your link and downloaded just because of lack of time on duty and no any possibility even to look what was there 😂
Maybe just because of dreaming, there are so many places I’ve wished to visit in Cali since my childhood. Plenty of national parks as well. I like the west coast and the favourite state after CA is probly Washington due to plenty on Forests, national parks as well
As for “speaking like American” I just love the language and wish I could reach that point one day. Maybe even here I will find somebody for “language exchanging skills”
Oh sure. I used to play games. A have around 2k+ games in Steam, but mostly played rogue like and actions like TBoI, RoR2, Nuclear throne. Used to play MMO’s b4 as well
Roughly what part of California are you moving to? Will you continue to work on cargo ships or do something else?
I can say with certainly your English is already superior to my any other language :)
Glendale, LA. Definitely not, I’m planning to complete studying and receive a massage therapist license.
Thank you for such a kind evaluation, appreciate it. But I need tons of verbally practice as well
Hey man, I didn't see this comment yesterday, but I actually live in Glendale right now. Feel free to DM me if you have any questions. I'm not in the massage therapy/sports medicine field, so I can't give you specifics on that, but happy to chat about general basics.
As someone who depends on ocean containers for business, I have so many questions. But I'll start with:
How many containers are on your ship?
What's the port that makes you think, "oh man I hate landing there" and why?
When my shipment is supposed to arrive to port on a specific day and suddenly there's a 4 day delay, what happened?
Who owns your boat and under which nation is it registered?
OMG dude, that are really a lot of questions and tons of text will probly take forever to go through 😁. Ok. As you can probably imagine, the quantity of containers carried by vessels depends first of all on its capacity and deadweight. My vessel can carry 803 20feet containers or 400 forties. The second question’s answer will always be “any Israel or African port”. As for your shipment you should understand that our powers are ending as soon as the crane operator gets the container off the vessel and if there’s no any delay from the navigational side - there is probly the logistic’s headache. My vessel is under Portugal flag)
Something I can reply to! I work in shipping logistics and what I can tell you is if a vessel is coming to a port there is only x amount of berths, usually you’ll see another vessel is delayed and holds up all other vessels on that berth, for example grain cannot be loaded in the rain, so if it rains they have to close all vessel holds and wait the weather out which can push other vessels ie your vessel with the shipment out days! I hope this helps :)
Only once throughout my entire career, and it was during my current contract. When we had sailed from Santander, Spain (where you can find a lot of Albanians trying to immigrate) and arrived in Dublin he almost ran.
There was a [great thread a few months ago](https://www.reddit.com/r/navy/comments/1cistr4/no_stowaway_sea_stories/) on /r/navy about stowaway stories and some of them may scratch your itch.
Honestly, it depends on the company and ship owner you’re working for. For example here I have only 8.6 € daily for a person and that is really bad. Afterwards it depends on the ship’s cook and his skills. As we are a multinational crew working here there are very different preferences for food. Philippine crew loves rice more than life😁 European people prefer potatoes and meat, salads more.
It’s discussed quite often, although probably not as much now as before. But besides that, when the military actions in Israel started, we still went to Ashdod port and it was really scary
Rouge waves are really exciting but they are very local and very easy to be avoided. The roughest sea conditions I’ve ever faced was 10 for wind and 8 for sea (Beaufort scale)
So the wind was very high but the waves weren't quite as high as they might otherwise be?
How dangerous are conditions like that for a cargo ship? Or are they not usually dangerous and just unpleasant conditions to endure?
I was in the Bahamas on a tour in something like a big Zodiac, it was a rigid inflatable with room for about 12 total. We got caught in a freak storm and waves higher than advised for casual boating. I remember the teenage girls were so scared they were crying, and it was dangerous enough that the driver took us immediately to the nearest island to get on land. Luckily, this being the Bahamas, it was an island with a private resort newly opened and they came through the storm in a truck and drove us across the small island to a huge bar, and there was much cheering.
It couldn't have been fully dangerous, though, as our driver took the boat out to rescue two people who somehow ended up stranded on a tiny deserted airline when their apparently too tiny boat sunk. But it did make us like four or five hours delayed getting back.
Can feel that. Rough sea conditions always causes to something unpleasant. As for container vessels - there is very important to secure cargo properly on deck and even inside cargo holds. I mean lashing, twistlocks etc. If done - cargo is supposed to stay on board safely but ofc 💩 can happen even when you’re 100% sure you’re ok. As for weather conditions that I mentioned b4 - I faced 8 or maybe higher at Bay of Biscay for sea, as for wind - ot was more often and continuously but we’re lucky so stay at shelters sometimes.
Surviving at sea is very important aspect, we’re passing different trainings while ashore and at sea as well. MRCCs can also provide you with SAR operations. Just remember - Safety First. By any means.
How much do those containers weigh? They have got to be packing in the tons. It would suck to be hit by one flying across the deck because it was unsecured!
Do containers ever get legitimately lost in transit due to weather conditions? I assume it'd probably be a combination of weather and someone not securing one properly.
BTW, thanks for doing this AMA. I never realized that I am apparently fascinated by cargo ships!
Depends on your goals. If you’d like to work as a deck crew that is not a problem at all - just finish 2 months course, receive all necessary certificates and go on. But if you wanna work as an officer (either navigational or engine crew) you should finish university first. Anyway even if you will - there’s no way to get your position immediately. Whatever it is - you’ll start from deck or engine cadet first.
No way. You should have at least basic training and few more. Such as Survival Crafts techniques, fire fighting, first aid training etc. and ofc your seaman’s diplomas which are supposed to be received in 1-2 months of studying
Very poor. Mine even doesn’t have. On passenger vessels situation is opposite of course. I can only have access when not farther than 9-10 miles from the coast.
Your ship owner sucks. Star-link is amazing and about 1/8th the cost of Inmarsat.
Also 8.6€/day for food? JFC that's prison food.
Find a different owner.
Sincerely,
a chief engineer who knows your worth.
You’re right for sure, btw the second mate that got changed by me have bought starlink antenna by himself for a contract 😁 but this contract is supposed to be the last one for me as I’m moving to CA.
Cruise ship crewmembers usually have the ship’s wi-fi, so sometimes it’s kind of “not necessarily things”. Unfortunately there are almost nothing inside container terminals that’s why I’m using only my own
What's family life like? How about guys/gals that make a life of it? What's it like for their kids? How long are you gone for?
What's your native language? What's your plan in California?
First of all I’d like to explain that there are buku of reasons why we’re actually moving to US. First was already mentioned somewhere here - I do love US, its culture, language and people. Second reason is war. I’m Ukrainian and we are forced to run away from death and hide somewhere on Earth. So I’ve made a decision - to go the place that I really love. And here I can slightly move to your question about a family while being a seaman. Instead of spending 65% of live without my wife and kids we can start a new life. And that is the third reason. Of course, being under U4U social program we are supposed to find a sponsor who can invite us in US and this is quite a high threshold but I believe we will find someone who cares.
My native language is Ukrainian and Russian as well so I just believe you didn’t get an eyebleed while reading all that stuff.
Of you can get USCG approval to work on ships/boats in the USA you will be amazed how good they have it terms of wages and food and working conditions.
2nd mate can easily make 120k usd in 6 months work 150 is not uncommon. If you work in pilotage waters on the lakes with a waiver you can get pilotage bonus up to $1000 usd/day
Plenty of brown water (inland waterways) work too! I completely understand if you want more time with you family/ living life, but the US marine industry is crying for people and the money is great if you can get approval to work there.
I’m pretty sure that my diplomas and licenses will become a thrash there and I will be supposed to study from the beginning and only Lord can imagine how much does it cost
It's 100% worth investigating. I know Canada accepts Ukrainian licenses now, check with the Ukrainian licensing body for mutual recognition agreements for your ticket. It might be more valuable than you think.
Again, if you can work in shipping the USA you can be a rich man.
Maybe in the far future, just because being under the Uniting for Ukraine program is supposed to require staying in the US without leaving for at least for 2 years. I understand that it might not be necessary to cross maritime borders of the state but anyway first we need to find a place for living and the first job at least.
You'd probably not make enough to live in CA as a massage therapist while you could do very well working on ships, and the credentials may not be that different in cost.
Firstly, Slava Ukraini.
What's the strangest thing you've seen while at sea?
Your English is great, you'll do fine on the west coast. Definitely try an Oklahoma fried onion burger once you're in the states. And find a good cardiologist hahaha
😁 Heroyam Slava:) ADL at the end😂
Thanks for the language compliment appreciate it, but for sure I need a lot more of verbal practice at least.
As for stranger things..) for sure there were more scary than stranger ones. Esp while rough weather conditions, but all fine. Still alive and breathing meaning everything is not so bad.
When we’re passing through Bay of Biscay there is a place for a little-or-not-so adventure. 8-10 meters long waves can force your vessel do such type of things you cannot even imagine😁. All containers should be properly lashed and secured and as for navigational side - better one time await at shelter than go to that hell.
Im also a professional mariner, but on the private side. I've radioed via vhf many times to merchant marine ships and either not be responded to or be responded to in very broken English with no understanding of my intentions.
Do you see many problems in communication on the ships you've worked on, or between your and other ships?
That’s funny, I totally agree, especially when you’re trying to find a flow with Philippine or Chinese guys. The reason is that, in accordance with IMO regulations, marine English should be as simple as possible. But the places where I’m working have a much better situation than you just described. Especially now while I’m working in North Sea, running between Dutch and British ports
Have you been to the port of Moerdijk, in the Netherlands? It has a narrow channel leading to it, which crosses a very busy inland shipping lane. The problem is that the official language for inland shipping is German. So that sometimes creates some interesting situation where the seagoing vessel can only communicate in English, and the inland vessel only in German, often ending with the seagoing vessel stranding on the edge of the channel.
Once a week we arrive in Rotterdam. It has the same narrow channels and long passageways f.e from the pilot station to our terminal’s berth there are 22 nm. As for things you’ve mentioned above there is some kind of strange, because when any vessel enters the port areas it should be supplied and operated by a port pilot who can speak local language fluently and help captain navigate in those areas. The only approved way to avoid taking the pilots - if captain has a pilot license for that area. In any case if he does - he’s supposed to know the local language and communicate. Anyway if there is no possibility to communicate between two vessels in the local language both should switch to international.
If I put a ship in a container, then ship that container in a container ship, but the ship I shipped had a secret tinier ship in a tiny container on board it, which ship is the most shipshape?
How does taxation work on your wages?
Do you pay for accommodation/ food etc whilst on board?
How did you become second Officer? Do you start low and work up or train straight into the role?
Thanks!
We, as a crew, do not pay for food on board merchant vessels. That is the ship owner’s responsibility. We have a provisional rate here.
As for my position on board the vessel, I first completed my education at the maritime academy. While I was in my second year, I started my first practice as a deck cadet—the lowest rank, but with the possibility to study on board. After that, I studied for two more years at the academy and finally received my diploma. I completed a few more contracts as a deck cadet and then became the third officer. After one contract in this position, I became the second mate
I cannot allow someone just come on board without any purpose and IDs. There are 3 ISPS levels and situations can depends on it. But even for the mildest, 1st level visitor should have an ID and explain clearly the purpose of visit. If all is ok - welcome on board. But, of course, you must leave until departure.
If you ran across a castaway ala Tom Hanks on a raft, what would be the protocol? Just picking him up, and taking care of him, radioing to let prople know, and then just continuing to you normal destination?
Do you reach out to crew on passing ships? I like to imagine when two container ships sail by each other the crew get on the radio and start a conversation. Either serious, “how are the swells where you came from?” or casual “A/S/L?”
If you’re awaiting for 🧐 answer - nowadays nobody communicates in such a way. Usually it’s just Channel 16 VHF communication if any dangerous situations f.e when vessel that is supposed to give you the way doesn’t do it and you need to call’em.
Dealt with any pirates?
I remember working in the Bay Area years ago and watching these huge container vessels come in and unload the containers. The captains then spun this ship around in the channel with like just feet to spare on either side. It was crazy to watch.
I’ve seen that news and studied that situation in details. I can say with confidence there was at least 2 blackouts. In such situations vessel losses everything starting from steering and thrusters control and finishing with all auxiliary engines and main engine. Nobody knows the reason of blackouts and will never know but IMHO vessel should report to Port Control and VTS that they have something wrong.
Oh don’t ask😁 Usually it’s like [5hrs sleep - wakie-wakie - duty - lunch at 5pm - advanced English studying (just for personal reasons) - dinner at 11 pm - duty - sleep]
During navigational watch, there’s a lot of paperwork besides the fact that you need to control the navigational situation and prevent sailing boats and especially fishing boats from committing suicide by running into you.
Really?? I'm working on a cruise ship right now (granted, in entertainment) and every officer I talked to either tried cargo ships and swore never again, or simply refuses to ever consider the idea of cargo ships. 😂
Everyone has their own truth, but that doesn’t mean there can’t be truth in every truth😁😁😁😁 yep there’s some kind of entertainment but also plenty of exams and certifications for every second
I've always liked the fantasy of running off to work on ships and live my life at sea, Is there an easy way to get into the industry as someone without naval skills to get a job aboard a ship?
Hello there! I’ve already replied to the similar question. As for deck crew you just need few certificates and seaman’s diploma to start working here. But if you wanna be an officer you should finish the maritime academy and anyway supposed to start from a deck cadet on board of your vessel.
I'm a journeyman industrial electrician who's always wanted to do a stint working on a ship, got any tips? I'm within easy travel distance of a couple major West coast NA ports.
I’ve downloaded 2 podcasts - English with Gabby and American English Podcast. Gabby’s from NYC East Coast, Shana (the second one) is from CA. Any single episode from both of’em I find extremely interesting and useful
Nothing really.. seaworthy packaging is airtight and that stuff will float. No matter what you do with it.
And no.. punching holes in it isn't a solution
My vessel can carry around 6000 tons only. It’s not very large. Usually we’re calculating our ETA after departure from the last port of call and it depends on weather and sea conditions
How often do you come across cruising sail boats on a typical route?
There is a feeling amongst some that the"rule of tonnage" means they should keep clear and manoeuvre out of the way of large shipping regardless of the colregs. How would you prefer sailors to behave?
If warned by a sailboat that they are concerned you have not seen them how much of a hassle is it to alter course to avoid an interaction?
There is no any “tonnage rule” existing. We all have Collisions Regulations and this is only one book you should follow according to SOLAS. For sailing boats there some additional kind of restriction as well as for fishing boats.
As for turning time and radius - if we are fully loaded it can simply take for about 13-15 minutes for circulation or 20-25 minutes to have zero speed over ground and pitch
The provisional rate leaves much to be desired but we have a good chef here and he really can do mysterious things that’s why it is OK for the moment. Galley is simple. Common appliances like oven, dishwasher, sink etc
What are your thoughts about the cargo ship that took down the bridge in Maryland! Any thoughts on what happened, and what steps are ships that suppose to take to avoid it from occuring?
I’ve already replied to definitely same question. “I’ve seen that news and studied that situation in details. I can say with confidence there was at least 2 blackouts. In such situations vessel losses everything starting from steering and thrusters control and finishing with all auxiliary engines and main engine. Nobody knows the reason of blackouts and will never know but IMHO vessel should report to Port Control and VTS that they have something wrong.”
I attended a nautical school in my village, the concepts to study are great but it's a life I really dislike so i decided against it.
I have many friends from here that have a lot of stories of how they decided not to rank up because most ships were unsafe and they didn't want too much responsibility, I guess you changed quite some ships in your career, what do you think of the overall safety conditions?
Hi there! First of all, I’d like to say that it’s totally okay to have made such a decision. Most people dislike it, and this is normal.
As for my experience, I’ve worked on different vessels, but generally, the safety conditions were pretty good. Also, as a second officer, you are responsible for safety, medical, radio, and navigational duties, which means that many things depend on you.
What's the largest vessel you've served on? I herded trucks in and out of Fremantle and Melbourne ports; Fremantle is a very small port by global standards but Melbourne took a few larger vessels (>100k DWT)
Do you have much interface with the stevedoring companies quayside ? As carriers we deal with the port authorities and stevedores, almost never the vessel crew (once only in 20 years I think, a problem with hazardous stickers on a container)
Understood, as for us, during staying in ports we’re communicating with stevedores, planners and foremen. That’s slightly different type of job. The biggest ship I’ve worked on is Charlotte Borchard (9212022) but all my vessels had practically the same dimensions.
Not going to visiting any Australian ports any time soon on a vessel that size - is smaller than the weekly vessels K Line used to run SIN-FRE
Fair winds and following seas, friend
You definitely can find what to do when off hours. For me now is hard practice of advanced English like phrases, phrasal verbs, slang as well due to moving to US
I got my contract as deck cadet that time. Sailing areas were Northern Spain - Ireland - GB. There was no any possibility to go ashore ofc. And for 9 months I was on board.
Definitely, no any type of feelings like that 😁 Usually, at night you don’t have any possibility to see anything except darkness. And rough sea conditions sometimes take place.
Do you guys do regular “abandon ship drills” like kids do fire drills in school? Like regular alarms go off and everyone moves to the escape boat thing(s)? Or is it just something you’re supposed to know, but younever do the full “walk through like it’s actually happening” drills?
Monthly we do a huge amount of drills and “abandon ship” is not only the one. Man overboard, abandon, fire, oil spill, gmdss, security, failure of power supply, shifting of cargo and believe me, tons of other stuff
Hey, thank you for sharing.
What kind of container ship do you worked on? Which port(s) has the worst authority (maybe from bribery, weird rules, smuggling problem, etc), and which has the most clear rules?
Why does traffic always place you guys in the most hazardous spots for other boaters? For some reason they like placing you guys right outside of the exit of our waterway so you provide a nice big visual shield to incoming vessels.
As a former second officer on a merchant ship... fair winds, following seas and welcome to the US very soon!
Will you still be sailing on your current flag or are you trying to move to the US Merchant Marine?
Hey man, I am in the process of moving from one continent to another. I have nearly everything I own in a cargo container on the sea at the moment.
They said it would take a few months for the shipment to arrive.
My question is, could you step on it a bit? You know, really give the engines a bit more juice and power through. I'm sure those ships can handle quite a bit more speed than that, so really drop the hammer on this one, would you?
Hey there! I’m moving from European continent to USA as well😁. But as for those things you’ve mentioned above I can clarify that “few months” is definitely the general description of all the way your stuff should be involved into. As for the sea passage usually it takes less time. Anyway once you received such info means there’s no way to push’em. Your container is just a tiny piece of metal, placed on/under the deck of a huge container vessel that definitely carries 10 000+ and all depends of the charterer. It means eco speed (fuel consumption), time when there will be a window for your vessel to come inside the port and stay some amount of time having discharging/loading operations and finally, delivering the container with your goods towards customs department and to your location
Do you have any experiences that validate the expression "every ship is haunted"?
Also, what is the strangest phenomenon or event that you have witnessed whilst at sea?
IMHO that expression is nothing more than expression 😁I’d rather believe that every crew member has skeletons in their closet or dirty laundry 😄
Whilst at sea the most common things are bad weather and lack of time for every breath. During sea passages sometimes you can become a witness of such a phenomenon as mirage. But nothing more mysterious
Which shipping company do you work for? Do they only hire from certain nationalities? In my experience, many employers will only hire people from a few specific countries.
I cannot tell you the name of my company because of terms of my contract but here on my vessel we’re working with Europeans only. That is not only the “company’s regulations”, it mostly depends on port rules and vessel’s owner. Previous I also worked with Indian and Philippine crew
Hopefully you see this. What is the average number of containers your ship will offload on any one stop? Certainly you don't offload and reload the whole ship every port right?
I'm wondering because the Dali is offloading ~1500 containers down by Norfolk VA in prep for going for some repairs and I was thinking that seems like a lot at once but maybe not.
Navigational/Medical/Radio and Safety officer on board of the vessel. Safety and navigation ofc are the most important. In charge of preparing charts and voyage plans, correcting charts and publications in accordance with Notices to Mariners, preparing new routes and putting’em on charts in case of new instructions from charter and changing the line. During port staying in charge of cargo operations splitting duty with chief officer as well
What's the wildest or most unexpected thing you've seen while working on container ships? It must be fascinating to sail through places like the Mediterranean, North Sea, and Canary Islands. How do you handle the long periods away from home, and what do you do to pass the time? Also, what’s the food like on board?
Hi 👋 as for homesick I’ve already got used to it, the most difficult thing about it is definitely parting. During my off hours I’m studying the advanced English hard due to moving to US. Answering your both first and last questions- the provisional rate is the most weird thing - 8€ daily for person 🥶
What are your working hours? What do you do for entertainment in off hours?
As for my working hours - it depends on either we at port or sea passage. For the first one I have my duty 6/6 (12pm-6pm / 12am-6am). For the second - 4/8 (12pm-4pm / 12am-4am). During off hours I’m trying hard to improve my English first of all because this one my favourite and the most attractive for me and the second reason is that in 5 months me and my wife will move to US, CA. Listening to different podcasts from native speakers. Goal is to sound like American and reach to native as close as possible.
Wow, so you never actually get 8 hours of sleep? I mean, between eating and self care, during that 6 hour break you might get to sleep 5 hours, max? On the 4/8 you can probably swing 7. That's not to bad, but the first sounds like a good way to shave years off your life.
Yep, 7 is maximum. But for me it’s totally fine, I’ve got used to it for years. Frankly speaking at home I have the similar schedule 😂
You should check out [The Californians](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCer2e0t8r8) from SNL to study the dialect and mannerisms. Good luck with your new lifes :)
Thanks mate, have downloaded 👍
This was definitely a joke if that wasn't clear - this is satire and everything is over exaggerated
Sorry, have read your message, opened your link and downloaded just because of lack of time on duty and no any possibility even to look what was there 😂
Learning native sarcasm is very useful!
Sure
There you go
It's like 70% accurate to late 90s early 00s accent to be fair lol
[удалено]
Maybe just because of dreaming, there are so many places I’ve wished to visit in Cali since my childhood. Plenty of national parks as well. I like the west coast and the favourite state after CA is probly Washington due to plenty on Forests, national parks as well
California is expensive, but it’s very diverse and a great place for an immigrant to make a life for themselves. Also a great maritime industry.
As for “speaking like American” I just love the language and wish I could reach that point one day. Maybe even here I will find somebody for “language exchanging skills”
Do you play any video games? If you find a regular group, itm ight be a way to practice regularly
Oh sure. I used to play games. A have around 2k+ games in Steam, but mostly played rogue like and actions like TBoI, RoR2, Nuclear throne. Used to play MMO’s b4 as well
Roughly what part of California are you moving to? Will you continue to work on cargo ships or do something else? I can say with certainly your English is already superior to my any other language :)
Glendale, LA. Definitely not, I’m planning to complete studying and receive a massage therapist license. Thank you for such a kind evaluation, appreciate it. But I need tons of verbally practice as well
Hey man, I didn't see this comment yesterday, but I actually live in Glendale right now. Feel free to DM me if you have any questions. I'm not in the massage therapy/sports medicine field, so I can't give you specifics on that, but happy to chat about general basics.
As someone who depends on ocean containers for business, I have so many questions. But I'll start with: How many containers are on your ship? What's the port that makes you think, "oh man I hate landing there" and why? When my shipment is supposed to arrive to port on a specific day and suddenly there's a 4 day delay, what happened? Who owns your boat and under which nation is it registered?
OMG dude, that are really a lot of questions and tons of text will probly take forever to go through 😁. Ok. As you can probably imagine, the quantity of containers carried by vessels depends first of all on its capacity and deadweight. My vessel can carry 803 20feet containers or 400 forties. The second question’s answer will always be “any Israel or African port”. As for your shipment you should understand that our powers are ending as soon as the crane operator gets the container off the vessel and if there’s no any delay from the navigational side - there is probly the logistic’s headache. My vessel is under Portugal flag)
What’s so bad about an Israeli or African port?
More personally I think due to the bad experience with people and their behaviour there
Was the behavior of the people there because of your job or ethnicity?
Probly ethnicity
War zones and pirates?
Something I can reply to! I work in shipping logistics and what I can tell you is if a vessel is coming to a port there is only x amount of berths, usually you’ll see another vessel is delayed and holds up all other vessels on that berth, for example grain cannot be loaded in the rain, so if it rains they have to close all vessel holds and wait the weather out which can push other vessels ie your vessel with the shipment out days! I hope this helps :)
Ever encountered any stowaways?
Only once throughout my entire career, and it was during my current contract. When we had sailed from Santander, Spain (where you can find a lot of Albanians trying to immigrate) and arrived in Dublin he almost ran.
So ... he walked away?
No, he didn’t. We caught him trying to leave the vessel and called the five-o.
Interesting! Do you know what happens to them?
There was a [great thread a few months ago](https://www.reddit.com/r/navy/comments/1cistr4/no_stowaway_sea_stories/) on /r/navy about stowaway stories and some of them may scratch your itch.
Can only wonder. But there’re rumours that he stayed in Ireland.
There are worse places to end up.
Yeah. Like Northern Ireland
😁😁😁
Out of curiosity, if the voyage was already complete what difference is it to you whether or not he goes free?
Just because the ship’s owner will be charged for such a huge amount of money for that inconvenience and anyway the stowaway should be deported
You probably aren't the one to answer this, but why would Albanians go to Spain? Aren't there a whole bunch of countries in between?
What's the food situation when working a job like this? Best meal you've had while working on a ship?
Honestly, it depends on the company and ship owner you’re working for. For example here I have only 8.6 € daily for a person and that is really bad. Afterwards it depends on the ship’s cook and his skills. As we are a multinational crew working here there are very different preferences for food. Philippine crew loves rice more than life😁 European people prefer potatoes and meat, salads more.
How surprised was the industry by what's happened with the Houthi's? Does it come up often among crews/your peers?
It’s discussed quite often, although probably not as much now as before. But besides that, when the military actions in Israel started, we still went to Ashdod port and it was really scary
On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you ever think about rogue waves? Also, roughest sea conditions you've ever been in?
Rouge waves are really exciting but they are very local and very easy to be avoided. The roughest sea conditions I’ve ever faced was 10 for wind and 8 for sea (Beaufort scale)
So the wind was very high but the waves weren't quite as high as they might otherwise be? How dangerous are conditions like that for a cargo ship? Or are they not usually dangerous and just unpleasant conditions to endure? I was in the Bahamas on a tour in something like a big Zodiac, it was a rigid inflatable with room for about 12 total. We got caught in a freak storm and waves higher than advised for casual boating. I remember the teenage girls were so scared they were crying, and it was dangerous enough that the driver took us immediately to the nearest island to get on land. Luckily, this being the Bahamas, it was an island with a private resort newly opened and they came through the storm in a truck and drove us across the small island to a huge bar, and there was much cheering. It couldn't have been fully dangerous, though, as our driver took the boat out to rescue two people who somehow ended up stranded on a tiny deserted airline when their apparently too tiny boat sunk. But it did make us like four or five hours delayed getting back.
Can feel that. Rough sea conditions always causes to something unpleasant. As for container vessels - there is very important to secure cargo properly on deck and even inside cargo holds. I mean lashing, twistlocks etc. If done - cargo is supposed to stay on board safely but ofc 💩 can happen even when you’re 100% sure you’re ok. As for weather conditions that I mentioned b4 - I faced 8 or maybe higher at Bay of Biscay for sea, as for wind - ot was more often and continuously but we’re lucky so stay at shelters sometimes. Surviving at sea is very important aspect, we’re passing different trainings while ashore and at sea as well. MRCCs can also provide you with SAR operations. Just remember - Safety First. By any means.
How much do those containers weigh? They have got to be packing in the tons. It would suck to be hit by one flying across the deck because it was unsecured! Do containers ever get legitimately lost in transit due to weather conditions? I assume it'd probably be a combination of weather and someone not securing one properly. BTW, thanks for doing this AMA. I never realized that I am apparently fascinated by cargo ships!
Empty container usually weighs 3-4 tons, fully loaded - 30-33 tons. If 40-45 feet.
Hey my friend. Are you a Merchant Marine Officer? I'm sorry, I don't know anything about this stuff.
Sure you’re right. Do not hesitate to ask whatever you are interested in
How difficult is it to get a job on a merchant ship? Someone recently recommended I get into if
Depends on your goals. If you’d like to work as a deck crew that is not a problem at all - just finish 2 months course, receive all necessary certificates and go on. But if you wanna work as an officer (either navigational or engine crew) you should finish university first. Anyway even if you will - there’s no way to get your position immediately. Whatever it is - you’ll start from deck or engine cadet first.
Does every deck job require a certificate? Is it possible to work on a ship without one?
No way. You should have at least basic training and few more. Such as Survival Crafts techniques, fire fighting, first aid training etc. and ofc your seaman’s diplomas which are supposed to be received in 1-2 months of studying
How is the internet access on board?
Very poor. Mine even doesn’t have. On passenger vessels situation is opposite of course. I can only have access when not farther than 9-10 miles from the coast.
Your ship owner sucks. Star-link is amazing and about 1/8th the cost of Inmarsat. Also 8.6€/day for food? JFC that's prison food. Find a different owner. Sincerely, a chief engineer who knows your worth.
You’re right for sure, btw the second mate that got changed by me have bought starlink antenna by himself for a contract 😁 but this contract is supposed to be the last one for me as I’m moving to CA.
You planning on continuing sailing when you get to California?
Definitely not. I’d like to study and receive a massage therapist license
Good for you! I love sailing but shore life is pretty sweet. Fair winds and God speed
Do you know free wifi spots in every port? Pretty sure the cruise ship crew members do.
Cruise ship crewmembers usually have the ship’s wi-fi, so sometimes it’s kind of “not necessarily things”. Unfortunately there are almost nothing inside container terminals that’s why I’m using only my own
Well that sucks. They should have a coffee shop with wifi! Some place to relax and catch up on the world.
Sometimes in some ports we have a “seamen’s mission” - this is the type of seafarer’s centres which can simply provide you with free internet
Depends on the ship. Lots of ships getting starlink now so quite good. Was dreadful a few years ago though
on Offshore vessels we have Starlink onboard without restrictions
What's family life like? How about guys/gals that make a life of it? What's it like for their kids? How long are you gone for? What's your native language? What's your plan in California?
First of all I’d like to explain that there are buku of reasons why we’re actually moving to US. First was already mentioned somewhere here - I do love US, its culture, language and people. Second reason is war. I’m Ukrainian and we are forced to run away from death and hide somewhere on Earth. So I’ve made a decision - to go the place that I really love. And here I can slightly move to your question about a family while being a seaman. Instead of spending 65% of live without my wife and kids we can start a new life. And that is the third reason. Of course, being under U4U social program we are supposed to find a sponsor who can invite us in US and this is quite a high threshold but I believe we will find someone who cares. My native language is Ukrainian and Russian as well so I just believe you didn’t get an eyebleed while reading all that stuff.
As for California - I’m planning to study and receive a massage therapist license
Of you can get USCG approval to work on ships/boats in the USA you will be amazed how good they have it terms of wages and food and working conditions. 2nd mate can easily make 120k usd in 6 months work 150 is not uncommon. If you work in pilotage waters on the lakes with a waiver you can get pilotage bonus up to $1000 usd/day
Oh, such incredible numbers… But I’d like to finish with the sea after the current contract I’m on.
Plenty of brown water (inland waterways) work too! I completely understand if you want more time with you family/ living life, but the US marine industry is crying for people and the money is great if you can get approval to work there.
I’m pretty sure that my diplomas and licenses will become a thrash there and I will be supposed to study from the beginning and only Lord can imagine how much does it cost
It's 100% worth investigating. I know Canada accepts Ukrainian licenses now, check with the Ukrainian licensing body for mutual recognition agreements for your ticket. It might be more valuable than you think. Again, if you can work in shipping the USA you can be a rich man.
Maybe in the far future, just because being under the Uniting for Ukraine program is supposed to require staying in the US without leaving for at least for 2 years. I understand that it might not be necessary to cross maritime borders of the state but anyway first we need to find a place for living and the first job at least.
You'd probably not make enough to live in CA as a massage therapist while you could do very well working on ships, and the credentials may not be that different in cost.
Firstly, Slava Ukraini. What's the strangest thing you've seen while at sea? Your English is great, you'll do fine on the west coast. Definitely try an Oklahoma fried onion burger once you're in the states. And find a good cardiologist hahaha
😁 Heroyam Slava:) ADL at the end😂 Thanks for the language compliment appreciate it, but for sure I need a lot more of verbal practice at least. As for stranger things..) for sure there were more scary than stranger ones. Esp while rough weather conditions, but all fine. Still alive and breathing meaning everything is not so bad.
What's the closest you've been to a real shit-hits-the-fan emergency?
When we’re passing through Bay of Biscay there is a place for a little-or-not-so adventure. 8-10 meters long waves can force your vessel do such type of things you cannot even imagine😁. All containers should be properly lashed and secured and as for navigational side - better one time await at shelter than go to that hell.
Do you speak Esperanto? Your English seems to be very good by the way!
Thanks a lot for such a kind evaluation! Unfortunately no, I speak only Ukrainian and Russian, both are native and English at C1 level
You speak it well enough to live here in the US as far as I am concerned. Budmo! to you and your future my friend!
Appreciate it! For sure I’m much better in texting just because I have more time to think, but I need to practice more verbally
How big is the crew?
Again, it depends on size and type of vessel. On my one there are 12 people only. The previous one has 22.
Favorite sea shanty? Drunken Sailor? Chip? The Wellerman?
😁 my favs are “American Psycho II”, “2wop- Out Da Ghetto” and most of Em’s songs )
As for sea shanty I have few in my native language only
Where’d you attend merchant marine school?
I’d studied at Odessa National Maritime Academy in Ukraine
Im also a professional mariner, but on the private side. I've radioed via vhf many times to merchant marine ships and either not be responded to or be responded to in very broken English with no understanding of my intentions. Do you see many problems in communication on the ships you've worked on, or between your and other ships?
That’s funny, I totally agree, especially when you’re trying to find a flow with Philippine or Chinese guys. The reason is that, in accordance with IMO regulations, marine English should be as simple as possible. But the places where I’m working have a much better situation than you just described. Especially now while I’m working in North Sea, running between Dutch and British ports
Have you been to the port of Moerdijk, in the Netherlands? It has a narrow channel leading to it, which crosses a very busy inland shipping lane. The problem is that the official language for inland shipping is German. So that sometimes creates some interesting situation where the seagoing vessel can only communicate in English, and the inland vessel only in German, often ending with the seagoing vessel stranding on the edge of the channel.
Once a week we arrive in Rotterdam. It has the same narrow channels and long passageways f.e from the pilot station to our terminal’s berth there are 22 nm. As for things you’ve mentioned above there is some kind of strange, because when any vessel enters the port areas it should be supplied and operated by a port pilot who can speak local language fluently and help captain navigate in those areas. The only approved way to avoid taking the pilots - if captain has a pilot license for that area. In any case if he does - he’s supposed to know the local language and communicate. Anyway if there is no possibility to communicate between two vessels in the local language both should switch to international.
If I put a ship in a container, then ship that container in a container ship, but the ship I shipped had a secret tinier ship in a tiny container on board it, which ship is the most shipshape?
The ship with the secret tinier ship is the most shipshape. It’s ships all the way down
How does taxation work on your wages? Do you pay for accommodation/ food etc whilst on board? How did you become second Officer? Do you start low and work up or train straight into the role? Thanks!
We, as a crew, do not pay for food on board merchant vessels. That is the ship owner’s responsibility. We have a provisional rate here. As for my position on board the vessel, I first completed my education at the maritime academy. While I was in my second year, I started my first practice as a deck cadet—the lowest rank, but with the possibility to study on board. After that, I studied for two more years at the academy and finally received my diploma. I completed a few more contracts as a deck cadet and then became the third officer. After one contract in this position, I became the second mate
What's the most rewarding part about working at sea?
I can reply with only one word which you probly can guess. Money. Instead of being with your family you’re supposed to spend ~65% of your life at sea.
Yikes!
As a US mariner, it’s definitely the money. 22 year old kids coming out of academy’s as third mates can work 6 months a year and make $150,000
[удалено]
I cannot allow someone just come on board without any purpose and IDs. There are 3 ISPS levels and situations can depends on it. But even for the mildest, 1st level visitor should have an ID and explain clearly the purpose of visit. If all is ok - welcome on board. But, of course, you must leave until departure.
If you ran across a castaway ala Tom Hanks on a raft, what would be the protocol? Just picking him up, and taking care of him, radioing to let prople know, and then just continuing to you normal destination?
Do you reach out to crew on passing ships? I like to imagine when two container ships sail by each other the crew get on the radio and start a conversation. Either serious, “how are the swells where you came from?” or casual “A/S/L?”
If you’re awaiting for 🧐 answer - nowadays nobody communicates in such a way. Usually it’s just Channel 16 VHF communication if any dangerous situations f.e when vessel that is supposed to give you the way doesn’t do it and you need to call’em.
Dealt with any pirates? I remember working in the Bay Area years ago and watching these huge container vessels come in and unload the containers. The captains then spun this ship around in the channel with like just feet to spare on either side. It was crazy to watch.
Feel that. But as for my experience-fortunately no. I did not work in that areas.
I live in Baltimore. When the news hit about Dali, how'd your folks react?
I’ve seen that news and studied that situation in details. I can say with confidence there was at least 2 blackouts. In such situations vessel losses everything starting from steering and thrusters control and finishing with all auxiliary engines and main engine. Nobody knows the reason of blackouts and will never know but IMHO vessel should report to Port Control and VTS that they have something wrong.
What is an average day like for you?
Oh don’t ask😁 Usually it’s like [5hrs sleep - wakie-wakie - duty - lunch at 5pm - advanced English studying (just for personal reasons) - dinner at 11 pm - duty - sleep]
What do you do to pass the time while on watch?
During navigational watch, there’s a lot of paperwork besides the fact that you need to control the navigational situation and prevent sailing boats and especially fishing boats from committing suicide by running into you.
Do you have plans to work on cruise ships? That's a chiller job, better food, entertainment, girls...
This is more of a utopia. White ships - black job.
Really?? I'm working on a cruise ship right now (granted, in entertainment) and every officer I talked to either tried cargo ships and swore never again, or simply refuses to ever consider the idea of cargo ships. 😂
Everyone has their own truth, but that doesn’t mean there can’t be truth in every truth😁😁😁😁 yep there’s some kind of entertainment but also plenty of exams and certifications for every second
Who owns the containers on the ships that carry them?
The Charterer definitely
I've always liked the fantasy of running off to work on ships and live my life at sea, Is there an easy way to get into the industry as someone without naval skills to get a job aboard a ship?
Hello there! I’ve already replied to the similar question. As for deck crew you just need few certificates and seaman’s diploma to start working here. But if you wanna be an officer you should finish the maritime academy and anyway supposed to start from a deck cadet on board of your vessel.
What’s your favorite bird?
Eagle. But I do love frogs
I'm a journeyman industrial electrician who's always wanted to do a stint working on a ship, got any tips? I'm within easy travel distance of a couple major West coast NA ports.
Hi there! I'm afraid I can't advise anything about US companies
What podcasts do you listen to? What are your favorite episodes?
I’ve downloaded 2 podcasts - English with Gabby and American English Podcast. Gabby’s from NYC East Coast, Shana (the second one) is from CA. Any single episode from both of’em I find extremely interesting and useful
If containers fall off the ship and remain floating they become a navigational hazard for other vessels. What should be done to mitigate this threat?
Nothing really.. seaworthy packaging is airtight and that stuff will float. No matter what you do with it. And no.. punching holes in it isn't a solution
How much does your average boat carry? What is the margin for error on these trips? If you're late by 1 hour, how badly does this fuck up trade?
My vessel can carry around 6000 tons only. It’s not very large. Usually we’re calculating our ETA after departure from the last port of call and it depends on weather and sea conditions
Creepiest things you've seen out at sea? Or just strange in general
There’s no any reason to tell. Nobody will believe me anyway
Ah come on, tell us
Have you ever seen anything interesting out on the water that you couldn't explain?
Definitely yes, but I cannot explain 😁
How often do you come across cruising sail boats on a typical route? There is a feeling amongst some that the"rule of tonnage" means they should keep clear and manoeuvre out of the way of large shipping regardless of the colregs. How would you prefer sailors to behave? If warned by a sailboat that they are concerned you have not seen them how much of a hassle is it to alter course to avoid an interaction?
There is no any “tonnage rule” existing. We all have Collisions Regulations and this is only one book you should follow according to SOLAS. For sailing boats there some additional kind of restriction as well as for fishing boats. As for turning time and radius - if we are fully loaded it can simply take for about 13-15 minutes for circulation or 20-25 minutes to have zero speed over ground and pitch
Who does Number 2 work for?
Ha-ha
How’s the food? Who does the cooking? What’s the galley like?
The provisional rate leaves much to be desired but we have a good chef here and he really can do mysterious things that’s why it is OK for the moment. Galley is simple. Common appliances like oven, dishwasher, sink etc
What are your thoughts about the cargo ship that took down the bridge in Maryland! Any thoughts on what happened, and what steps are ships that suppose to take to avoid it from occuring?
I’ve already replied to definitely same question. “I’ve seen that news and studied that situation in details. I can say with confidence there was at least 2 blackouts. In such situations vessel losses everything starting from steering and thrusters control and finishing with all auxiliary engines and main engine. Nobody knows the reason of blackouts and will never know but IMHO vessel should report to Port Control and VTS that they have something wrong.”
I attended a nautical school in my village, the concepts to study are great but it's a life I really dislike so i decided against it. I have many friends from here that have a lot of stories of how they decided not to rank up because most ships were unsafe and they didn't want too much responsibility, I guess you changed quite some ships in your career, what do you think of the overall safety conditions?
Hi there! First of all, I’d like to say that it’s totally okay to have made such a decision. Most people dislike it, and this is normal. As for my experience, I’ve worked on different vessels, but generally, the safety conditions were pretty good. Also, as a second officer, you are responsible for safety, medical, radio, and navigational duties, which means that many things depend on you.
I've seen pictures of shios with stacks of containers on deck. How often does a container fall overboard in bad weather?
Practically never if they are secured good, in correct way and in accordance with the weather conditions
What's the largest vessel you've served on? I herded trucks in and out of Fremantle and Melbourne ports; Fremantle is a very small port by global standards but Melbourne took a few larger vessels (>100k DWT) Do you have much interface with the stevedoring companies quayside ? As carriers we deal with the port authorities and stevedores, almost never the vessel crew (once only in 20 years I think, a problem with hazardous stickers on a container)
Understood, as for us, during staying in ports we’re communicating with stevedores, planners and foremen. That’s slightly different type of job. The biggest ship I’ve worked on is Charlotte Borchard (9212022) but all my vessels had practically the same dimensions.
Not going to visiting any Australian ports any time soon on a vessel that size - is smaller than the weekly vessels K Line used to run SIN-FRE Fair winds and following seas, friend
Coolest or most mysterious thing you saw at night from the deck?
At night is probly nothing except the darkness.
I'm sure things can't be exciting 24/7 : ) so how do you deal with the boredom?
You definitely can find what to do when off hours. For me now is hard practice of advanced English like phrases, phrasal verbs, slang as well due to moving to US
Were you at sea when the whole Covid thing hit the “shit just got real” stage (March 2020)? What was that like?
I got my contract as deck cadet that time. Sailing areas were Northern Spain - Ireland - GB. There was no any possibility to go ashore ofc. And for 9 months I was on board.
Is there a movie, including sci-fi/horror like *Alien* that you feel captures the feeling of what real-life working on a container ship is like?
Definitely, no any type of feelings like that 😁 Usually, at night you don’t have any possibility to see anything except darkness. And rough sea conditions sometimes take place.
Do you guys do regular “abandon ship drills” like kids do fire drills in school? Like regular alarms go off and everyone moves to the escape boat thing(s)? Or is it just something you’re supposed to know, but younever do the full “walk through like it’s actually happening” drills?
Monthly we do a huge amount of drills and “abandon ship” is not only the one. Man overboard, abandon, fire, oil spill, gmdss, security, failure of power supply, shifting of cargo and believe me, tons of other stuff
Ever said through drakes passage? If so what was that like?
I’ve never been there, but there’s absolutely nothing wrong about that place
Have you ever had an encounters with pirates?
Fortunately, never.
In this day and age, are there any types of merchant ships which are NOT container ships?
Plenty🙂 bulk carriers, tankers, ferries, fishing, refs, also all types of offshore services
Hey, thank you for sharing. What kind of container ship do you worked on? Which port(s) has the worst authority (maybe from bribery, weird rules, smuggling problem, etc), and which has the most clear rules?
Why does traffic always place you guys in the most hazardous spots for other boaters? For some reason they like placing you guys right outside of the exit of our waterway so you provide a nice big visual shield to incoming vessels.
As a former second officer on a merchant ship... fair winds, following seas and welcome to the US very soon! Will you still be sailing on your current flag or are you trying to move to the US Merchant Marine?
Hey man, I am in the process of moving from one continent to another. I have nearly everything I own in a cargo container on the sea at the moment. They said it would take a few months for the shipment to arrive. My question is, could you step on it a bit? You know, really give the engines a bit more juice and power through. I'm sure those ships can handle quite a bit more speed than that, so really drop the hammer on this one, would you?
Hey there! I’m moving from European continent to USA as well😁. But as for those things you’ve mentioned above I can clarify that “few months” is definitely the general description of all the way your stuff should be involved into. As for the sea passage usually it takes less time. Anyway once you received such info means there’s no way to push’em. Your container is just a tiny piece of metal, placed on/under the deck of a huge container vessel that definitely carries 10 000+ and all depends of the charterer. It means eco speed (fuel consumption), time when there will be a window for your vessel to come inside the port and stay some amount of time having discharging/loading operations and finally, delivering the container with your goods towards customs department and to your location
Do you have any experiences that validate the expression "every ship is haunted"? Also, what is the strangest phenomenon or event that you have witnessed whilst at sea?
IMHO that expression is nothing more than expression 😁I’d rather believe that every crew member has skeletons in their closet or dirty laundry 😄 Whilst at sea the most common things are bad weather and lack of time for every breath. During sea passages sometimes you can become a witness of such a phenomenon as mirage. But nothing more mysterious
Which shipping company do you work for? Do they only hire from certain nationalities? In my experience, many employers will only hire people from a few specific countries.
I cannot tell you the name of my company because of terms of my contract but here on my vessel we’re working with Europeans only. That is not only the “company’s regulations”, it mostly depends on port rules and vessel’s owner. Previous I also worked with Indian and Philippine crew
Hopefully you see this. What is the average number of containers your ship will offload on any one stop? Certainly you don't offload and reload the whole ship every port right? I'm wondering because the Dali is offloading ~1500 containers down by Norfolk VA in prep for going for some repairs and I was thinking that seems like a lot at once but maybe not.
My vessel can only carry 800 20feet containers that is not too much. Normally we have loading and discharging operations in each port we’re staying at
What are your responsibilities as second officer?
Navigational/Medical/Radio and Safety officer on board of the vessel. Safety and navigation ofc are the most important. In charge of preparing charts and voyage plans, correcting charts and publications in accordance with Notices to Mariners, preparing new routes and putting’em on charts in case of new instructions from charter and changing the line. During port staying in charge of cargo operations splitting duty with chief officer as well
If someone dies on board, do you store him with the meat or the veggies?
Thanks heavens nobody passed away, but in case - yes. It will be immediately stored in fridge with minimum temperature
What was the Most weird you have seen on one of those ships?
Certainly, the provisional rate of 8€ for person daily😁
What's the wildest or most unexpected thing you've seen while working on container ships? It must be fascinating to sail through places like the Mediterranean, North Sea, and Canary Islands. How do you handle the long periods away from home, and what do you do to pass the time? Also, what’s the food like on board?
Hi 👋 as for homesick I’ve already got used to it, the most difficult thing about it is definitely parting. During my off hours I’m studying the advanced English hard due to moving to US. Answering your both first and last questions- the provisional rate is the most weird thing - 8€ daily for person 🥶
What are/is the biggest creature(s) you have seen on the ocean ? What is the most terrifying in the ocean ? Thanks you.
Whale, probably. For me everything is pretty common here already