M.v.discovery

[Captain Kong]

I have just recieved this note off a friend,
May be of interest.................
.
.To All. I have just seen a report issued, Re.M.V Discovery. Just recently this ship had to go into Falmouth dry dock for some work in connection with the hull. It seems that there where some issues with water leaking into the ship via the hull. At the moment the ship is now doing cruises out of U.K. Ports. Including Avonmouth.Hull. Liverpool.Also Newcastle.At the end of this season the ship will be withdrawn and will go to "Lay Up."MCA have expressed concerns and SOLAS is a big concern,when you consider average age of Pax is 50-75.Y.O . Just hope that the ship completes its tenure O.K.with Maritime Cruise Company.Also Nautilus has some grave concerns over Phillipino Seamens competency.
E.U.Countries have issued an ultimatum that all licenced and registered national Phillipinos must comply within a year for their goverment to over see that it is done proper. Their reply is asking for an extention of 1 year.They will set up a Goverment Training to comply with E.U. Latest ruling..
.
Cheers
Brian

[Ivan Cloherty]

Nothing to to with the above but just a coincidental 'Discovery' on BBC4 tonight (2100 hours)'Voyages of Discovery' the story of Magellan's circumnavigation of the world

[j.sabourn]

Ivan in 1970, think I also mentioned in a post long ago, my one and only contact with Philipino crew was when the Chinese were paid off in Hong Kong and the Philipinos were about 10 bob a month cheaper. I said at the time on here I was not overly impressed. However saying that nearly every man jack of them had Liberian style certificates issued from some so called Nautical establishment in Manilla. If these qualifications were genuine we must have been the best manned vessel on the High Seas. The store keeper came to me demanding a typewriter, dont beleive there was one on the ship, and I told him he was there to mix the paint for the bosun or do as required. If as you say they are under doubt 40 years later to all these so called high qualifications they were supposed to have then, there must have been criminal acts of false and misrepresentation even then, so will be even more so now I would assume. Cheers John S.

[Captain Kong]

A fiend of mine was a Master of a Anchor handling vessel.
He was in Singapore and was waiting for a new crew to take it round to Angola for the rigs there,
His Agent came on board, and said, "Guess where your next crew are coming from. the cheapest I could find."
He guessed, Filipino, Chinese, Korean and so on. Agent said No.
The cheapest are Nepalese from the Himalayas.
When they got on board they all fell on their knees as the ship was rolling slightly as another vessel moved past, They all thought they were having an earthquake.
The only water they had ever seen before was in a mountain stream. He could not believe that the Agent could find men like that and so cheap.
And with that he had to take them across the Indian Ocean and round the Cape to Angola. He said it was a terrifying
voyage with these people screaming and panicking all the way. He got off as soon as they docked in Luanda.
Cheers
Brian.

[Ivan Cloherty]

#4 One of the ships detained in a UK port a couple of weeks ago was flying the Mongolia flag. My LLoyds Maritime does not have any ports listed for Mongolia, but then again there are some very large countries with very large inland seas that some of us despite our worldly travels have never heard of.

[j.sabourn]

I just repeat what I said some time ago. You can make all the Rules you want but there will always be shipping there that will not abide by the Rules. Most of those rules would have to consist of arresting a ship, a lot of countries you would not be allowed to do. All these so called agreements apply to those who want to comply, if they dont they wont. Threats of expulsion from this treaty or that treaty which they probably never signed in the first place is laughable. Those who have never sailed under some of these flags have no idea of the conditions. Mind saying that I have also seen better conditions on some foreign flag vessels than some British ones. So the uk should also look to its own back yard first. The UK should never ever have agreed to a common certification standard, that for starters has to be a con. A British certificate at one time was considered the best in the world, if it is now on a par with Liberia and Panama which in my time was issued with same on strength of British cert. what happens now do holders of these cert. which they sat and passed are considered to be the same standard as all , I think they must be. I am still in possession of Liberian and Cayman Islands certs. as well as Australian and British, the Panamanian one I never saw as Owners took that as they paid for it, no doubt the name was altered in it and someone else may have used and still be using. Laws change ships change shipowners never change, shipping is a money making business if they dont show a profit they disappear. It used to be when things were near normal a British crewed and certificated vessel its Insurance rates were much lower than a foreign one, this will now no longer exist as all are supposed to be equal. Another stupid part of poor and mismanagement by a poor and second class British Government. John S

[Captain Kong]

I was signing on an AB, Eddie, and as I looked through his Discharge Book I saw several `Master` Discharges,
`Have you got a Masters ticket Eddie?`
Yes, he said, and pulled out a magnificent peice paper, It was a Panamanian Masters Certificate.
How did you get this Eddie?, he said, I went to the Panamanian Embassy and it cost me £50.
He had sailed on Panamanian registered ships with it. He was a good AB tho`.
Cheers
Brian.

[dugie mc nab]

Is that the "Discovery" which used to run from Freeport, Bahamas to Fort Lauderdale. She was built in Finland and originally named m.v. "Freeport'. A grand little ship.
Dugie

[Captain Kong]

Hi Duguie,
No it is another cruise ship, same name.
I have been on that Discovery from Fort auderdale to Freeport. lovely ship and superb catering.
Cheers
Brian

[j.sabourn]

Masters Discharges... It was not necessary for the master to have a discharge in his book. However when they brought out this law about having to have 2 years sea time in, in every 5 years or had to go and do an updating of knowledge course, or whatever they called it, I too started to give myself a discharge as proof of sea service. I can honestly say however I never gave myself any DRs, probably because by that time the Discharge Books didnt have a place to put in. However after filling in 3 discharge books plus paper ones which I had a habit of losing, I kick myself as there are now 3 ships I cant remember the name of. Will probably all come back in a blinding light on my death bed, and will sit up and shout Eureka I remember. Cheers John S