Being logged ..

[peter ward]

Unfortunately there were times when there were 'indiscretions' which required a visit to the bridge to be 'logged',when you were taken before the captain this is how things unfolded, the Head waiter who reported you would accompany you to the bridge and you were taken to the rear of the bridge (i think it was the flag locker), where there was a desk with a white line about a yard in front.

'when called you were marched to the line and had to stand legs apart in an 'at ease '  position with the head waiter one side of you and you union rep the other ..behind the desk would be the Captiain (but usually the staff captain) to his left would be the officer in charge and to his right the master at arms..then the charges would be read out ..

 and I vividly remember one time ...can't remember why I was on the bridge but I can remember being stressed and filled with trepidation at the thought of being brought up before the captain. because there were a number of people to be seen we were told to wait on the starboard wing of the bridge .  
the coast of Madagascar was on the starboard bow and not a cloud in the sky , a very warm day with beautiful clear blue ocean which you could skim stones off.as I looked down I saw this beautiful huge sea turtle just below the surface of the clear blue water swimming so serenly , for a few minutes all my problems seemed to lift and there was just me and the sea and the turtle,the sound of the ship seemed to vanish and I could only hear the lapping of the dead calm waters around the edge of the ship,I watched her till she was out of sight ...made me feel so relaxed I completely forgot why I was up there !!

I've never forgotten that moment and I 've never remembered why I was up there either !! peter

[Janice Naylor]

Another interesting insight into what went on behind the scenes.  Thanks, Peter.

[Rob Lightbody]

Great post peter, I can just imagine it!

[Louis De Sousa]

I have to say i left the ship with a clean sheet.

[Lynda Bradford]

Unfortunately there were times when there were 'indiscretions' which required a visit to the bridge to be 'logged',when you were taken before the captain this is how things unfolded, the Head waiter who reported you would accompany you to the bridge and you were taken to the rear of the bridge (i think it was the flag locker), where there was a desk with a white line about a yard in front.

'when called you were marched to the line and had to stand legs apart in an 'at ease '  position with the head waiter one side of you and you union rep the other ..behind the desk would be the Captiain (but usually the staff captain) to his left would be the officer in charge and to his right the master at arms..then the charges would be read out ..

 and I vividly remember one time ...can't remember why I was on the bridge but I can remember being stressed and filled with trepidation at the thought of being brought up before the captain. because there were a number of people to be seen we were told to wait on the starboard wing of the bridge . 
the coast of Madagascar was on the starboard bow and not a cloud in the sky , a very warm day with beautiful clear blue ocean which you could skim stones off.as I looked down I saw this beautiful huge sea turtle just below the surface of the clear blue water swimming so serenly , for a few minutes all my problems seemed to lift and there was just me and the sea and the turtle,the sound of the ship seemed to vanish and I could only hear the lapping of the dead calm waters around the edge of the ship,I watched her till she was out of sight ...made me feel so relaxed I completely forgot why I was up there !!

I've never forgotten that moment and I 've never remembered why I was up there either !! peter

Fantastic to read Peter's recollection of being taken before the Captain for indiscretions to be "logged"

Do any other crew members have similar memories?

[Andy Holloway]

Fantastic to read Peter's recollection of being taken before the Captain for indiscretions to be "logged"

Do any other crew members have similar memories?

Having been The Chief security officer on QE2 i have a 'few' stories of 'Captain's Table', which in effect was actually Staff captain's Table, as it was he who had the powers of punishment delegated to him by The Captain.

Some of the funniest were always the 'late backs' and the excuses, you really could write a  book....

Two that spring to mind are; firstly mainly post Twin Towers the US authorities required that ALL crew be back onboard 2 hours before sailing and when this was confirmed the Ship's Agent had to phone the US Immigration Department with 15 minutes.
While in NY there were about 8 or 10 crew late back, mainly caught up in traffic, and the 'punishment scale' was to Forfeit one port's shore leave for every 15  minutes late regardless of how long the stay in port was! But in NY this was reduced to every 5 minutes for obvious reasons. Fortunately all these crew were back within 10 minutes and the next day heading back to S'ton were duly brought in front of the Staff Capt.   All accepted their punishment, except one female 3 stripe officer, who felt that she should have been treated differently. After a moment's 'reflection' the Staff Captain said that he agreed with her, her face lit up, until he said that, in light of her position onboard and the fact she should be setting an example to other crew, he would be doubling the punishment to 2 ports - we were on back to back Trannies so S'ton & NY. He also informed her that she had the right to appeal to The Captain who was Uncle Ron, she decided that things could have got a whole lot worse in that case and accepted things as the were!!

The other case involved an Australian waiter who was 20 minutes late back onboard in Osaka. Brought in front of The Staff Captain he pleaded guilty and was duly punished in accordance with policy, but with a difference. As the first port after Osaka was Keelung, the absolute worst port in the universe, this was discounted and he was 'ordered' to go ashore. From Keelung the next 3 ports were HK [2 nights], Singapore & Phuket!!!

A bit draconian maybe, but as in NY in those days Cunard would have faced huge fines and possibly restrictions on Crew Shore Leave had crew repeatedly been late back, the point was got across firmly!

[June Ingram]

Fascinating, Andy, and thanks for sharing !  Do you have more recollections you can share with us ? 

[Lynda Bradford]

Thanks for sharing these stories Andy and giving us an insight into life onboard QE2 for crew. 

[skilly56]

And one with a difference!!

Was on a brand new ship - it was night time, and we were at anchor outside our destination, awaiting high tide so there would be enough water for us to enter and unload. At the prescribed time, engines were started, rudder tested, thrusters started & tested, all in preparation for going in.
Master arrived on the bridge, ordered the anchor up, and we got underway.
Then the master decided the westerly swells to too high to enable safe entry, so he ordered the ship back to anchor, and the crew to close the vent doors to the bow thruster compartment up fwd.
Because he had turned the dimmer down on the running lights for the thrusters, he omitted to shut them down, so the bow thruster compartment began to get hotter & hotter, as the big electric motor was still running, and the foc'sle officer who had overseen the dropping of the anchor did not ring the bridge to advise the bow thruster was still running.
The bow thruster motor continued to get hotter, until the motor top bearing collapsed into the windings (the motor was mounted vertically) and the whole unit came to a sudden halt when the electrical breaker blew out.

When we eventually returned to our home port, the chief engineer 'Logged' the master, in the ship's official log book, for 'Abuse of the ship's Machinery'! This action caused all sorts of ructions in the Ministry of Transport local office - "Unheard Of", and, "Never Happened Before", and , "Wouldn't have Happened in My Day", etc. (The latter was very true - the MOT surveyors had never encountered half the gear we had on this new ship, and couldn't even understand how an un-manned engine room could function without people inside it!!)
The master (now RIP) was quietly spoken to, and advised to familiarise himself more thoroughly with the requirements of modern-day machinery. The chief engineer decided he couldn't stomach the master's 'slack' attitude and resigned (we both had a laugh about it earlier this year). The bow thruster motor was removed & rebuilt, and is still functioning today! And micro switches were fitted to the cooling vent doors to automatically trip the motor in the event the doors were closed while the motor was still running.

Skilly