Many forum members have made this point. But it doesn’t really make sense to me.
An experienced and competent ship captain should be able evaluate the effectiveness of his bridge team and take action accordingly. If the captain can’t do that he shouldn’t be in command.
If that assumption that the captain is experienced and competent is incorrect than that’s the higher priority problem, not the number of people in the wheelhouse.
You’ve obviously never worked at sea…
I mentioned this in the thread we had about the collision reports(the 177 page one, not the short “condensed for public” one).
There’s a line in the 177-page one that basically says “There was never any physical loss of steering, nor any steering or propulsion casualty.”
When I read that, I knew I was in for a rage-inducing read :\
Avoiding Navy Collisions: What can be done?
Stick close to your desk, and never go to sea?
Can someone find a PDF version of the long one?
It was posted in the other thread, the one that started off with the short one.
Not a PDF, but:
I want a copy I can download.
Capt_Phoenix, belay my PMs, here’s the direct link to the .pdf:
If you think that you’ve only worked at sea if you’ve sailed on an American warship you would be right. I’ve been reviewing and in some cases investigating maritime accidents for more than twenty years and I’ve learnt that unless you are prepared to question what might appear to be obvious to others you’re not going to get anywhere.
And thanks for the pdf of the full report - like others I could not get to it.
Does that need an edit?
You are right, it should read “If you’ve only worked at sea if you’ve sailed on an American warship, then you are right”.
That would work, also have the C.O. explain to the “night watch” that it is ok to stop and or give way.
Without reading 177 pages, i’m assuming the Captain was asleep and the D.D.O. was apprehensive to make the decision stop or give way out of fear for repercussions. In my opinion the Merchant Vessel didn’t even know they were C.B.D.R. with them. Helm transferring? Yea right.
Well, you’ve assumed wrong. Time for you to do some reading.
Awesome, thanks!
Every commercial vessel I’ve ever heard of, from tugs on up to 300 meter ships, has multiple steering and throttle stations that you can switch control between. Since you were amazed that it was possible to switch control away from a helm station then you obviously know nothing about commercial ships.
I have one other suggestion from direct observation. Instill more of a culture to WANT to learn how to be a mariner. Coming strait to a ship with minimal training and moving to another job and ship 2 years later, then shore duty makes the young Officer to just want to get the qualification and move on to something else. This is a huge problem. They have no incentive or drive to keep learning. No one really wants to be a SWO.
In fact, many hate it due to the initial lack of training and getting hammered off the bat. They are scared, unsure of themselves or falsely confident (and rightfully so). If they are sure of their abilities, they have no idea how much they don’t know.
Look at how foreign European Navies do it. They make the primary job of their young officers learning how to stand a watch for two years and learning all aspects of being s mariner (not just watch). They log every hour they stand watch. Their main focus on the job is this, and other aspects come later. They also get STCW credentials.
The Navy is all about war fighting, but in order to fight, you must be able to drive and steam the ship better then everyone else.
John Paul Jones once said, “It is by no means enough that an officer of the Navy should be a capable mariner. He must be that, of course, but also a great deal more…” the Navy has forgotten the first part of that quote.
All the modern weapons and electronics have made the Navy forget this basic principle. It would be like aviators relying so much on electronic targeting that they stop being Ace pilots.
It’s not even that. We have the same bridge equipment. A SWO barely knows how to use most of it. Get a SWO to tune a radar, forget about it. They have another sailor do it. Knowing his bridge equipment in and out would be a good start. Additionally knowing basic principles needs focus as well. It’s both.
Naval aviators are trained to continuously scan the panel and keep a visual lookout outside the cockpit to avoid fixation in a complex environment. Maybe the guys on the bridge could benefit from the same training.