QBhoy
Well-Known Member
Yeah fair play. Unfair of me to perhaps seem harsh. Only been on a couple of Rn vessel as a guest. Never sailed on one.I take the point re range of applications and guess I was referring to containers / tankers - we used to marvel at how small MN crews were and were envious of their notably superior living conditions!
As I say, engineering wasn’t my world but looking at deck crew it is relevant to note that RN ratings are usually multi-skilled so keeping watches and handling lines may not need the numbers but their other specialism will and operating / fighting the ship 24/7 is resource intensive. As an example, down south in ‘82 and ‘83 we were in defence watches for months on end so around 50% of the crew closed up on weapons, ops room, engine control room etc, etc at all times, working watch on watch off. Under this regime the ship could fight immediately without going to ‘action stations’ from scratch. I guess on the engineering side it isn’t just about keeping things running it is also haven’t the capacity to deal with breakdowns, firefighting, damage control etc in quick time to keep the ship operational - not something that the MN have to factor in during peacetime.
Interestingly, I was reading an article about the next generation of frigates and it seems that greater automation and less people is a factor and it was clear to me that my experience is now very dated!
haha. Yeah the accommodation is decent n most I’ve sailed on in the MN crew cabins look tight occasionally though and share usually. Got a fright when I left deep sea to go North Sea. So much more frantic. No need to dress up for meals though. Haha.
