K-DAM HORN BEHAVIOUR

[c-legs]

HI ALL . Would anybody have an idea why the ship , on sailaway from Vancouver today, blew her horn ( as traditionally done ) but..... for almost 11  minutes without interruption ??? One big long one..... Pleasant as it is for afficionados on shore , it musr have been agonising for guests on board , specially those on the top deck... Interestingly , she did the same last saturday, but '' only '' for 3 minutes.   '' Stuck device'' ? Unlikely. Also strange, two other '' Holland/Princess /Cunard/Seabourn;; ships were in prt ( Queen Elizabeth & Makestic Princess ) and none even '' replied''.Tks

 

[St Pete Cruiser]

That is strange.   I love to hear the horn on departure, but not for more than a few seconds a toot. Silent departures, as we call them on the Sailaway threads, are not as exciting.

[SilvertoGold]

No idea, but Captain Draper is one of the Captains who likes to blow the whistle on departure.  He did this on Alaska cruises each departure from Vancouver but only for the typical short time.

[4966and556]

Reminds me of the Westerdam leaving Port Everglades.  

 

[rkacruiser]

It all depends on the Master.  Some like to "blow the horn", some don't, and some like to really let the world know that the good ship -dam is sailing!  

[Heartgrove]

Perhaps in response to the nearby floatplane competition? Maybe some overzealous airplane pilots?

[USN59-79]

The ship's whistle or what you call "horn" is an important safety device to signal other ships your intentions.  Not sure why some ship masters think that they do not have to follow the international rules of the road.  Sounds like he is "crying wolf".

[CGTNORMANDIE]

Three blasts when ship is leaving berth and entering main harbor.  Five blasts or one continuous blast when collision is imminent.  11 minutes continuous blast???  Sounds like a malfunction.  

[rkacruiser]

18 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

 Sounds like a malfunction.  

 

No.  It may reflect the Master's personality, at least when the horn blowing takes place as the ship sails through the Port Everglades channel.

 

Sometimes, it is a type of celebratory horn blowing such as we witnessed when cruising resumed from Port Everglades for that vessel.

 

So, such excess violates "norms"?  So what?  If it was truly a serious infraction, wouldn't the USCG have something to say about this?  And, if so, and they objected, wouldn't it cease?  

 

 

[CGTNORMANDIE]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

No.  It may reflect the Master's personality, at least when the horn blowing takes place as the ship sails through the Port Everglades channel.

 

Sometimes, it is a type of celebratory horn blowing such as we witnessed when cruising resumed from Port Everglades for that vessel.

 

So, such excess violates "norms"?  So what?  If it was truly a serious infraction, wouldn't the USCG have something to say about this?  And, if so, and they objected, wouldn't it cease?  

 

 

As a former yachtsman and Rear Commodore of a Yacht Club I know the USCG recommends the above.  I find an 11 minute blast strange indeed.  

[lvhh]

The USCG can't have much to say about Vancouver

[USN59-79]

As a former U.S. Navy officer qualified as Officer of the Deck for underway steaming and who still has his copy of Knight's Modern Seamanship, I consider that behavior childish and arrogant.  He may get away with it without penalty, but I don't have much respect for him as a ship's master.

[chengkp75]

Ship's horns are tested prior to departure (short blast).  It is traditional for passenger ships to sound a blast when leaving the dock, not all do it today.  It is also acceptable for a ship to sound a short blast as a salute, many freighters I worked on would sound a salute when entering/leaving PEV in the "good old days" (the 70's), when a widow who lived along the channel would raise the house flag of whatever ship was passing.

 

An 11 minute blast is a malfunction.  It does not surprise me that an electronic horn would malfunction for this amount of time, as you need to page the electronics officer, who needs to get to the bridge from wherever, and then source the problem and likely pull the fuse on the horn until they can figure it out.  I remember the old steam whistles, that would stick frequently, and you had to go up on the mast and whack it with a wrench to get it to stop.

[MISTER 67]

11 minutes is insane.

[chengkp75]

1 hour ago, MISTER 67 said:

11 minutes is insane.

Someone would have to hold the button down for 11 minutes if it was by design.

[KAKcruiser]

Is it possible there was a legitimate reason like fog or some other danger?

[chengkp75]

Just now, KAKcruiser said:

Is it possible there was a legitimate reason like fog or some other danger?

The fog horn is a different horn than the ship's whistle/horn, and sounds different to differentiate it from the whistle.  The signal for "you are steering into danger" is 5 short blasts.

[KAKcruiser]

Thanks for the info.  You must be right that it was probably a malfunction.

[rkacruiser]

18 hours ago, USN59-79 said:

He may get away with it without penalty, but I don't have much respect for him as a ship's master.

 

If the Company's Senior V-P in charge of such practices on the Bridge didn't object, then, what's the problem?  

 

22 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

As a former yachtsman and Rear Commodore of a Yacht Club I know the USCG recommends the above.  I find an 11 minute blast strange indeed.  

 

Agree that such a prolonged blast is out of the ordinary, but, if the USCG and, as I referenced above, does not object, what's the harm?  

 

There have been vessels of several cruise lines, particularly as cruising as resumed and as those particular vessels sailed from Port Everglades for the first time since 2020, exercised their whistles.  It's a moment of celebration.  

 

I believe we are very much overdue for such moments.  As minor as they may be.  

[CGTNORMANDIE]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

If the Company's Senior V-P in charge of such practices on the Bridge didn't object, then, what's the problem?  

 

 

Agree that such a prolonged blast is out of the ordinary, but, if the USCG and, as I referenced above, does not object, what's the harm?  

 

There have been vessels of several cruise lines, particularly as cruising as resumed and as those particular vessels sailed from Port Everglades for the first time since 2020, exercised their whistles.  It's a moment of celebration.  

 

I believe we are very much overdue for such moments.  As minor as they may be.  

It certainly is unusual but if it was done in celebration then that would explain it.  The signal for imminent danger is five short blasts repeated.  I guess an 11 minute blast means Happy Days Are Here Again!!  LOL!

[BruceMuzz]

I have sailed on 2 ships where the ship’s horn malfunctioned when departing a port.

Each time, they had to find the guy who could turn it off and fix the problem.

Each time, it took quite a few minutes to turn it off.

This sounds like the same thing.

[rkacruiser]

22 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

 I guess an 11 minute blast means Happy Days Are Here Again!!  LOL!

 

Thank you CGT!  

[Beezo]

I'd say malfunction, OR, there were other boater(s) consistently not following right of way and was alerting them to move.

[Kateybell]

I Was watching Vancouver cruise ship videos on YouTube the other day that were taken recently and found this video below. I think it must be the one you are referring to as it really struck me when the horn goes off. It’s out about the six minute mark in the video. It goes on for at least four or five minutes in the video before she ends it.

 

[chengkp75]

7 hours ago, Beezo said:

I'd say malfunction, OR, there were other boater(s) consistently not following right of way and was alerting them to move.

That would not be an 11 minute continuous blast.