The New Age of Passenger Liners

David G. Brown

David G. Brown

RIP
Erik--

Your tale of semi-abandoning ship is harrowing enough to make me want to take up an oar and walk inland far enough that somebody asks, "what's that funny stick?"

-- David G. Brown
 
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Erik Wood

Member
Tell me about it,

I felt moronic for telling those on the boat deck in the main entrance way to go back to there cabins and trying to explain that it was only a precaution that the Captain decided to end. I felt odd as did the Chief Officer who was responsible for the removal of the passengers.

Erik
 
Michael H. Standart

Michael H. Standart

Member
Erik, just out of curiosity, what ever happened to the Captain of the Tropicale? Running aground is known to be rather embarrassing and has even been known to trash some careers.

Cordially,
Michael H. Standart
 
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Bill DeSena

Guest
While were telling sea stories.... On the USS Ranger there was a 'man overboard' alarm sounded one day and that caused a full muster roll call to determine who was missing. The ship was paralyzed for about 30 minutes while this went on and the only person not accounted for was yours trully! I had been on an inventory working party in one of the storerooms where we kept sundries for the ship's store and didn't hear the announcement for all hands to report to their mustering locations. I just kept counting soap and shaving cream boxes. Luckily, just when my division officer was about to confirm that I was the missing man someone remembered where I was and came and got me before it got more serious. The PA system in the storeroom got some repairs after that.

Regards
Bill
 
Michael H. Standart

Michael H. Standart

Member
Oh brother! Was that one of the old bombtail storerooms next to the main store and the Rangercove? I remember that the 1-MC didn't always work properly when I was on the ship.

They didn't work all that well in any of the soda storerooms either.

Cordially,
Michael H. Standart
 
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Bill DeSena

Guest
Hi Michael,

I do believe it was the bombtail one on port side and I'm not surprised it still didn't work either,..grin!

Bill
 
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Bill DeSena

Guest
Hey Micjael,

Did your division officers windup doing time for fraud and embezzlement too? We had two that made a killing in the Japanese motorcycle and stereo business the only problem was they forgot that the USN was a partner in their business. They didn't catch the loss until they were either out of the navy or on other ships then they were arrested, tried and convicted.

Bill
 
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Bill DeSena

Guest
Hey Michael,

Did your division officers windup doing time for fraud and embezzlement too? We had two that made a killing in the Japanese motorcycle and stereo business the only problem was they forgot that the USN was a partner in their business. They didn't catch the loss until they were either out of the navy or on other ships then they were arrested, tried and convicted.

Bill
 
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Erik Wood

Member
Hello Again,

Well to my knowledge we served as Captain for another 3 or 4 years but retired after that. He got a letter or reprimand and yours truly was not on the bridge the time that happened because the First Officer got canned since he is the one that had the conn.

Something else I have noticed over the years is that passengers for the most part seem to become a part of the ship in the steam days. They would only travel that ship now all the ships are the same and nobody really cares. I think that takes away from the romance of the era. I recall in David Browns post that Captain Smith was taking the turns into New York Harbor at full speed and that would take some skill. I used to have a hard time doing it at half. But now I know the turns and the ship so I am good at it. Mario Adretti of ship driving is what they call me. I have been known to enter locks a little fast. As well as go through belfast lough a little to fast as well as making the turn into Cape Town a little to fast even in Seattle I have made the turn to fast. OOPPSS.

Erik
 
Michael H. Standart

Michael H. Standart

Member
Erik, just make sure you don't play bumper pool with too many ships. That could get you gossiped about. ;-)

Bill, which Bombtail Storeroom? We had one in the portside where that ladderwell goes up, and another one that was accessed through a trunk in the main portside passageway which went down to the forth deck. (Guess which one those HUGE cases of towels were stored in.)

We never had a division officer tagged for fraud, but one of our cash corruption agents got nailed when he was a CC at RTC San Diego. Seems he got some sort of scam going on the recruits where if they paid money to join a secret society, they would get primo orders to the best billets. Trouble was, one of the recruits was the son of a retired admiral and he had the presence of mind to do some checking with dear old Dad.

SH-1 John Doe (Name changed to protect the guilty) got busted to E-1, a Big Chicken Dinner, and some hard brig time for that little escapade.

Cordially,
Michael H. Standart
 
Shelley Dziedzic

Shelley Dziedzic

Member
Can't compete with you GUYS but I did spend a cold night in December on a DE 1040 class in Alephsis Greece on alert during the Arab-Israeli crisis in 1971. After escorting two sappy and slightly drunken J. O's back to the ship, the taxi left the quay with me standing on it- the ExO offered his stateroom for the night- my husband got a REAL surprise that night, I got a standing ovation from the wardroom next day (BLUSH BLUSH) and nine months later a daughter-whom we nearly named Athena -was born.
As far as liners- it was my great thrill to take a cruise on the old Galileo when she was with Chandris- she made a first call at New London CT before somebody realized the channel was too shallow for her draft-so late at night we were finally ferried by LIFEBOATS out to the ship under wild skies and a big swell- the ship's lights were all ablaze and we had to enter through a service gangway of ropes low on the starboard side- it was WILD. She was/is a beautiful ship with a sharp clipper bow and counter stern-beautiful profile. I made two cruises on QE2- no words to describe that- and my most memorable cruise on the Island Breeze- a great old tub that still looks like a ship- she's sold again I hear. Memorable because it brought me at last to Titanic- spent many nights sitting alone in the dark on the bow under the stars at 2 a.m.-watching the night bridge, the lonely helmsman, and taking in the unbelievable bowl of stars-it was dead calm and the ocean like black ink. Nothing like the creak of decks and sheets, the swish of the bow cutting through the waves and the phosphorescent wake ribboning out behind-the best part was getting rocked to sleep in my rack at night with the sounds of the ship all around.
 
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Erik Wood

Member
I have spent many a moonlit night on the bridge starring into the dark emptiness in front of me. The ship quiet the men washing decks. The smell of the salt the smell of the ship. That is why I am a Captain I love the sea and the times of quiet peace. I am still known to appear on the bridge at 2 or 3 in the morning in my robe and slippers with my Captains Hat and pipe in mouth and take a peak out side. Stand out on the bridge wing. Most of my deck officers don't like it much but hey I am the Captain and I will do what I want. Sometimes I feel that the older ships especially of the steam have an odd almost ghost like sound and feel to them in the dead of night.

On a trip on the old Amsterdamn I recall the peace of night being broken by yelling. As third officer at the time I began to walk down the passageway to attempt to locate and the BAMMM out somebody came and pushed me through the cabin across the hall. The people inside just looked at me as I lie on the floor in a stunned disbelief. The lady got out of her bed and helped me up and offered to make me coffee which to this day makes no sense since she didn't have any coffee to give. I apologized for the intrusion called the maintance team to fix the door and then learned of the fight that had broken out across the hall.

Erik
 
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Yuri Singleton

Member
Just a quick technical question.
How much time does it take for an officer to walk quickly from the bridge down to the bottom of the forward holds and back?
(This question assumes the ship is arranged with the bridge being forward near the bow, not like a tanker or frieghter.)

2 minutes? 5 minutes? more...?

Yuri
 
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Erik Wood

Member
Well that would be determined by the ship and my speed. On a round you start port side on the Sun Deck and work your way down that takes about an hour to do a good inspection. However in a hurry I could make it from my chair on the bridge to the bottom of what is the food locker/freezer space on a ship like the Carnival Destiny in less then 3 minutes. That is at a run. Depending how many people there are along the way it could be as little as 2 and half. Most crusie ships don't have the forward and aft holds like we see on Titanic. There are filled through doors along the side. Luggage is loaded almost airplane style via a conveyer belt food is usually done the same way. Large cargos cars and such are what is taken via forklift or driven on the ship via those doors. I can make it from my chair on the bridge to the operating deck in the engine room in about 8 at a run with a clear path and no passengers and nobody in the galley. If the engines are at a stop I could use the stack space (depending on the ship) and take the maintance tunnel down the exhaust casing.

Erik
 
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