longest time between ports

i
think you should direct that question to tankermen; they would answer. "what port"when steaming from the gulf to W.coast Africa mooring to a bouy, picking up and connecting oil line . loading and then just heading out on a L.E.F.O. sometimes for months. No small wonder that most of them were loonies!

My longest trip between ports was in 1963 on the MV GREAT CITY. She was one of Reardon Smith's fleet and also my first voyage as a junior engineer on a three cylinder Doxford in a ship that was built during the war ex EMPIRE TAVOY. We sailed from Buenos Aires bound for Moji, Japan. We bunkered in the Cape Verde Islands, no shore leave then off again to Moji. It took 57 days to get there and they started cargo on arrival. Guess who was duty engineer first night in?

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Originally Posted by Bob Rowson

i
think you should direct that question to tankermen; they would answer. "what port"when steaming from the gulf to W.coast Africa mooring to a bouy, picking up and connecting oil line . loading and then just heading out on a L.E.F.O. sometimes for months. No small wonder that most of them were loonies!

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Bob, you are so right! I joined one job in Rotterdam and never set foot ashore for 41/2 months, alongside only once but no shore leave due to workload. Left by chopper at Las Palmas.

I never served on tankers, but the story that went around in my time, probably not true, but who knows, was that one tanker man who had been on them for years, used to draw a duck on his cabin floor, and then sit there and feed it bread !!!.There were some strange characters that were at sea after the war, but when you consider what they went through it was understandable.

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Originally Posted by Keith Tindell

I never served on tankers, but the story that went around in my time, probably not true, but who knows, was that one tanker man who had been on them for years, used to draw a duck on his cabin floor, and then sit there and feed it bread !!!.There were some strange characters that were at sea after the war, but when you consider what they went through it was understandable.

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HA HA Keith, quite possible. I remember in 76 we took a 315,000 ton job into Sembawang drydock, I think we were the first big ship into their new drydock. When we sailed we were all given a pot plant for our cabins which died off pretty quickly due to no fertiliser / feed etc.
I planted a potato in mine without saying anything and it sprouted and started to grow, had some nice leaves and drew comment about how come my plant hadn't died when all the rest did, was often asked what plant it was. The wind up lasted for quite a long time, I did get some stick when I eventually told them, I wont repeat the remarks I got.

Longest for me was London to Singapore on the City of Ely, without getting ashore or even docking. We stopped at anchor somewhere to let undertakers take the body of a crew member off. We anchored while waiting to transit Suez. After that, we broke down every day for up to 12 hrs before anchoring off somewhere near Aden for quite a long time, maybe a week or even more. There were other places where we anchored, to drop of some crate or other, but I don't think I ever knew there names, just a few hours in each. All that time with no air con or cold water tap.
Long time ago now, so can't remember how long it took.

I was EDH on the Port Brisbane in 1965, We had just come through the Suez on our way to Australia when we hit a sand bar and damaged the port prop. We sailed to Fremantle on the starboard prop only as I recall it took 23 days. fresh water was rationed. WE had to go to Brisbane for repairs, We carried spare props but when the spare port prop was lowered into position it was the wrong size. WE were stuck in Brisbane < our home port >While the port Sydney brought us a spare prop. I always thought it was a long time at sea but after reading some of these stories it was nothing.

Was on the British Guardian got caught up the Gulf when they opened the new refinery in Aden, spent around six months running crude from the Gulf there.
Des

From Hull to Melbourne via the canal.
Took 5 days longer than the 5 weeks we were told, engine problems just outside of Aden.
No air conditioning, not much to start with, two pints of fresh water per day and salt water showers.

Apart from an old tramp 'SS Burhill' which broke down at least 3 times a day, my longest trip was on a Shell tanker from Wellington to Japan which took 8 weeks. Shell later stored us at Singapore for 65 men for 6 weeks to the UK. Then put 3 passengers aboard and it took two months to get home. Luckily we4 still took food parcels home then so I ah to cadge he presents off of everyone so that we could eat.
I see that yet again my name appears in the comments before I have seen the article.
Terry Sullivan R340406