Guard (shipping)
As a guard that part of the on ships and boats on the one hand crew called that in shifts ongoing ship operation ensures at a certain time (eg. B. 4-8 pm). On the other hand, this time is also referred to as the “watch”.
The first thing on ships was shift work in the sense of work organization ( division of labor ). If commercial ships are used around the clock, the ship's crew is divided into the guards and the permanent guards. Each watch consists of an officer on watch and, if necessary, several crew grades. A responsible security guard should always be employed in recreational shipping, but the different levels of crew are usually not required.
The guards are gone according to a guard system. The most widespread is the three-wake system, i. that is, there are three alternating guards on the ship. A two- watch system is used on smaller ships that have only two nautical officers or only one master and one first officer . If it is not possible to replace the crew in very small units, one also speaks of “one-guard boats”, although in the narrower sense there are no longer any guards . Sports ships that call at a port or anchorage every evening usually operate in such a one-watch system.
In labor-intensive maneuvers the crew all guards can temporarily be used, which in English all hands called ( "All Hands"), and especially on sailing ships for labor-intensive sailing or docking maneuvers - then as all-hands- or all-man maneuver called - used becomes.
Three-watch system
| 00: 00-04: 00 | 04: 00-08: 00 | 08: 00-12: 00 | 12: 00-16: 00 | 16: 00-20: 00 | 20: 00-24: 00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| guard | Guard 1 | Guard 2 | Guard 3 | Guard 1 | Guard 2 | Guard 3 |
| Free watch 1 | Guard 1 | Guard 1 | Guard 1 | Guard 1 | ||
| Free watch 2 | Guard 2 | Guard 2 | Guard 2 | Guard 2 | ||
| Free watch 3 | Guard 3 | Guard 3 | Guard 3 | Guard 3 |
In the three-watch system, one watch lasts four hours, followed by eight hours of off- watch . The 24-hour day is therefore divided into six guards:
- 0 to 4 watch (also: 0-4 watch): 00: 00–04: 00 and 12: 00–4: 00 pm, so-called middle watch (also dog watch ), mostly assigned to the 2nd officer
- 4 to 8 watch 04: 00–08: 00 and 16: 00–20: 00, mostly assigned to the chief officer
- 8 to 12 watch 8: 00–12: 00 and 8: 00–24: 00, mostly assigned to the 3rd officer, since there are usually enough higher-ranking officers awake during watch times to meet these mostly inexperienced officers supervise and guide.
With this system, every member of the crew has constant watch times, which has advantages and disadvantages. There is therefore a different three-watch system with seven waking times, so that everyone is equally involved in the uncomfortable waking times. For this purpose, for example, the watch from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. is divided into two two-hour watch times (first and second flat feet ).
The navigators provide the officers on watch (abbr .: WOs) who are assigned their permanent watch. The captain is not assigned to a watch on large ships.
Dual watch system
In the two-watch system, one watch lasts six hours, followed by six hours off watch. The 24-hour day is therefore divided into four guards:
- 0 to 6 watch 00: 00–06: 00 and 12: 00–18: 00, middle watch (also dog watch ), mostly assigned to the chief officer.
- 6 to 12 watch 6: 00–12: 00 and 18: 00–24: 00, also called cat watch , mostly assigned to the captain.
This system is common on small ships, e.g. B. on coasters , which only sail with a captain and a first officer (helmsman), or in earlier times often drove with a best man .
organization
Each watch consists of the officer on watch (WO) and a number of deck and engine personnel. In the past, the machine was also kept on watch, on modern ships the machine is remote-controlled from the bridge from the WO and the machinists are permanent watchers.
The officer on watch is responsible for managing the ship, i. H. in particular for navigation, the safety of the ship and, if necessary, cargo control. He determines the position at regular intervals and enters it on the nautical chart, determines or corrects course and speed and is responsible for ensuring that the ship complies with the collision avoidance rules. He also gives the order to change the guard on traditional ships.
The captain can take command of the ship at any time. If serious disturbances, bad weather or unclear traffic situations occur, the WO is obliged to inform the captain. In commercial shipping, there are usually several officers on the bridge , including a pilot if necessary, when navigating the area and in difficult situations .
The watch includes the helmsman for the helm watch or anchor watch ; At sea, however, in commercial shipping and on long-distance journeys in recreational shipping, the autopilot is mostly used . The guard also manned the lookout . In commercial shipping, members of the watch who run patrols are also called runners. One of these patrols is the circular fire, during which the entire ship is regularly searched for sources of fire from dusk to dawn.
Meals on larger ships are usually scheduled so that the moving watch can eat before the changing of the guard and the rest of the crew can eat after the changing of the guard. In the common three-watch system, breakfast often takes place at 8 a.m., lunch at 12 p.m. and dinner at 8 p.m.
In the case of trips in an east-west direction or vice versa, where there is a time difference , the additional or lost time is distributed between the guards in such a way that everyone has to do the same amount of extra or less work. The on-board clock divides the time, usually one hour per day, evenly over a twelve-hour period.
tasks
The watch is responsible for the entire operation of the ship, i.e. for navigation, safety, possibly cargo control, rowing, lookout, etc.
The guard takes on a visual and auditory control of what is happening around the watercraft. It warns the crew of dangers (e.g., defense ), provides the radio watch on the marine radio (on very large ships also the radio on board ), observes acoustic warning signals (internal and external). She is also responsible for safety on board (e.g. reaction to fire alarms). In addition, the guard must inform the skipper / commander if unusual incidents occur, such as piracy , shelling , fire alarms, sinking , mutiny , personal injury resulting in death, Mayday radio messages with significant significance, etc. The guard may also glass .
In commercial shipping, the watch is usually on the bridge on deck.
Off watch
During the day, the off watch is usually used for a period of time for work on the ship, the permanent watchers are traditionally the smutje (cook) and possibly the boatswain , the electrician and usually a number of deck and machine personnel. The machine personnel are usually not on guard on today's extremely rationalized ships.
Special features for sailing ships
On sailing ships, the handling of the sails is an important and, in maneuvers, the most labor-intensive part of the watch duties, as a sailing ship can only be maneuvered with the interaction between the correct position of the sails and the rudder angle.
On sailing ships, the watchman is responsible for guiding the sails, if necessary in consultation with the skipper and / or during races sometimes supported by someone responsible for guiding the sails and arranging sailing maneuvers. On larger sailing ships, he usually stays with the rudder and gives the appropriate commands to the helmsman . On sailing ships that use top seamans , one of the seamans is the top seaman on watch; he converts the commands of the watchman into commands for the watch and controls the sailing maneuvers on deck.
Depending on the need for labor-intensive maneuvers, the free watches are also used, so-called all-hands or all-man maneuvers , or maneuvers are carried out shortly before or after the change of watch with the moving and withdrawing watch.