Duty shifts?

[TcDohl]

I am extremely surprised this hasn't been brought up in these boards before, but I guess I'll be the one to break the ice. (If I'm not, please kindly link me)

How are the duty shifts for the different MOS? And on different types of deployment? How much free time would there be? And is any one shift more difficult than another?

 

[kratz]

Are you asking about the duty watch for a major or minor vessel?

Surface or subsurface?

East or West coast vessel?

Alongside or at sea?

There are too many variables to answer without narrowing down the question itself.

 

[TcDohl]

There are too many variables to answer without narrowing down the question itself.

What the answerer has experience with and what they know. Current posting would be a good start, and in reverse chronological order if possible. Then insights and gripes are welcome.

Yes, I understand this is a broad topic, but I'd like to get as much info on it as possible.

 

[Sailorwest]

What the answerer has experience with and what they know. Current posting would be a good start, and in reverse chronological order if possible. Then insights and gripes are welcome.

Yes, I understand this is a broad topic, but I'd like to get as much info on it as possible.

Alongside, you can expect to stand as often as 1 in 3 days (worst case scenario) to perhaps 1 in 30. Are any duties worse than any other? Yes, the days that Sea Training show up at 0630 are well inside the worst category.

 

[gcclarke]

Alongside, you can expect to stand as often as 1 in 3 days (worst case scenario) to perhaps 1 in 30. Are any duties worse than any other? Yes, the days that Sea Training show up at 0630 are well inside the worst category.

I can do one better than that. The day that the bong bongs go off, and you know it isn't sea training because you're alongside Canada Place in Vancouver.

As for the duty rotation while at sea, that is very much dependent upon your trade / rank, and manning levels and manning requirements aboard your ship.

But since TcDohl asked for current posting, I haven't been "duty" for a year and a bit. I show up in the office, work for a while, work out, and go home.

Previous posting, when sailing I was usually standing watch 1 in 2, which meant that you would be following a 7 hours on, 7 hours off, 5 hours on, 5 hours off type rotation. When alongside, I'd usually be Officer of the Day twice a month.

Before that was all just in the training system.

 

[TcDohl]

Previous posting, when sailing I was usually standing watch 1 in 2, which meant that you would be following a 7 hours on, 7 hours off, 5 hours on, 5 hours off type rotation. When alongside, I'd usually be Officer of the Day twice a month.

Yes, I was going to ask specifically about how it's like for engineering officers on deployment at sea and alongside, but I wanted to see the full gamut the different experiences.
Is there a more favored shift? Like the morning/afternoon shift?

 

[gcclarke]

Yes, I was going to ask specifically about how it's like for engineering officers on deployment at sea and alongside, but I wanted to see the full gamut the different experiences.
Is there a more favored shift? Like the morning/afternoon shift?

Engineering Officers will generally stand whatever watch rotation that their department is standing, while they are still under training. Once trade qualified, they're day workers. Day workers that will, of course, immediately be awoken anytime something goes wrong.

But yeah. When there's only one person in the position, you can't really have them on a watch rotation.

Alongside, they'll be in the mix for Officer of the Day duty like all the other officers aboard (Except the XO and CO of course).