Deck Department Rating Acronyms
Within the Deck Department there are several ratings, mostly identified by acronyms, below is a list of these and their expanded descriptions…
- Acronym
- Expansion
- J.O.S.
- Junior Ordinary Seaman
- S.O.S.
- Senior Ordinary Seaman
- U.D.H. / D.H.U.
- Uncertified Deck Hand
- E.D.H.
- Efficient Deck Hand
- A.B.
- Able Seaman
- Q.M.
- Quartermaster
An Uncertified Deck Hand is usually an adult rating too old to be a S.O.S. (Senior Ordinary Seaman) who hasn't yet taken their E.D.H. (Efficient deck hand) certificate.
Alec Faulkner, a former Q.M. writes…
I was a very young Q.M., about 20 years of age on the 1966 North Cape Cruise. The other two were old salts; the very
old one used to always operate the engine telegraphs barking out mirror responses to Capt. Warwick's orders; this when
entering or leaving port.
My jobs depended upon who's watch I was on. When the ship was under a pilot I was either raising or lowering flags or helmsman. I much preferred the helm. Much more exciting, especially in some of those fjords.
The Officer of the Watch would shout out precisely when the flags needed to be pulled up or down as the ship left the quay or anchors were weighed. As commanded, I'd tug on the halyard to break the matchstick which had kept the unfurled flag rolled up as it went up the mast to its flying position.
Capt. Warwick would occasionally talk to me. I think he was surprised that someone so young could be a Q.M. Like him I had a full-set beard which he commented on. He had a whimsical side; I liked and enjoyed working with him.
Junior Ratings
Like in the Catering department, there were Junior Ratings in the Deck Department. A Deck Boy, also known as a “Peggy” would be the equivalent of a Commis Waiter in Catering. His “passengers” being his fellow Deck Dept. colleagues, with the ability to make tea being quite a high priority.
The next step up would be to become a Boy Seaman, later described as a Junior Ordinary Seaman. Your career route from there would then depend upon you passing some quite stiff exams. The path upward was no sinecure!
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