chengkp75

I use "Seadistances.org" and this shows Gdansk to Ronne as 185 nm (pretty close, Andy). I suspect this is one major thing. Leaving after 1900 from Gdansk, would likely lead to overtime for line handlers. Similarly, arriving before noon in Denmark would likely require a morning shift, and an afternoon shift (neither one of which actually works a full shift, but they get paid for a full shift). Yep. The entire Baltic region is an ECA, so they have to burn 0.1% sulfur "super low sulfur diesel" fuel the whole time, which is about 3 times the cost of residual fuel they burn outside the ECA.

The e-muster was given conditional approval, pending evaluation by the IMO (and remember, it is the IMO, not the USCG that sets standards for safety on foreign flag cruise ships), so until the conditional approval is rescinded, it is acceptable to do either way. I see the e-muster going away in the next couple of years at the outside.

Incinerator fires are pretty common on cruise ships. They are most commonly inside the incinerator, which is equipped with fire suppression equipment, but if the smoke/heat alarm goes off, it is treated like any other fire. They usually happen when crew are not completely diligent in sorting trash to go into the incinerator. There is a shredder that can cause a spark if metal or things like AA batteries are shredded, and this spark can smolder for hours, before the alarm happens. An "automated alarm" with door closings sounds like a fire detector in that zone went off. When a fire is detected in a fire zone (one section of the ship from keel to top, and there will be 5-7 zones typically, and are delineated by the fire doors in the passageways), the doors will automatically close, and ventilation will automatically be shut down in that zone. Fires reported in the engine room can be caused by a lot of things other than fire. A steam leak can set off a smoke detector, or overzealous use of anti-seize compound on exhaust manifold bolts can burn off when the engine is first run again, causing smoke and odors and false alarms. It sounds more like the crew are still learning the ropes regarding the safety systems onboard, and things are being handled over cautiously. Typically, all these would be a "code Bravo" call with a location, not a general announcement of a fire.

Where did this come from? No, keeping the balcony partitions closed is a safety consideration.

Proof of this, please. In another thread, I did some quick man-hour figures, and I see the two methods as a wash as far as total man-hours are concerned.

Some lines keep a percentage back from distribution to crew, but it goes into a crew welfare fund, which pays for crew parties, improvements to crew facilities, etc. I've heard that Viking keeps a good bit, but uses it for things like repatriating crew who have family emergencies before the end of their contracts, and even for education.

There are a lot of things on the "port fee list" that cannot be listed as "port fees and taxes" by the cruise lines. Things that are required to be paid, simply because the ship is in port (like the hook up fee, and delivery fee for shore power) is required for any ship that enters the port. The actual usage of electricity, while paid to the port authority, is an "operational" cost, just like potable water, or wharfage and stevedoring for the provisions and stores that are loaded, and these costs are not "required" but are optional charges that the ship decides it needs. These cannot be included in "port taxes and fees" according to a class action suit against the cruise lines a couple of decades ago.

What you don't understand is that the taxes and fees paid by the cruise lines are a very small percentage of the total taxes and fees collected by the ports. Cargo ships pay the same dockage fees, pilot and tug fees, etc, and also pay a tax on each container landed or loaded, just like the per passenger tax. This affects nearly every price in your daily lives, as over 80% of world commerce travels by sea. The cruise ship taxes and fees don't go to just maintain the cruise terminal, it all goes into the port authority kitty for upkeep of the entire port. And, as you say, things cost more in the US than it does in Mexico or the Caribbean, so the cost to maintain the ports will be higher.

Let's look at the man-hours claims. The typical ship has 16 lifeboats, so there would be 16 muster stations. How many crew are at the e-muster check in at each station? I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and say, 4, two to check people in and two to do the demonstration. That means 64 crew. How long are the check in stations manned? Let's say from 10am to 5pm, or 7 hours. That is 448 man-hours for the e-muster. Now, let's look at the traditional muster. While passengers may think that there are only a couple of crew at each muster station, and only for less than an hour, the actual passenger muster drill utilizes around 3-400 crew, depending on the size of the ship, and they have to have time to prepare for the drill, so their time would be around 1.5 hours, so 450-600 man-hours. No, what the other lines are doing is "simulating" training with crowds, which is not the same thing as handling crowds, and I feel that crew training has suffered during the e-muster usage, and will continue to suffer if the e-muster continues. Want an example? See the NCL drill the PP was complaining about, where the crew had no handle on handling the crowds. Now, which is more similar to a real emergency, the e-muster where they handle 10-20 people at a time, or where they are faced with the entire ship heading to muster stations? So, ask yourself, if the old musters were considered to merely be a waste of time, but with the training the crew has had during the e-muster period, when they actually have to do a passenger muster, and it is described as a shambles, have they been receiving better training? This just makes my point.

The port fee I mentioned for shore power is the "hook up" fee, and the "delivery" fee to pay for the infrastructure that was built to provide shore power. Those are flat rates, and can be passed on as "port taxes and fees". As for fuel savings, the cruise line pays for the shore power by the mega-watt-hour, just like your meter at home (though that's in kilowatt-hours), and there have been studies that show it is more expensive for the ships to use shore power than to run their own diesels. The amount charged for the amount of power used, is an "operational" cost, and therefore is not allowed to be included in the "port taxes and fees".

That was a quite stable transfer, they didn't even need to climb a ladder. Pilots do this every day of their working lives. Think about the pilot who has to climb 20' of rope ladder just to get to the small platform at the bottom of the metal stairway, that then stretches another 40' up to the deck of a tanker in ballast. And, then, going down, you are facing the side of the ship on the rope ladder, and stepping backwards onto the pilot boat. Many pilot boats have a small platform at the top of the wheelhouse, that sticks out towards the side of the boat, like a bridge wing, where the pilot steps onto/off of the boat. You'll notice in the video that the Captain turned the ship (watch the land in the background), until the ship was across the seas, and the pilot boat had stopped bouncing on the waves, as it was sheltered by the ship. The reason there are no railings, is that the railings could get smashed when the pilot boat rolls against the ship, or the pilot could get trapped between a railing and the ship. There are grab rails on the side of the superstructure of the pilot boat, and in rough weather there will be a crewman standing on the boat, either tethered off, or holding the grab rails, and reaching for the pilot to pull him in.

Shore power.

The ship provides for "allotments" for the crew, which is where the company sends money from the crew's paycheck, directly to the families at home. This is far more convenient for the crew than finding a Western Union to wire money home. They are allowed to "allot" up to 80% of their pay. Paying cash to the crew has no advantage to them.

"Someone" at RCI and Carnival, not necessarily anyone who has a background in safety training, "considers" it to be better. And, what statistics does "the points guy" use to bolster his argument that the change was to save money? Where are the timesheets? Where is the payroll data?

You are addressing one small portion of the muster drill. But, as I've addressed on many threads about this, this removes any actual, realistic, training for the passengers regarding muster (how you navigate a thousand other people doing the same thing), and removes any realistic training for crew in handling hordes of cats that need herding to muster. And, in reality, the lifejacket demonstration, and "safety briefing" is filler to keep you occupied, while the rest of the muster process (that you don't see, because you're at your station) is completed. And, for the last couple of decades, while using the in person muster system, ships were allowed to not have in person lifejacket demonstrations, or safety briefings, as long as they were shown on the TV's in the cabins.

Who has established this?

Since the cruise lines pay no taxes on revenues, that is not the reason. It is not done for employee taxes either, as most countries where the crew come from, tax anything that comes from the employer (whether listed as wages, salary, or gratuity) as normal income. The sad truth of the matter is that the gratuities have been increasing because the cruise lines are finding it hard to find crew, and are having to pay more to get the crew (and the statutory minimum wage for seafarers goes up each year), so the daily service charge is increased to cover it. Folks, whether you pay a cruise fare and the service charge, or the cruise line rolls the service charge into the fare, it all affects the cruise lines' profits, because if the service charge goes up to cover higher wages, then more of the fare goes to cover operating expenses and the excess becomes profit. This is how all businesses work. And, in line with my "one and done" on tipping threads, I'll go away now.

When building a ship, those "one off" items are ordered a couple years in advance. While diesel engines are not "one off" items, I have known where lines will pre-order engines years before the contract to build the ship is even tendered. And, each "one off" order delays everything behind it, since the production line has to be retooled for the next "one off" item.

I only wish that a dry dock was just to paint the hull. Then the Chief Engineer would not have to work 18 hour days, logging tens of miles of steps around the ship, under the ship, and up and down into the dock, every day of the docking. Every dry dock has a massive amount of mechanical maintenance, inspection, and repair, to all the systems that make a cruise ship a ship.

I assume that she was docked port side to the dock, then? What were the winds like at the time? State of the tide? Very likely between a strong tidal current and cross winds, the turning basin by Fisher Island was not safe to use.

Actually, that is not correct. To get to/from LA to Hawaii only needs an average of 17 knots speed, well down from full speed. With the six engines Crown has, taking any one out of service can still provide enough power to reach this speed. If I remember correctly, the problem was that one engine was down for repair (waiting on parts), and another had to be overhauled, so two engines out of service. The one engine was overhauled a good while ago, and I believe that the repairs on the other were completed months ago.

If you look at the "First Class staterooms and suites-A deck", the photo of a "special stateroom" , the far corner looks very similar to your photo, with the two port lights, and the round AC vent.

From what I can see on the as built deck plans: https://www.sterling.rmplc.co.uk/visions/decks.html The second and third class cabins had a sink in the stateroom (not in a separate bath), and about 60% of the second class cabins had a private toilet, the rest, and all third class cabins used common toilet facilities.

And while you get everything repaired, get the electrician to fit a "whole house surge suppressor". Lightning struck in the yard of our 200 year old house. Fortunately, as part of the charm of the house, we retained the lightning rods on the roof. The glass globes on these glowed like light bulbs, the copper piping in the house glowed green, and the aluminum trim on the windows glowed. But, with a surge suppressor, no electrical damage whatsoever.

Does Viking have Hi-Fog in the cabins, or a basic sprinkler system? Most of my cruise ships only used Hi-Fog in machinery spaces, to protect the electrical systems, while the cabins got the "large drop" sprinklers to maximize water on the fire.