Who's navigating? Strengthening multi-cultural links
Chief Officer Vladimir Torskiy AMNI talks about his training and working life at sea.
Name: Vladimir Torskiy
Current position: Chief Officer
Training: Odessa National Maritime Academy, Ukraine (Master of Navigation, Specialist in Maritime Law)
Tell us about your training?
I studied for five and a half years at Odessa National Maritime Academy, with one and a half years dedicated to seamanship. I can say without a doubt that this period was the most carefree time in my life. Like most of the students, I knew why I was there and what I wanted to achieve after graduation. We were taught discipline and self-organisation.
How did you feel when you first went to sea?
It can be very difficult to go on a voyage for the first time. The first vessel on which I crossed the ocean, working on the Northern Europe-Asia lines, was a 331-metre long container ship. I had to fly to Hong Kong via three transfers. Taking into account that I had never been on a plane before, it was a little scary. I would never have flown to Hong Kong if I hadn’t been able to speak English!
What does your average working day at sea look like?
A working day usually lasts twelve hours, divided into watches. Although there are stringent international rules surrounding rest periods onboard a vessel, you can often sleep up to five or six hours. Some operations take higher priority, such as mooring, inspections, different checks and preparation of inward documentation. Duties are strictly scheduled; you can’t just ask for a few “hours off.
What do you like best about life at sea?
Visiting new countries is one of the most interesting parts of this profession. I keep a list of all the countries I have visited – at the last count it was 32. When you work, for example, on passenger vessels going around the world, you can take in almost every place in the world within a very short timescale. Some places make you fall in love with them forever. For me, such places are Cape Town in South Africa and Havana in Cuba.
What are the benefits of working with an international crew?
I really like working in a multi-national crew. There was one vessel where I worked with 50 people from 12 separate nationalities. When you travel and communicate with so many different people, you perceive the world around you completely differently. It starts to look really small, and you realise that different cultures don’t divide people, but unite them instead.
What are some of the harder aspects of the job?
Sea sickness can become a serious problem. It’s important to prepare yourself emotionally and physically for possible adverse weather and ship motions. It helps to eat fish or toast; I know this from my own experience! It can also be hard to leave family, relatives and friends behind, but it’s also much easier nowadays to keep in touch with people at home via the Internet, telephone and e-mail. Happiness for me is a strong family and the job I really enjoy.