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Just been on a cruise ship in Spain and all the ships in port dangled a red flag off the bow but what does it mean?
Maybe this is a bit late, but thought I would reply anyway.Just been on a cruise ship in Spain and all the ships in port dangled a red flag off the bow but what does it mean?
Maybe this is a bit late, but thought I would reply anyway.
The red bravo flag hanging from the bow is to indicate that the vessel has provided a fire wire. This is an emergency towing wire which a tug can take should the vessel catch fire and need to be quickly moved out of the harbour to prevent damage to the port. Only a few cruise lines use these, for example royal caribbean and celebrity, it's not really necessary for cruise ships to be honest. You'll mainly find tankers and bulk carriers with these fire wires, particularly because they have some form of dangerous cargo.
A red "bravo" flag flying from a mast may indeed indicate "I am taking in or discharging or carrying dangerous goods." (Originally used by the Royal Navy specifically for military explosives.) as specified in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_maritime_signal_flags .
A red flag hanging some 10 feet above the water line below the bow of the ship is a warning to small craft. Think about it. A cruise ship could have 16 lines fore and aft holding it to a pier. One line at the bow is not going to be able to move the ship. I see cruise ships docked all the time with a red flag below the bow and there is not a tug boat within a 3 hour sail so there is no way, absolutely no way, this bow line with a red flag is used for towing.
Finally you have got there. The fire tow wire is not a requirement for passenger ships, hence why the majority of pax ships don't use one! None of our company ships use them. I have been on one passenger ship that had wires, not ropes, but due to the safety implications, this is rare as you correctly point out. Some companies - I have noticed celebrity and msc, use fire wires in Port. This is purely a choice by those companies and once again I stress, it is not a requirement. The last thing I would want should my ship catch fire, is for someone to tow me off the Berth! If you see another passenger ship with the red flag at the bow, look closely and you'll see the connecting point for a tug at the end of the wire on which the flag flies from.