[QUOTE=eesmith4;67540]A lot of people seem to have difficulty grasping how the “lead relief 3rd” captain progression works on a boat with a 2 for 1 schedule.
To clarify, the “lead” captain is the guy who spends his whole hitch as master, the “relief” spends 2 weeks as master and 2 weeks as chief mate, and the “3rd” spends his whole hitch as mate, however he usually is someone that is fully qualified and experienced to step in as master if either of the 1st or 2nd has to leave. So there is some method to the madness.
The whole “captain/mate” thing in the oilfield regardless of position is usually used to differentiate between someone who holds a master’s license and someone who just holds a mate’s, with a little respect thrown in since most with a master’s license have also ran as master on another vessel.[/QUOTE]
That make sense but up thread there is mention of the 3rd captain being on watch. Calling the relief captain/chief mate, who is sailing chief mate with a master’s license the second captain seems reasonable but 3rd captain? Is that the title used on the boat or are they called mates?
K.C.