Concordia News: Please Post Here

[Uniall]

For those who complain about this being a "hate" board, here's a story of love.

 

From Adventures In the Ordinary Blog

 

O Captain, my Captain…where was your honor?

 

A story of love ----- Nicole Servel, a 61 year old Frenchwoman who survived Concordia's crash, but lost her husband in the disaster.

 

"The trip was a gift given to them by their children to celebrate her 60th Birthday. She tells of the last moments she had with her husband. They stood on the edge of the sinking ship with one life jacket between them. Her husband gave her the life jacket and told her to jump into the 8 degree water. Because she isn’t a swimmer, when she landed in the water, all she could do was float. The last thing that he yelled to her as he tried to stay afloat in the icy water was, “Don’t worry! I’ll be alright.” And then she never saw him again. Eventually she floated to a place where she was spotted by strangers who got her out of the water and took her to a church to get warm.

So, what makes one man abandon his ship and another man give up his life for his wife? Honor for certain. But, how is it that one man can attain such respect and authority and not be truly honorable when the waters rise and another can live a simple life and be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice?

I’m sure the answer is LOVE."

 

And the irony is that exceptional story was the gneral rule for the Titanic.

[Max49]

"Max ... The Costa employees are probably banned from speaking to the press as part of their continued employment, while Schettino who is probably no longer on their payroll can talk to who he wants, Schettino was not the only ships officer on the bridge the night Concordia hit the rock! all are as much to blame so it makes no difference if Schettino was on the phone there were others who did not do their job."

 

Sidari, I'm sure you know more about Maritime law, rules etc, especially in Europe and maybe Italy. It's been said that Schettino is egotistical and arrogant. If Schettino wanted to take the wheel as he made this 'flyby', I would imagine it's because he felt he knew the area and he could do it better than anyone else. I'm sure some of the other officers were at least a little concerned about how close he was getting and in hindsight I bet some of them wished they had said something, (or maybe they did) however maybe they just thought this is going to be close and if they had questioned the capt. and they missed the rocks, could they have been reprimanded or some other retaliation for them questioning the capt of the ship?

Looking at this and the previous GPS track of the sail by, it's possible that the Concordia just missed the rocks my mere inches or feet and they obviously never knew how close they were. Maybe that's why Schettino felt comfortable to get closer and closer.

At this time, I don't blame Costa except for their poor judgement in making Schettino Capt. If they really were so strict that the sub officers were afraid to question the Capt, I would also hold this against Costa. The fact that they had no emergency rehearsal and one of the employees telling the passengers to go back to their cabin will not look good for them. They're should be rule that if 2 Sr officers feel the capt is making a mistake they should be able to overrule him. Of course this could make for poor working relationships in the future.

If the other officers are not talking to the press because they are employees of Costa, and Costa told them not to, and Costa is blaming Schettino, I have a feeling they will be unemployed if, when they go to court and say it was'nt Schettino's fault, it was Costa's fault. How does this help to ensure Schettino gets a fair trial?

__________________

[drarill]

Back to the NEWS and title of this thread "Concordia News: Please Post Here":

 

 

 

Schettino is quoted in the article as having said:

 

 

 

Gotta love the comments at the end of story.

 

Full story from NBC NEWS:

 

http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/11/2678273-costa-concordia-captain-admits-he-was-distracted-by-phone-call#comments

Just came back from our Celebrity Silhouette Adriatic cruise. In Naples we had a spanish speaking private tour guide which is a good friend of Schettino, and believe me when I say that this guy really believes that the floor gave in and that's the reason he abandoned the ship early. His friends believe him and defend him and I was not going to argue with our tour guide.

I also went to a conference with our captain and he was asked about the Concordia. He was really polite and explained that Maritime Law is really complex and we have to wait to know what really happened. But he also said two more things:

#1- will he sail so close to the coast? the answer was no

#2- will he leave the ship before the passengers? the answer was also no.

[sidari]

It's been said that Schettino is egotistical and arrogant.

 

Max ... you have probably described the male population of Italy in the above comment ... egotistical and arrogant ... :D

 

With regard to how close the ship was to shore, some time ago the Media were reporting that there had been a string of E mails between Schettino and another Captain about who could get closest to Giglio! since then there has been no "leaked" reports as to whether this was true or not and despite the fact that it could take a year or years to come to trial it will be interesting to see if these so called E mails are brought up.

 

drarill ... It is no suprise that Schettino`s friends believe him.

[cruiserfanfromct]

Just came back from our Celebrity Silhouette Adriatic cruise. In Naples we had a spanish speaking private tour guide which is a good friend of Schettino, and believe me when I say that this guy really believes that the floor gave in and that's the reason he abandoned the ship early. His friends believe him and defend him and I was not going to argue with our tour guide.

I also went to a conference with our captain and he was asked about the Concordia. He was really polite and explained that Maritime Law is really complex and we have to wait to know what really happened. But he also said two more things:

#1- will he sail so close to the coast? the answer was no

#2- will he leave the ship before the passengers? the answer was also no.

WOW :eek: thanks for sharing.

 

Did I get this right -- this guy believes how Schettino said he ended up in a lifeboat? "The ground gave in below me, it was like the tremor of an earthquake, the floor gives in and what do you do?" You can't make this stuff up! Unfrigginbelievable!

 

As for the Celebrity captain -- that is reassuring to know as I will be on a Celebrity ship at the end of the year and am glad their captains don't take grandstanding and cowardice to new levels.

[cruiserfanfromct]

And the irony is that exceptional story was the gneral rule for the Titanic.

 

Speaking of the Titanic.....

 

Somewhere in the ocean, deep below the surface, Edward John Smith, captain of the RMS Titanic, is shaking his cold, dead fist and wondering why he didn’t have Schettino's wherewithal to cause the tremor of an earthquake, make the floor below him give in and fall overboard directly into a life raft. :eek:

[cruiserfanfromct]

With regard to how close the ship was to shore, some time ago the Media were reporting that there had been a string of E mails between Schettino and another Captain about who could get closest to Giglio! since then there has been no "leaked" reports as to whether this was true or not and despite the fact that it could take a year or years to come to trial it will be interesting to see if these so called E mails are brought up.

It was the Italian journalist Carlo Bonini that made the statement about the email. This was reported by CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/02/02/f-fifth-estate-concordia.html

 

Concordia's captain, Francesco Schettino, had sent an email just weeks before the Jan. 13 disaster to another captain who had managed to sound his ship's horn from closer than the eight kilometres considered safe.

 

In that email, Schettino vowed to pull the same stunt and do it better, according to Italian investigative journalist Carlo Bonini, one of several people interviewed in a special report on the wreck of the Concordia that will air Friday night on The Fifth Estate.

 

Italian journalist Carlo Bonini, who has tried to reconstruct the events leading up to the capsizing of the Concordia. (Joe Passaretti/CBC)

"So, I think it was … this sort of a challenge among captains, a sort of a secret challenge among captains," Bonini told the Fifth Estate's Bob McKeown.

 

Bonini learned of the captain's boast while investigating the events that led up to the running aground of the Concordia, which resulted in the deaths of at least 17 of the 4,200 crew and passengers on board (another 16 people are still missing and presumed dead).

[Uniall]

Just came back from our Celebrity Silhouette Adriatic cruise. In Naples we had a spanish speaking private tour guide which is a good friend of Schettino, and believe me when I say that this guy really believes that the floor gave in and that's the reason he abandoned the ship early. His friends believe him and defend him and I was not going to argue with our tour guide.

I also went to a conference with our captain and he was asked about the Concordia. He was really polite and explained that Maritime Law is really complex and we have to wait to know what really happened. But he also said two more things:

#1- will he sail so close to the coast? the answer was no

#2- will he leave the ship before the passengers? the answer was also no.

 

WOW :eek: thanks for sharing.

 

Did I get this right -- this guy believes how Schettino said he ended up in a lifeboat? "The ground gave in below me, it was like the tremor of an earthquake, the floor gives in and what do you do?" You can't make this stuff up! Unfrigginbelievable!

 

As for the Celebrity captain -- that is reassuring to know as I will be on a Celebrity ship at the end of the year and am glad their captains don't take grandstanding and cowardice to new levels.

 

"There are none so blind as those who will not see." I wonder if the tour guide ever posts on cruise critic?

[TheBestIsYetToCome]

Just came back from our Celebrity Silhouette Adriatic cruise. In Naples we had a spanish speaking private tour guide which is a good friend of Schettino, and believe me when I say that this guy really believes that the floor gave in and that's the reason he abandoned the ship early. His friends believe him and defend him and I was not going to argue with our tour guide.

I also went to a conference with our captain and he was asked about the Concordia. He was really polite and explained that Maritime Law is really complex and we have to wait to know what really happened. But he also said two more things:

#1- will he sail so close to the coast? the answer was no

#2- will he leave the ship before the passengers? the answer was also no.

 

I wouldn't argue with a tour guide either, but I would be quite put off to have this topic raised on a tour. I'm surprised that anyone would want to bring it up with cruiseship passengers on tour. :confused:

[cruiserfanfromct]

Does anyone know what the requirements are for captains at Costa?

 

What were Schettino's qualifications / experience?

 

I read that most of his experience was sailing yachts around the Mediterranean. After that he landed a job at Costa as a security officer in 2002 and then was promoted to captain four years later.

 

I received an email from a rival cruise line after the disaster stating this about their captains:

 

Our Captains are experienced seafarers with an average of 33 years at sea. All of our Captains come up through the ranks progressing from Second Officer to First Officer and then Chief Officer up to Staff Captain before they can become Captains. On average, it takes at least 15 years for a Captain to be promoted into that role. We further ensure that our Captains regularly undergo rigorous simulation training on navigation and bridge operations.

 

:confused::confused::confused::confused:

[Uniall]

Does anyone know what the requirements are for captains at Costa?

 

What were Schettino's qualifications / experience?

 

I read that most of his experience was sailing yachts around the Mediterranean. After that he landed a job at Costa as a security officer in 2002 and then was promoted to captain four years later.

 

I received an email from a rival cruise line after the disaster stating this about their captains:

 

 

 

:confused::confused::confused::confused:

 

Maybe Costa has an "OJT" program for Captains.

[sidari]

Speaking of the Titanic.....

 

Somewhere in the ocean, deep below the surface, Edward John Smith, captain of the RMS Titanic, is shaking his cold, dead fist and wondering why he didn’t have Schettino's wherewithal to cause the tremor of an earthquake, make the floor below him give in and fall overboard directly into a life raft. :eek:

 

CT .. probably because all the lifeboats had all gone ! ....

 

Thanks for posting the info re the E mail, not one programme shown here either on National TV or Sky channels have made mention of the claim over those E mails!

 

The best .... Did anyone on the tour bring up Concordia in discussion or did the guide somehow just decide to tell you all ?

[drarill]

WOW :eek: thanks for sharing.

 

Did I get this right -- this guy believes how Schettino said he ended up in a lifeboat? "The ground gave in below me, it was like the tremor of an earthquake, the floor gives in and what do you do?" You can't make this stuff up! Unfrigginbelievable!

 

As for the Celebrity captain -- that is reassuring to know as I will be on a Celebrity ship at the end of the year and am glad their captains don't take grandstanding and cowardice to new levels.

 

You are going to love Celebrity!!! Our captain was really professional and he handled the question about the Concordia in a really courteous way. BTW, the day he talked to us the ship responded to a SOS from a catamaran, but we didn't find the distressed boat.

About our tour guide, the guy is a really good and close friend of Schettino and he just believes him.

[Uniall]

You are going to love Celebrity!!! Our captain was really professional and he handled the question about the Concordia in a really courteous way. BTW, the day he talked to us the ship responded to a SOS from a catamaran, but we didn't find the distressed boat.

About our tour guide, the guy is a really good and close friend of Schettino and he just believes him.

 

Maybe the guide should write an apologist's book: "Capitain Schintino, mia compadre". He could make more money than guiding...............LOL

[cruiserfanfromct]

CT .. probably because all the lifeboats had all gone ! ....

 

Correct. It was reported that into the last lifeboat that was launched, Captain Smith with his own hand lifted a small child into a seat beside its mother. Several people who were already in the boat tried to force the captain to join them, but he turned away resolutely toward the bridge and went down with the ship.

 

Smith did not succumb to the biological need for self-preservation and instead chose the honored tradition of brave and heroic sea captains; whereas Schettino displayed an egregious lack of leadership.

[cruiserfanfromct]

Maybe Costa has an "OJT" program for Captains.

Looks like they are going to have to rewrite the "On The Job" training section in their manuals. The "Learn As You Go" program will be scrapped -- no more "Learning on the Fly erh Fly-By". ;)

[cruiserfanfromct]

Sid --

 

Is this the documentary "Why Ships Sink" you mentioned previously? Just found it on PBS -- it's available for viewing here:

 

http://video.pbs.org/video/2223857670/

[sidari]

CT ... The link says the programme is not currently available but i would guess that it is the one i mentioned, i think it is a guy called Paul Loudon Brown who has written books on Titanic who in the programme says that Smith was not a hero and failed in the same way as Schettino to actually order the lifeboats to be launched.

 

Uni ... Do you think the ex ceo of Fanny Mae could write a book maybe called " how not to run a bank and ruin people" ?

[Uniall]

Correct. It was reported that into the last lifeboat that was launched, Captain Smith with his own hand lifted a small child into a seat beside its mother. Several people who were already in the boat tried to force the captain to join them, but he turned away resolutely toward the bridge and went down with the ship.

 

Smith did not succumb to the biological need for self-preservation and instead chose the honored tradition of brave and heroic sea captains; whereas Schettino displayed an egregious lack of leadership.

 

That's in an era when men were men, not whining sniveling egocentrics. 90% of the wealthy males went down with the Titanic while 90% of the females and children survived. We live in a time when the creme de la creme is gone and the scum de la scum have taken over.

[Tonka's Skipper]

Does anyone know what the requirements are for captains at Costa?

 

What were Schettino's qualifications / experience?

 

I read that most of his experience was sailing yachts around the Mediterranean. After that he landed a job at Costa as a security officer in 2002 and then was promoted to captain four years later.

 

I received an email from a rival cruise line after the disaster stating this about their captains:

 

 

 

:confused::confused::confused::confused:

 

 

Four years, security to Master,,,,,,,,,that is rocket fast promotions in this day and age.

 

AKK

[Uniall]

CT ... The link says the programme is not currently available but i would guess that it is the one i mentioned, i think it is a guy called Paul Loudon Brown who has written books on Titanic who in the programme says that Smith was not a hero and failed in the same way as Schettino to actually order the lifeboats to be launched.

 

Uni ... Do you think the ex ceo of Fanny Mae could write a book maybe called " how not to run a bank and ruin people" ?

 

What the heck has Fannie Mae got to do with the criminal acts that killed 32 people on the Concordia?

 

But as long as you ask: Fannie Mae did what the left wing, who controlled congress at the time, ordered: give loans to people who can't repay it in the name of social equality. Why don't you take George Soros back to the UK?

Edited July 23, 2012 by Uniall

[Vampire Parrot]

Does anyone know what the requirements are for captains at Costa?

 

What were Schettino's qualifications / experience?

 

I read that most of his experience was sailing yachts around the Mediterranean. After that he landed a job at Costa as a security officer in 2002 and then was promoted to captain four years later.

 

I received an email from a rival cruise line after the disaster stating this about their captains:

 

Costa's Captains will all have progressed from third officer, second officer, first officer, deputy captain/staff captain before becoming Master. Schettino will have spent at least 20 years as a bridge officer before becoming a Captain with Costa. During his career he will have held a watch keeper's ticket, third officer's ticket, second officer's ticket, first mate's ticket, master's ticket. (For ticket read certfiicate). His master's certificate would be for unlimited tonnage.

 

If Schettino was "Security Officer" in 2002 and became Captain four years later, then "Security Officer" would be a title for a senior bridge officer, probably of first officer rank, who would be responsible for ship's security and safety. Other shipping lines use the title "Safety Officer" for a senior first officer doing the same job.

 

Now if Schettino really was a yacht skipper who became a Cruise Ship Captain in 10 years then I for one will be absolutely astonished.... for example, the ship's insurers wouldn't allow it.

 

VP

Edited July 23, 2012 by Vampire Parrot

[Uniall]

Costa's Captains will all have progressed from third officer, second officer, first officer, deputy captain/staff captain before becoming Master. Schettino will have spent at least 20 years as a bridge officer before becoming a Captain with Costa. During his career he will have held a watch keeper's ticket, third officer's ticket, second officer's ticket, first mate's ticket, master's ticket. (For ticket read certfiicate). His master's certificate would be for unlimited tonnage.

 

If Schettino was "Security Officer" in 2002 and became Captain four years later, then "Security Officer" would be a title for a senior bridge officer, probably of first officer rank, who would be responsible for ship's security and safety. Other shipping lines use the title "Safety Officer" for a senior first officer doing the same job.

 

Now if Schettino really was a yacht skipper who became a Cruise Ship Captain in 10 years then I for one will be absolutely astonished.... for example, the ship's insurers wouldn't allow it.

 

VP

 

Personally, I think it's just as likely that he got his Master's License in a boc of Cracker Jack.

[Vampire Parrot]

Personally, I think it's just as likely that he got his Master's License in a boc of Cracker Jack.

 

You might very well think that; I couldn't possibly comment.

 

VP

[BlackHawk1]

Vampire Parrot,

 

Who sets the standards for the Masters Certificate? I am sure that it is not employers/ship owners. But is it to international standards, country standards or insurance co standards?....please comment. Regards