Time & Frequency at Sea on MCDVs?

[Circumnavigate]

I am seriously considering switching my MARS officer application to something in the naval reserves, solely because I know I cannot handle the 6 or more month overseas deployments. Shorter periods would be fine, but this type of duration is simply too long.

Does anyone work on-board an MCDV such that they can tell me how many "trips" per year, or month, they take? And, how long (a few days, a week) the trips are? I read somewhere that some voyages last a few weeks, but I would like more detailed examples of how often, and for what duration, the MCDVs take to sea. (I'm sure it will also matter whether one is p/t or f/t, but any information would be helpful.)

Thanks.


"No good decision was ever made in a swivel chair."
- General George S. Patton

 

[Ex-Dragoon]

In some cases the MCDV crowd are at sea more often then the Regs. You may want to consider a different career if this may be an issue for you.

 

[NavyShooter]

Friends of mine who have sailed in the NET billet on MCDV's have mentioned to me that they have done more sailing that often happens with major vessels.

One of them mentioned in the neighbourhood of 240 sailing days in a year.

Bear in mind that the sailings that MCDV's often do is in support of Naval reserve training, which mostly happens on weekends and in the summer months.  So, while a major warship will typically have a "summer leave" period, an MCDV's summer leave period will mean that it's LEFT port.

True, the trips are typically shorter (not more than a couple of months, even for the overseas trips) but they are more frequent, and at somewhat disadvantageous times as compared to the rest of the fleet.

NavyShooter

(Note, posted based on second hand info from friends of mine, not my own personal experiences.)

 

[DogOfWar]

Friends of mine who have sailed in the NET billet on MCDV's have mentioned to me that they have done more sailing that often happens with major vessels.

One of them mentioned in the neighbourhood of 240 sailing days in a year.

Bear in mind that the sailings that MCDV's often do is in support of Naval reserve training, which mostly happens on weekends and in the summer months.  So, while a major warship will typically have a "summer leave" period, an MCDV's summer leave period will mean that it's LEFT port.

True, the trips are typically shorter (not more than a couple of months, even for the overseas trips) but they are more frequent, and at somewhat disadvantageous times as compared to the rest of the fleet.

NavyShooter

(Note, posted based on second hand info from friends of mine, not my own personal experiences.)

this is correct. Generally speaking its 6-10 weeks out and 3 weeks-5weeks in. There are trips to florida and the Arctic coming up in a couple weeks leaving from Halifax, cant give you dates or names of the vessels but they are going to be gone for about 6 weeks a piece. Up and down the coast "shooting squirtguns" not like the REAL navy who fight REAL wars a very drunk reg force OD informed me of last week. He was in a pat platoon holding patern but felt my sea time meant nothing compared to his matress moving duty's. LOL ;D. As an Officer in the reserves you'll have a crack at plenty of contracts if you wanted it to be your job. You ont be going to the gulf but you could fing yourself in Europe,South America, the Arctic, all over Canada and the states. You could do worse.

 

[tree hugger]

How many slots would there be on an MCDV for LogOs or Int officers? 1 each maybe?

 

[tree hugger]

What would normally be the secondary duties they'd be assigned?

 

[hugh19]

The MCDV's are to small to carry anything but Mars bars

 

[Monsoon]

The MCDVs are too small to carry anything but Mars bars

True dat, though I've heard talk on and off about embarking a LogO to help out with the admin jive on the longer trips when a few ships go out.  The current situation of trying to do everything through the MOG over INMARSAT hundred of miles away isn't the best.

Anyway, the ships are at sea between 120 and 200 days a year (that doesn't include time alongside in foreign ports, though) depending on what's going on. Sometimes the burden will be very asymetrical, with one of two ships doing lots and lots of sailing and others not sailing much at all, though the burden is shifted year by year.  If you're not lucky enough to get a permanent billet on a specific ship (i.e. if you're just posted to "the coast"), or if your billet is just as a bridge watchkeeper, then you'll be passed around from ship to ship like a bad penny and you'll spend almost all your time at sea.  Usually this is just for people who are out for a few months at a time, but it can happen on longer terms if you're given a series of short contracts.

Usually the Kingstons won't be "at sea" for more than a week at a time or, rarely, two weeks, though the deployments are still one-and-a-half to three months long and, being a small ship, the weeks are very exhausting.  Some of the weekends alongside during the deployments will be in the home port (Halifax or Victoria) but they don't provide much of a rest.  If you're opposed to that much sailing, you might consider using the one major advantage of the reserves and only taking contracts on ship for as long as you're comfortable being away from home, and taking contracts on shore postings the rest of the time.  There's not much job security that way and the career managers might not be cooperative, but once you're senior enough (in the Lt(N) range) you'll know enough people that you can more or less write your own tickets.  EI helps to bridge the gap, too.

 

[navymich]

Just hit 150 days at sea for this calendar year.  And most of the weekends weren't at home either.  It is a tough time, and definitely requires a good support system at home.  I personally enjoy my job, although I do my fair share of bitching along with everyone else.  The biggest complaint I have is that the sailing schedule is not concrete at all.  To be on a reg force ship and know that yes, you will be gone for 6 months, but you know when those 6 months are and what you are doing before and after that, whereas the MCDV's are up in the air alot, and any home time can be easily, and last minute, turned into sea time.  My sea time for this year is high, compared to usual, and we are told that it will ease up a bit for next year... But, I like what I am doing and I thank my family for backing me on it.

If becoming Naval Reserve is something that you are seriously interested, be sure to get alot of information, and think about what else is going on in your life.  Good luck.

 

[chief_of_da_fence]

keep in mind they  are smaller ships so smaller crews . so when not at sea you have twice the duty watches. so yes your in home port but you get naild with duty so you might as well be at sea.

 

[Sub_Guy]

I don't know about the duty watches, I was always under the impression that all the MCDV pooled thier resources and had a duty watch for all the vessels while alongside home port.  At least here in ESQ when Port security comm checks are done you always get one dude answering all the MCDV's.  Even with the smaller crew, they are smaller boats, so in theory the duty watch would be smaller.  We only have 3 guys standing duty on the Sub, and even on the Sub my rotation was better than it was on the Iro and Van.

 

[chief_of_da_fence]

you are correct i just wanted him/hr to know that you have your 200 days or more at sea plus about 7  to 10 duty watches possably.

 

[navymich]

Yes, the MCDV's have 1 duty watch per "nest".  However, if all of the ships are at sea but one, then that one is standing all of the duties on their own.  As well, if the ship's come back, they will typically have the duties for the weekend they are around while the ship that had been standing them all is kept out of the rotation.  An MCDV has 4 pers on each duty: 1 Sr. WatchKeeper (like OOD, but the PO's and Officers hold the position), 2 quartermasters and 1 engineer.  The SWK's are typically in a 1 in 5-8 rotation, the engineers 1in 6, and the QM 1 in 6-10.  And if there are people away on leave/crse etc, it will chg the rotation of course.