AMO members get credit as union mans all nine LMSRs for AMSEA



AMO members get credit as union mans all nine LMSRs for AMSEA
By MICHAEL R. McKAY
American Overseas Marine Corp., or AMSEA, has at long last assumed management of 9 large, medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships, and members of American Maritime Officers are aboard the ships in all licensed positions. AMSEA is responsible for the ships under a Military Sealift Command charter awarded in September 2004, but the turnover was delayed by protest and litigation pursued by the vessels' previous operator, Patriot Contract Services. During the 10-month delay, Patriot--which has collective bargaining agreements with the International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots and the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association--argued, among other things, that our union would never be able to man the 9 ships because the AMO membership was deficient in number, skill and experience. The record alone was enough to ground Patriot's argument: AMO had long secured its place as the principal source of licensed labor for MSC-chartered shipping, with AMO members at work aboard highly specialized vessels in sealift and military support services. Licenses held by AMO members were identical to those held by members of MEBA and the MM&P--the U.S. Coast Guard, which certifies the skills of all licensed and unlicensed civilian American seafarers--issues all mariners' licenses exclusively on personal and professional merit. Like members of the MM&P and MEBA, AMO members are certified by the U.S. Coast Guard in all applicable disciplines required under the International Maritime Organization's rigorous Standards of Training and Certification for Watchstanders, or STCW '95. AMO manned many of the LMSRs during their initial MSC charter period. This history, coupled with AMO's current work aboard eight additional LMSRs, makes AMO the most experienced among the three officers' unions when it comes to these ships--the wartime workhorses of the government-owned and chartered U.S.-flagged sealift fleet. But specific credit goes to the AMO members who manned the USNS Shughart, USNS Mendonca, USNS Seay, USNS Bob Hope, USNS Fisher, USNS Yano, USNS Benavidez, USNS Brittin and USNS Pililaau on MSC's schedule, ensuring a smooth, professional transfer of the vessels from Patriot to AMSEA. Each of these officers brings credit upon everyone in AMO, and I thank them all. I cannot help but make special note of the AMO experience aboard the USNS Seay. As we reported in the June 2005 issue of American Maritime Officer, the ship participated in a search-and-rescue mission off Virginia Beach on its first voyage under AMO contract. In command at the scene, the USNS Seay provided a lee for the 45-foot sailboat Almeisan in heavy weather and helped search for two of the boat's missing crewmembers. One of the Almeisan missing survived; the other did not. "The conditions were horrible," USNS Seay Capt. Tom Madden told Sealift, a publication of Military Sealift Command. "We were facing heavy rain and gale-force winds, with gusts up to 55 knots. Winds were sustained at 40-45 knots. We had 20 to 25-foot seas, easily." According to MSC's account, Capt. Madden and the officers and the Seafarers International Union crew on the USNS Seay worked closely with the U.S. Coast Guard, shielding the stricken vessel and its three remaining passengers and serving as an emergency helicopter landing platform. "We were there in case the rescue took a little bit longer than the Coast Guard anticipated," Capt. Madden said. "If they found themselves getting into trouble, they knew they had a safety island." Capt. Madden said later: "We were all brand new to this ship, and we came together to work as a team. This kind of chemistry is something that normally takes a long time. We all did it within hours." Capt. Madden credited everyone aboard the USNS Seay, citing Chief Engineer Mo Oliver, First Assistant Engineer Paul Ebaugh and Chief Officer Paul Martin in particular. "In addition to working the rescue, we had to practice good seamanship to make sure that we or somebody else didn't become a victim of the storm. This ship wouldn't have been able to do what it did without the members of the crew. I just happen to be leading a great bunch of talented individuals." The work of the AMO and SIU members aboard the USNS Seay did not go unnoticed by MSC or the Coast Guard. Vice Adm. David L. Brewer III, commander of MSC, said the ship's officers and crew had done a "superb" job, and USCG Vice Admiral Vivien Crea praised their "quick response" and "expert seamanship" during "a severe Nor'easter." Vice Adm. Crea thanked the USNS Seay complement for "a job well done." But here is another good quote, this one from Capt. Madden in a message to AMO headquarters: "The D-1 (MEBA) engineers told us before they left we couldn't get this vessel to Boston. Well, I think we have done a fairly good job so far."

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