Maritime transport or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used throughout recorded history. The advent of aviation has diminished the importance of sea travel for passengers, though it is still popular for short trips and pleasure cruises. Transport by water is cheaper than transport by air or ground, but significantly slower for longer distances. Maritime transport accounts for roughly 80% of international trade, according to UNCTAD in 2020.
Seamanship is the art, knowledge and competence of operating a ship, boat or other craft on water. The Oxford Dictionary states that seamanship is "The skill, techniques, or practice of handling a ship or boat at sea."
The United States Merchant Marine is an organization composed of United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of the government and private sectors, and engage in commerce or transportation of goods and services in and out of the navigable waters of the United States. The Merchant Marine primarily transports domestic and international cargo and passengers during peacetime, and operate and maintain deep-sea merchant ships, tugboats, towboats, ferries, dredges, excursion vessels, charter boats and other waterborne craft on the oceans, the Great Lakes, rivers, canals, harbors, and other waterways. In times of war, the Merchant Marine can be an auxiliary to the United States Navy, and can be called upon to deliver military personnel and materiel for the military.
The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) is a worldwide system for automated emergency signal communication for ships at sea developed by the United Nations' International Maritime Organization (IMO) as part of the SOLAS Convention.
A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship's cargo and deck crew. The actual title used will vary by ship's employment, by type of ship, by nationality, and by trade: for instance, chief mate is not usually used in the Commonwealth, although chief officer and first mate are; on passenger ships, the first officer may be a separate position from that of the chief officer that is junior to the latter.
A third mate (3/M) or third officer is a licensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. The third mate is a watchstander and customarily the ship's safety officer and fourth-in-command. The position is junior to a second mate. Other duties vary depending on the type of ship, its crewing, and other factors.
International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) sets minimum qualification standards for masters, officers and watch personnel on seagoing merchant ships and large yachts. STCW was adopted in 1978 by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) conference in London, and entered into force in 1984. The Convention was significantly amended in 1995 and 2010 entered into force on 1 January 2012.
A helmsman or helm is a person who steers a ship, sailboat, submarine, other type of maritime vessel, or spacecraft. The rank and seniority of the helmsman may vary: on small vessels such as fishing vessels and yachts, the functions of the helmsman are combined with that of the skipper; on larger vessels, there is a separate officer of the watch who is responsible for the safe navigation of the ship and gives orders to the helmsman, who physically steers the ship in accordance with those orders.
The deck department is an organisational team on board naval and merchant ships. Among the merchant fleets of countries that have ratified the STCW Convention, the department and its manning requirements, including the responsibilities of each rank are regulated by that STCW Convention. The department is led by deck officers, who are licensed mariners, and they are commanded overall by the ship's captain. Seafarers in the deck department work a variety of jobs on a ship or vessel, but primarily they will carry out the navigation of a vessel from the bridge. However, they are usually also responsible for supervising and monitoring any maritime cargo on board, as well as ensuring maintenance of the deck and upper hull structure, monitoring the stability of the ship, including loading and discharging ballast water, carrying out mooring operations, and finally anchoring a ship.
Seafaring is a tradition that encompasses a variety of professions and ranks. Each of these roles carries unique responsibilities that are integral to the successful operation of a seafaring vessel. A ship's crew can generally be divided into four main categories: the deck department, the engineering department, the steward's department, and other. The reasoning behind this is that a ship's bridge, filled with sophisticated navigational equipment, requires skills differing from those used on deck operations – such as berthing, cargo and/or military devices – which in turn requires skills different from those used in a ship's engine room and propulsion, and so on.
A second engineer or first assistant engineer is a licensed member of the engineering department on a merchant vessel. This title is used for the person on a ship responsible for supervising the daily maintenance and operation of the engine department. They report directly to the chief engineer.
A sea captain, ship's captain, captain, master, or shipmaster, is a high-grade licensed mariner who holds ultimate command and responsibility of a merchant vessel. The captain is responsible for the safe and efficient operation of the ship, including its seaworthiness, safety and security, cargo operations, navigation, crew management, and legal compliance, and for the persons and cargo on board.
An oiler is a worker whose main job is to oil machinery. In previous eras there were oiler positions in various industries, including maritime work, railroading, steelmaking, and mining. Today most such positions have been eliminated through technological change; lubrication tends to require less human intervention, so that workers seldom have oiling as a principal duty. In the days of ubiquitous plain bearings, oiling was often a job description in and of itself.
A command duty officer or officer of the watch is the head duty officer on a ship, entrusted by the commanding officer and executive officer or the shipmaster with exercising in their absence command and control of the ship on their behalf for the duration of a watch.
The Great Lakes Maritime Academy at Northwestern Michigan College is located on West Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City, Michigan. The academy was established in 1969 as a Maritime college to train men and women to be licensed mariners on ships of unlimited tonnage or horsepower; including research vessels, cruise ships, freighters, tankers and more. One of six state-operated maritime academies in the United States, the Great Lakes Maritime Academy is the only maritime academy that offers graduates the opportunity to earn First Class Great Lakes Pilotage, and the only maritime academy located on fresh water. Students, called cadets, earn a Bachelor of Science degree and their Federal license to sail as an officer on both the Great Lakes and the oceans.
A Yachtmaster qualification is a certificate of competence of the ability to handle either a sailing boat or motor boat in certain prescribed conditions. Three different titles are specified; Yachtmaster Coastal, Yachtmaster Offshore, and Yachtmaster Ocean which specify the level of competence required and the area of operation certified.
A master mariner is a licensed mariner who holds the highest grade of seafarer qualification; namely, an unlimited master's license. Such a license is labelled unlimited because it has no limits on the tonnage, power, or geographic location of the vessel that the holder of the license is allowed to serve upon. A master mariner would therefore be allowed to serve as the master of a merchant ship of any size, of any type, operating anywhere in the world, and it reflects the highest level of professional qualification amongst mariners and deck officers.
Vessel safety surveys are inspections of the structure and equipment of a vessel to assess the condition of the surveyed items and check that they comply with legal or classification society requirements for insurance and registration. They may occur at any time when there is reason to suspect that the condition has changed significantly since the previous survey, and the first survey is generally during construction or before first registration. The criteria for acceptance are defined by the licensing or registration authority for a variety of equipment vital to the safe operation of the vessel, such as safety equipment, lifting equipment, hull structure, static stability, ground tackle, propulsion machinery, auxiliary machinery, etc. The SOLAS Convention, specifies safety equipment for commercial vessels operating internationally.
A deck cadet or trainee navigational deck officer or nautical apprentice is an apprentice who has to learn the basic duties of a deck officer on board a ship. The cadet has to complete the prescribed sea-time obtain a certificate of competency as officer in charge of a navigational watch. The cadet has to undergo various training onboard and has to document those in training record book. They have to undergo various forms of training, watch-keeping with chief officer, at port with second mate and normal deck jobs with the Bosun.
Nautical operations refers to the crew operation of a ship. It is the term used in academic education to refer to the studies of this professional field. Nautical operations refers to all the operational procedures, specific roles of officers and crew members, and regular functions and technical processes, which together shape the structure and functions for the general operations of a ship.
