I one day want to work at sea (commercially)
In your opinions what do you think are the best types of ships or companys to work on or with?
Have you decided in which department you want to work in ? Deck or Engine ?
Though this is not in any particular order each type of ship has its highs and lows.
Cruise linersGlamour / Great interiors / State of the art equipment / Good ports / Good cuisine / High levels of responsibility / Passenger welfare / Long tours of duty
Container ShipsShort port stays - so no shore leave / Frequent port calls if on a smaller container ship
Bulk carriersLong ocean crossings / Slow speed ships / Fast turn around in ports - shore leave possibility better than container ships
Oil tankersLarge tankers mostly load in the ports of the Persian Gulf where there is nothing much around / Smaller tankers have short port stays / Subject to regular inspections by external bodies / Pollution risks if not alert / Long voyages / High responsibilities
Chemical tankersHigh responsibility for senior officers / May have to deal with toxic & lethal cargoes - calls for extreme personal safety / Main deck of ship can be very congested with extensive pipelines / Can call at many berths in a single port / Tank cleaning operations can be very tedious / High degree of competence required for cargo operations / Practically impossible to step ashore in ports due to short port stays, inspections, receiving stores.
Gas tankersConsidered to be the "cleanest" of the tanker family as practically no contact with cargo / High degree of safety culture required / Very sophisticated in terms of equipment for handling cargo / High responsibility for senior officers / Subject to regular inspections by external bodies / Shore leave can be rare.
Car CarriersGet to see the all brands of cars as cargo / Short port stays / Known to roll heavily in rough weather
Needless to say any ship is a victim of rough weather and stormy seas can give one sleepless nights due to the discomfort of rolling extensively. At times when you are due to get off a ship for vacation, it may not happen as you may not be in a suitable port and may have to even tolerate another long voyage. If you are are offered '3 months on - 3 months off' contracts, time will pass quite fast and it will be less stressful. Wages are generally good on merchant ships and may even be tax free. Family life can take a back seat and it is normal not to be around for a family get together, Christmas, etc.
CompaniesCruise liners - Cunard
, Caribbean Cruise Lines, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Costas, MSC ....
Container - Maersk, P&O, Hapag Lloyd .......
Oil Tankers - Teekay Tankers, Shell, Chevron, BP .......
Chemical tankers - Stolt, Odfjell .......
Gas tankers - Teekays, Qatar Navigation, Mitsui OSK, NYK .......
Bulk Carriers - Bergesen Worldwide (BW), NYK, Mitsui .....
Car Carriers - Wallenius Lines, Hoegh, NYK, Mitsui .....
Viking, this is just a comprehensive list. I am sure there will be others here who can add more ...... and then you can decide !!
I hope you have had the opportunity to watch Discovery Channel's "Mighty Ships". They have covered all types of ships and it gives you some idea of life on board.
Regards
vin_sun