Ask the Buffer

[Marlin Spike]

What is the Buffer's relation to the Cox'n?

The Buffer is the Chief of the Deck Dept and the Coxn is the Chief of the ship or Unit. The Buffer is the seamanship expert onboard and he is responsible to advise command on all aspects of seamanship. 

 

[Good2Golf]

The Buffer is the Chief of the Deck Dept and the Coxn is the Chief of the ship or Unit. The Buffer is the seamanship expert onboard and he is responsible to advise command on all aspects of seamanship.

Danke...this and Pat's earlier post helped.  Five Dept.s on board, the Buffer is the senior NCM of the Deck, be it for boats on and off, supplies, etc... maybe DSM (Deck Sergeant Major).

As a follow-on question from Pat's post, what is the difference between CS and Cbt?  I though CS was cbt sys?

Cheers
G2G

 

[Occam]

As a follow-on question from Pat's post, what is the difference between CS and Cbt?  I though CS was cbt sys?

Cheers
G2G

Combat breaks it, Combat Systems Engineering fix it.  ;D

 

[Marlin Spike]

  :yellow: :yellow: Ever had a question for the CBM? Feel free to ask.

Boatswain
The term boatswain is the oldest title in the sea service.


It is derived from the Old English batswegen or batsuen (boat's swain or husband).

In Saxon times the boatswain was in command.  In medieval England, he was the officer who made the ship go, having charge of the masts, yards and sails, and was second only to the master.  Nathaniel Boteler in his Dialogues, in the reign of King Charles I, showed the wide responsibilities of the boatswain in the early seventeenth century.  He had charge of all ropes, anchors, sails, flags, colours, and care of the long-boat.  He called up the watches to their duty, kept the sailors "in peace, and order one with another," and he saw to it that all offenders were punctually punished (boatswain's mates had to weild the cat-o'-nine tails), "either at the Capstan, or by being put in the bilboes, or with ducking at the main yard arm."

It is readily seen that through the centuries the boatswain has had the duties not only of command, but those associated with the coxswain and the late master-at-arms.  But through it all the boatswain has remained to this day the seaman specialist, particularly in terms of equipment related to seamanship.

In HMC ships today, the boatswain is usually a master or chief warrant officer, looks after small arms, anchors and cables, hawsers and fenders, paints, life rafts and demolitions, as well as parade and small arms training.

Taken from the "Customs and Traditions of the Canadian Armed Forces (1980), Chapter 5: Words and Expressions"

 

[CombatDoc]

All five departmental Chiefs (MS, CS, Cbt, Log, Deck-am not including an Air Chief (if embarked) as that individual would never become a ship's Cox'n) are understudies of the Cox'n (RSM) and his/her stand in (when he/she is unavail or on leave) is not always the same person.

Just so that the non-RCN types are clear, putting this through the Navy-Army transmodulator yields something like:

MS = Marine Systems Engineering  i.e. machinery that makes the pointy part go forward - similar to EME in the Army with the maintainers, mat techs, etc.

CS = Combat Systems Engineering i.e all the gee-whiz machinery to fight the ship like guns, missiles, radar - similar to LCIS, weapons techs, etc

Cbt = Combat Dept i.e. they fight the ship from the ops room using CS' kit - a very different paradigm than the Army's, although the Cbt O is similar to the Ops O function

Log = Logistics Dept, similar to the Army function comprising cooks, stewards, supply techs, etc

Deck dept - in addition to the deck evolutions, also are the Small Arms experts (e.g. man the .50), run by a CPO2 buffer - has no real Army counterpart that I can think of

Happy to be corrected by the hard navy types.

 

[PuckChaser]

Deck dept - in addition to the deck evolutions, also are the Small Arms experts (e.g. man the .50), run by a CPO2 buffer - has no real Army counterpart that I can think of

Sounds like a force protection platoon?

 

[jollyjacktar]

Deck Dept can be likened to the Combat Arms types for the ship,  have heard and used the term "Infantry of the Navy" to sort of make it easier for outsider's to understand.

 

[Marlin Spike]

Just so that the non-RCN types are clear, putting this through the Navy-Army transmodulator yields something like:

MS = Marine Systems Engineering  i.e. machinery that makes the pointy part go forward - similar to EME in the Army with the maintainers, mat techs, etc.

CS = Combat Systems Engineering i.e all the gee-whiz machinery to fight the ship like guns, missiles, radar - similar to LCIS, weapons techs, etc

Cbt = Combat Dept i.e. they fight the ship from the ops room using CS' kit - a very different paradigm than the Army's, although the Cbt O is similar to the Ops O function

Log = Logistics Dept, similar to the Army function comprising cooks, stewards, supply techs, etc

Deck dept - in addition to the deck evolutions, also are the Small Arms experts (e.g. man the .50), run by a CPO2 buffer - has no real Army counterpart that I can think of

Happy to be corrected by the hard navy types.

Sounds like you got it to me Doc,

 

[Marlin Spike]

Sounds like a force protection platoon?

Not unlike the other Sailors onboard, Force Protection is a large part of our duties in todays Navy.