I was second mate of a Resolution Bay class container ship built in the same yard as the Muchen. She was 150 miles from where the Muchen went down.
An apprenticeship and time as a junior officer with Bank Line gave one an excellent grounding in a nautical education given the various cargo’s carried.
I remember in about 1971 a couple of Bank Line cadets came onboard the Texaco Tanker in Durban where I was Second Mate with our cadets for breakfast. They made a clean sweep of the menu.
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It irks me to this day how the movie (not the book) depicted that whole fiasco. Despite not actually naming him (and changing the name of the boat), they did Ray Leonard bad.
Checks and balances of the airline world are designed around the faults (and ego) of humans. That is why the statistics on safety are so amazing. The maritime industry is living in the past and doesn’t care…and it will never change until losses cause enough pain for the insurance companies. Most ships get there on time, most of the time. It’s good enuf’.
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Of course a captain wants avoid making an error that causes the crew to call the DPA. That why it’s important to “show your work”. Have the mates do the avoidance problem on a chart, on bridge chart table where everyone can see and evaluate.
I wrote about the Satori here.
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That’s two different things. Ships can use weather parameters but they are set by the captain. If the mates know what the weather limits are they should be able to evaluate a route.
EDIT: Working a rig would be similar to transferring cargo or bunkering in an off-shore anchorage. If the weather comes up lines can be adjusted or extra lines run. If things get to dicey then can cut loose.
The situation can be judged in real time, no need to have any parameters.
Airlines used to let their captains determine the weather parameters until it was decided that some captains weren’t good at determining safe parameters which caused too many people to be killed which cost a lot of money. [Airline captains used to get silent bonuses for on time arrival just like ship captains.] Ship cargo loss is cheaper to pay than people loss so I doubt things will change in shipping other than insurance cost.
This isn’t about making industry- wide changes. Any captain can specify weather limits and have them put in the voyage plan. Some do some don’t.
I find it useful. YMMV.
As far as what is meant by weather limits; it’d be specific wave/swell height and wind speeds above which adjustments of course and speed are required to avoid excess vessel motion, engine load or overspeed and the like.
The dispatch system and strong union backing against discipline for refusing flights acts as a giant firewall to keep airline management from pushing pilots to make unsafe flights. An individual captain on his own cannot do this for long, you need to know it isn’t going to be your last trip if you go the long away around Hurricane Ginormous.
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I’m saying the opposite, individual captains do this far more often than not.
We don’t know how many captains that get into trouble and claim commercial pressure are just inept at avoidance.
Another example.
Nonsense, a few more hours of BRM training will easily fix this entrenched problem.
……It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.
Half dollar Johnny and his erudite comments.
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Hogsnort,
41 good men, including Australians and Kiwis, died in that that incident and this clown comes back with that retort.
This is the first time that I have employed the “user ignore” function in account settings.
Not even Heiwa deserved that ignominy ….at least he was occasionally entertaining.
The only way a problem can be fixed is to first admit there is a problem. Are you and mr sensitive Ausboy going to admit there is an entrenched industry wide problem or not?
Captains sailing into bad storms has been a big factor in most of major damages and shipping tragedies of recent history, has it not?
A 34 y/o master? The photo in the article of the captain didn’t have even a hint of gray hair. Perhaps there was some “confidence of youth” in this sad case. Its not very wise to be proud of your insufficiency.
Once upon a time, I was a 33 year old Master. Your age doesn’t mean you are a reckless cowboy if you ask me. In my opinion, we are all susceptible to commercial pressure but the level headed among us will put the crew’s safety first and foremost. I just don’t think age has all that much to do with it. I’ve sailed with plenty of older Captains who were downright reckless.
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Back in '79, I sailed with a 32 year old master on a Lykes break bulk.
I wouldn’t say youth results in a reckless cowboy but wisdom is one of the gifts only gained by time and experience. I was a young child prodigy too, but, I admit I lacked wisdom. Now that I’m older and gray I recognize there is a lot I don’t know so being bold is held in reserve to prudence.
The “El Faro’s” deck officer complement had the Master and Mate at 53 and 54, the Second Mate at 34 and the Third Mate at 46. The engineering complement, all bar one, were very young.
It is interesting to read the deck officer’s performance evaluations documented within the NTSB report.
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