Laid up

[mak]

I'm just over three months into my first sea phase just now, bouncing around the far east. I've just heard that the ship is being laid up for a couple of months off malaysia next week. I've got about 4 weeks left until my supposed sign-off date but everyone who can is getting off in t.p.p to avoid being stuck on the ship for these two months as we'll just be sitting at anchor. As a cadet this (getting off early) isn't really an option for me and I was wondering what's the deal generally with getting off when you're laid up? I start college again first week of september and was hoping to be back before then! Any other cadets with any experience of being laid up?

[Hatchorder]

Mak,

Whilst a lay up may sound boring you can work it to your advantage. I did 3 month lay up on a gas carrier in the 80's. I got so many tasks signed off in my Deck Training Log Book, but also there were spaces for specialised tasks and I literally filled them up completely. We were replacing gang release Halon systems tanks, main tank inspections, valve replacements, and all sorts of stuff that you do not get chance to do normally. Because the watches were the boring bit all the Deck Officers took it in turns to day watches in full and then split the nights so we all had the chance to do daywork and interestinmg things. We learnt how to splice braidline mooring ropes and all sorts of stuff. If you have a good relationship with the Chief Officer then you may be able to get him to look through your book and choose some tasks to help you. Lifeboat launches and reovery, and all sorts of other stuff that you do not normally do.

I don't think you should be in a hurry to get off if you get the chance to do lots of tasks. If you were in your final sea phase then it would be different because you need the watchkeeping experience but as this is your first phase this ay work to your advantage. Anything out of the unusual in you sea phases can become a talking point in your orals, and to me that is safe ground!

See what other say, but for my money, make the most of it and stay on if you can.

Ian

[ETwhat?]

If your training company is different to the shipping one, send a message to your training manager so they know whats going on, places like clyde if you do a 4 month trip your entitled to 4 weeks off, so obviously staying on past the start of august isnt really a great option, you alos need some degree of rest before you go back to college if they expect you to perform well there too.
whilst getting off early may seem like a bad deal, if your not going to be able to get off when you should then its something you will have to consider, what happens if they extend the lay up by a month etc,
That said talk to the chief officer and find out what is going to be going on as if you can stay for a month and get things done that will be worth it, or it might not, and someones experience from 30 years ago isnt going to be a good thing to make this decision on.

[mak]

Hatchorder: Aye well I'd more than happy to do it for the reason you're outlined but my point is I won't be back in time for college. I also have to find somewhere to live in for term-time and regardless of how easy cadets apparently have it, it would be nice to have at least a week off before I go back to college for 8 months. I've also just come out of a month in dry-dock where I got a lot of difficult to get things signed, but no watchkeeping time. I should have said in the original post I can either go home on july 7th or september 17th apparently, both of which are fairly useless.

ETwhat: Being trained by the company, already asked the old man, he gets very angry if you email the office. Originally I assumed what would be happening would be that I would stay for a month of the lay-up and then bugger off at the start of august as intended. The problem is we won't be going in for water etc until well after I should have gone. It's just the combo of this lay-up abd the dry dock means my seatime is beginning to look a bit thin. I'm just going to have to wait and see, there is wild talk of throwing me straight onto another ship in t.p.p before the lay-up for a month which would be the best option in some ways.

Cheers for the advice lads.

[alistairuk]

Returning late to college isn't unusual - although most try to avoid it, some cadets (you probably won't be the only one in your group); will miss the first few weeks of college. (One in ours even missed 2 months)

[Chiefy]

With talk of tpp and 2 month lay up, i'll take a leap and assume you are with 7 point star,crew change can be done at anchor in tpp, also is your training officer in newcastle aware that the ship is going idle for 2 months? If not they might sort something for you.

Also are they sure she is gotping idle? Wont be the first boat that gets that mail and spends 2 months moving empty boxes before joining the new run :-)

[ETwhat?]

For the reasons you have said its not a great idea to be late back to college, if they have decided that your getting the choice of those dates i would pick july, apart form anything in phase 4 theres plenty of time to pick up the requirement you get 8 months or something close.

the best is if they can throw you onto another ship for an extra month and thats more likely to happen if they know your getting off.

[mak]

With talk of tpp and 2 month lay up, i'll take a leap and assume you are with 7 point star,crew change can be done at anchor in tpp, also is your training officer in newcastle aware that the ship is going idle for 2 months? If not they might sort something for you.

Also are they sure she is gotping idle? Wont be the first boat that gets that mail and spends 2 months moving empty boxes before joining the new run :-)

Anchor is off kelang. Old man's been pretty adamant about not being able to crew change at anchore there. Aye, training officer's decided it's best if i have my leave now and then join an L class for a month for the run down to south america. With the result that my plans for "summer" (august) are in ruins and I get back the day before college starts. As for the possibly not going idle, the captain asked me if i wanted to take a gamble on being a month late for college or if i wanted to join another ship. I chose the latter.

Still, it'll be nice to go somewhere new on a new ship etc.

[ETwhat?]

It sucks about your holiday plans but then its not a summer holiday from college and the attitude seems to be make the most of what you do get with little or no warning.

as for finding a place to live, if your sharing you can always ask them nicely to look for decent places, just be prepared for the single bed

[mak]

It sucks about your holiday plans but then its not a summer holiday from college and the attitude seems to be make the most of what you do get with little or no warning.

as for finding a place to live, if your sharing you can always ask them nicely to look for decent places, just be prepared for the single bed

Aye, doesn't bother me that much tbh, didn't make any plans too concrete in case of something like this happening. My plan vis a vis the flat is to find one while I'm at home and sort it out, get the best room etc and then the other reprobates i live with can fight over who goes in the box room.

[Chiefy]

Ahhhhh yes can't crew change off PKL but ok in TPP when we where there a few weeks ago it was pretty crowded though, makes sense to move north.

L boats are ok....on one now as it happens :-) but off to malaga to be idle for a week before running north south on the samba run :-)

Its a shame, and this is a bit trite, but better pain now for the gain in the not too distant future, if its any consolation i'm doing 110 days on a 90 day contract :-) :-) so don't feel they are treating you in anyway special :-)

[Steve]

if its any consolation i'm doing 110 days on a 90 day contract :-) :-)

Do you get any compensation for that, or is there a lot of leeway in your contract?

[mak]

Aye, if anything I'm looking forward to a change of scene, should be interesting going to south america and being confused by a different boat.

[Chiefy]

90 days is the leeway, on 75 +/- 15 days as a rule, but things hahave gone a bit wrong this trip cos its a new build and personnel are a bit confused etc, I will get most of it back in leave and there is an over tour bonus for going over the 90 days, so it isn't all bad......relief joins for 10 day hand over however it would have been shorter had we gone to ports more often :-) algeciras to santos is 10 days so thats what he's getting, i've had longer trips in the past just not with this lot, normally its worked spot on....77 on 77 off, which is what we'llbe aiming for aafter this trip :-)