16 ✪ ●<strong>Nautilus</strong> UK Telegraph ●✪ DECEMBER 2007Your chance to have a say: onlineLAST month’s poll asked if you agreed with a P&I club’s call forthe shipping industry to take shipboard psychological problemsmore seriously? As the Telegraph went to press, the poll showed anoverwhelming 94% in agreement with the call, and just 6% whodisagreed with it.This month, we want your views on shipping exhaust emissions— see page 44. Do you think the shipping industry should switchfrom heavy fuel oil to distillate fuels?Vote now, on www.nautilusuk.orgHRH upbraided...I WAS incensed at the recent photographof that buffoon HRH Edward sporting C/E/Master’s braid (November Telegraph, page 4).We sweat blood and tears earning them,years of watchkeeping, sea service and examsIt’s bad enough putting up with some of theuseless deck ornaments parading about likestuffed hens.That particular page has gonestraight to the log burner.J.R. CLARKEmem no 117331Master of all tradesI READ the reply to my letter on degreestatus (‘Jack of all trades training...’November Telegraph) with interest.The points system at UCAS raises evenmore fundamental issues about the worthof Certificates of Competency. Thank youfor reminding me. I have found, as yousay, that, within the framework of value forqualifications, CoC are rated less than adiploma in underwater basket weaving.Despite having no wish to go into highereducation, I find this a little unsettling. Myhard-won certifications are worthless andrevalidation cannot secure them.It is not surprising that recruitment islow towards young people going to sea asa career.Perhaps representation from <strong>Nautilus</strong>could be made to UCAS, regarding thequalifications we have, to be recognised.And as for that old chestnut ‘Jack of alltrades, master of none’, I think ‘Master of alltrades’ to be more appropriate.CHARLES NELSONmem no 108202What’s on your mind?Tell your fellow officers in <strong>Nautilus</strong> UK — and the wider world of shipping — through a letter to the Telegraph.Keep to a limit of 300 words if you can — though longer contributions will be considered. ✪ You may use apen name or just your membership number if you don’t want to be identified — say so in an accompanyingnote — but you must let the Telegraph have your name, address and membership number. ✪ Send yourletter to the editor, Telegraph, <strong>Nautilus</strong> UK, 750-760 High Road, Leytonstone, London E11 3BB, or usehead office fax 020 8530 1015, or email telegraph@nautilusuk.orgEGYPTIAN MEMORIALS FOR MNMY WIFE and I have justreturned from a pilgrimage toEgypt, mainly in order to visitthe grave of my uncle, killedin the battle of El Alamein, 23October 1942 to 4 November1942. We also visited thecemeteries of Chatby andHadra in Alexandria.All these cemeteriescome under the care ofthe Commonwealth WarGraves Commission, and aretended with loving care byEgyptian staff who keep themimmaculate.Many merchant seamenkilled supplying the troops areburied in these cemeteries,some with no names, and Ienclose photos for the relativesof the persons killed in Egypt toshow how well the graves aretended. My wife and I placed across of remembrance on thegrave of an unknown Britishmerchant seaman buried atthe El Alamein cemetery.On Saturday 27 November2007 an official service ofremembrance was held at theEl Alamein commonwealth warcemetery to commemoratethe 65th anniversary of thisbattle and to remember thevictims of this conflict. It washosted by Sir Derek Plumbly,HM Ambassador to Egypt, andattended by representatives ofall the Commonwealthnations involved.MARINETAX SERVICES(CARDIFF) LTD complete servicefor mariners run by certificatedex-officer qualified accountantsalways available computerised100% claims andforecast projection will writing serviceavailable26 High Street, Barry CF62 7EB,South Glamorgan, UKTel. Barry (01446) 739953MARINETAX@YAHOO.COMEstablished 1974Four veterans from the UKand two from Australia, all intheir late 80s and early 90s,attended and laid wreaths.Media coverage from all thenations involved was presentexcept for the British, as usual— most upsetting; have theyforgotten already?PAUL Hasney (‘ISM has failed theindustry’, November letters) hitthe nail on the head. I could notagree more.My own career has followeda similar path as his. I have longfelt that safety courses have beeninadequate over the last 10 yearsor so.I did my first offshore safetycourse at RGIT in Aberdeen. A dayin that environmental tank wasa big eye opener. But I can stillrecall it like yesterday…When I started in the industrythere were two distinct safetyapproaches. Merchant Navy, andoffshore. You either worked on aship — tanker, bulker, box — oron a rig/platform. There was littleFor people who have relativesburied on faraway battlefields,these tours are arranged throughthe Royal British Legion andRemembrance Travel.Capt. TED TOOPmem no 161803OSV-specific safetycourse is neededconsideration given to those of usthat work on one, but deal withthe other. At my last ‘refreshercourse’ in 2003, I was the onlyOSV person in a classroom of20… and that’s where mostof the course was done, in theclassroom.Various schools across theworld are now tailoring theircourses towards ‘boaties’ but it isstill lacking. Is it not about timethat there were specific coursesfor those of us working in thesupport vessel sector, that meetboth Merchant Navy and OPITO /BOSIET standards? … and pleasemake them realistic!DAVE CHRISTOPHERmem no 168848Academics shouldtry the real thingM. B. MCHUGH (‘Academic is wrong...’ — Octoberletters) sounds pretty upset. I read his/her letter priorto reading the article he/she refers to, and initially Iwas expecting to read Dr Sampson’s article and seea totally off the wall, unrealistic, appraisal of why wedo, or do not, go to or stay at sea.On the contrary, and unfortunately the abovemember contradicts him/herself, ‘the only thing thatwould make seafaring more attractive would be areturn to the days when one’s company provided areal wage, company pensions, medical care, etc’. Isthis not the point that Dr Sampson is attempting tomake?I agree that the current form the industry hastaken is not commensurate with the lifestyle manyof us went to sea for in the first place. However, theindustry has changed to suit the demands of thepeople who use it. The people who use it, adaptto meet the demands of the people who use them,ultimately the consumer. Us! So have we been thedemise of our own work/way of life?I did my time deepsea. The attraction vanished,and I moved to the offshore sector. I am lucky, Ienjoy the benefits of short trips, company pension,medical, and get to work in some pretty amazingplaces; that swings both ways, good, and worseMN officer training is better by degreesAS A graduate who is now acadet, I’d like to throw my twopen’orth into the CoC/degreedebate (Telegraphs passim).The writer who quotes theOpen University as saying wehaven’t sufficient expertisein one particular field to beconsidered higher educationmaterial has missed an obviouspoint — we are expert mariners.The coin flips both ways: findme an expert naval architectwho could successfully plan andexecute a passage across theAtlantic.We may study in manydifferent areas — I did too formy degree. Every academicdiscipline is the sum of manyother constituent disciplines.Most of these could be (indeed,are) subjects in their own rightbut are used only to the extentthat they further the subject youare actually interested in.If I can study statistics,linguistics and economics(among other things) and end upwith a BA (hons) in politics, whycan’t I study ship construction,spherical trigonometry andmeteorology for a degree inmerchant vessel operations?One last point: I’m painfullyaware of some of the otherdegrees available out there. I’llpoint no fingers, but my friendsat university and myself usedthan bad. I do not get paid the best salary in theworld, and this has been a stumbling block inrecruitment, because, for the most part, the benefitsof being employed by my particular company arenot broadcast from the masthead. But after 25years with them, I do hear from new recruits that theoverall package is better than most, even if salary isnot. This is being rectified, slowly, and I am sure withtime, other improvements will follow.All said and done though, shore-side academicscan only get a picture of what it’s like if they are outthere. Surveys, questionnaires and interviews willnever be a substitute for the real thing. Perhapssome of the people who write about us and studyus, should become one of us. Spend a winter off theFalklands, not just a week or two, but two or threemonths! Spend four weeks in the North Sea on anOSV, go home for four and then do a second trip offour or six weeks in West Africa! Go do it, and pleasedon’t pick the latest and greatest vessels. Pick onethat is 20 years old, where nobody else speaksEnglish as a first language, and out of cellphonerange. Limited email, TV, and phone calls. There areplenty out there.DAVE CHRISTOPHERmem no 168848to call them ‘beer degrees’. Ifthey count, certainly what we doshould.D/C T. LUNNmem no 192809NEW Centre now open in ANTIGUAALL THROUGH THE SUMMEROPENMARITIME TRAINING(PLYMOUTH)STCW ’95NVQ Marine Vessel Support Level 2 (Deck & Engineroom)NVQ Marine Vessel Operations Level 3 (OOW)NVQ Marine Vessel Operations Level 4 (Chief Mate)MCA Oral Exam PreparationShip/Port Security TrainingPSSR & Basic Safety TrainingMedical First Aid / Medical Care Aboard ShipGMDSS (ROC, LRC, GOC)Firefighting – Basic & Advanced • NARAS (O) and (M)ARPA and Ship Simulator • Efficient DeckhandMARITIME TRAINING (PLYMOUTH) LTDMarine Skills Centre • Cumberland Road • Devonport • Plymouth PL1 4HXTel No: 01752 606633 • Fax No: 01752 567436Email: mtp@plymouthmaritimetraining.co.uk
DECEMBER 2007 ✪ ●<strong>Nautilus</strong> UK Telegraph ●✪ 17Shipmates reunitedWISH you’d kept in touch with that old colleague?Why not try Shipmates Reunited? <strong>Nautilus</strong> UK’selectronic friend-finding noticeboard is still going strongafter seven years, and it gets regular hits from seafarersall round the world. Maybe someone’s looking for you.To find out, go to www.nautilusuk.org and click on the linkfrom our homepage. And if you want to put a posting onShipmates Reunited, simply send your message and yourcontact details to webmaster@nautilusuk.orgLondon has a ball —in aid of seafarersPICTURED right is theatre group AllHands on Deck entertaining guests at theLondon Shipping Ball — which raisedsome £30,000 for seafarers last month.The charity event was organised bythe British & International Sailors’ Society(BISS) and held at the five-star MayFair hotel. Many prominent shippingcompanies were represented, and theywere urged to ‘dig deep’ for BISS.In addition to donations fromcorporate sponsors and guests, fundswere raised through a raffle and auction.An impressive array of auction lotsincluded a Caribbean cruise, a SalvadorDali signed etching, a luxury villa holidayin Cyprus and a yacht charter for 11people.The proceeds of the ball will gotowards helping the society’s networkof port chaplains, stationed in over 30countries across 100 ports.lettersThe view from MuirheadJust fishingoff Somalia?Complete Uniform solutionsfor Merchant Navy, Cruise, Ferry andSuper Yacht industries throughout the world.Personal callers welcome (Monday to Friday 0900 -1700)Stock supported service for Deck,Engine and Hotel Officers and Crew.Full range of Cadets College and Seagoing rig.Visit our web site or request a brochureon sales@miller-rayner.co.ukPhotograph features the best selling Pilot Jacket.Miller Rayner Ltd16 City Commerce CentreMarsh LaneSouthampton SO14 3EWTel 023 8033 3771Fax 023 8022 4781Email sales@miller-rayner.co.ukwww.miller-rayner.co.ukAS THE embarked senior fisheries protection officer in the BritishIndian Ocean territory, I feel compelled to comment on a ‘piracy issue’on page 9 of the September Telegraph, under the heading ‘Straitsattacks raises fears’.You published a photograph of a vessel supposedly acting as a‘mother ship’ for pirates. Although the photograph is of poor quality, thevessel clearly exhibits the lines of a modern purse seine fishing vessel.Amidships is the tall vertical observation tower, aft of which can clearlybe seen the booms and power blocks used to handle the large fishingnet which is ‘flaked’ out on the aft deck in the photograph.These vessels frequent the Indian Ocean from the west coast ofAfrica to Malaysia. Typically 60-120m overall length, they pursue largeschools of migrating, surface feeding tunas. On locating a school of tuna(either by visual observation or electronic fish finders) these vesselstypically chase the fish at anything between 12 and 20 knots, oftenmaking erratic changes in both course and speed as they try and jockeyGetting in the nautical grooveWITH respect to the sea song Top10 (November Telegraph), theone song that I think epitomisesmy last 30 years at sea is analbum track by Chris Rea. It iscalled Curse of the Traveller andcomes from the 1987 albumDancing with Strangers — alsorather apt. Lyrics of the last versego: ‘And you cry for the harbourlights, But you’ll never be free, ofthe craving for refuge, And the callof the sea, and so on…’I still often play it at full blastin my car as I drive to work inPortsmouth.F. J. GARDINERmem no 157902I ENJOYED the article aboutmaritime music in the NovemberTelegraph. I had a think aboutfavourite sea songs, and my ‘top10’ would be: Lord Franklin;Rounding the Horn: Rio Grande:New York Girls; My Johnny wasa Shoemaker: A Sailor’s Life;Fiddlers Green; Lowlands ofHolland; Sally Free and Easy;and Leaving of Liverpool (not inany order, however I do sing/playNew York Girls a lot).JACKIE WYLDEAdministrator, <strong>Nautilus</strong> UKI AM writing to correct a grossinaccuracy on Page 27 of theNovember 2007 issue of yournewspaper.Under the heading ‘Top 10 PopSea Songs’, it is erroneously statedthat the Falklands war protest songwas penned by Robert Wyatt.Whilst it is correct that RobertWyatt released the song (I stillhave the original single) it was infact written by Elvis Costello.As for other sea songs notmentioned, how about:-✪ Ferry ‘Cross The Mersey— Gerry & The Pacemakers✪ Sailing — Rod Stewart✪ Ship To Shore — Chris deBurgh (not that I’m suggestingthat for any Top 10!)into a position from which to deploy the net around the fish.Typically, such vessels have a large powered skiff which slides offthe stern ramp and which powers away from the ‘mother vessel’ pullingthe net out as it does so. With the skiff deployed, the ‘mother vessel’then steams ahead before turning sharply to port in order to meet upwith its skiff and complete the ‘purse’ around the tuna. One or twosmall, high speed chase craft are often deployed to create noise and‘wakes’ between the ends of the net, thus corralling the tuna into thenet. If the fish dive deep the net would not be deployed and the vesselwould continue with what would appear to be an erratic searchingpattern.Although it is feasible that such a vessel could be engaged in piracy,the description of the vessel’s manoeuvres suggests it was engaged inlegitimate fishing activities. I feel this information may be of interest toyour members.ANDY WILLIAMS BSC, MSC, BIOT SFPO✪ Sloop John B — Beach Boys✪ Sea Cruise — Herman’sHermits (among others)✪ Come on down to my boatbaby — Every Mother’s Son (moreof a fishing song but what the hell)✪ Seaport September — LatinQuarter✪ In The Navy — Village People(pictured) — could be Royal orMerchant I guess✪ Louie Louie — The Kingsmen(okay, the lyrics are prettyunintelligible but it’s about a seavoyage)✪ Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay— Otis ReddingAnd how could you forget✪ Yellow Submarine!T.E. SPRINGETTHead of Labour AffairsChamber of Shipping
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