The easiest way to log and monitor hours of rest!   Workrest has unveiled it's brand new platform designed to save you and your crew hours every month.     Branded the easiest solution for logging and monitoring hours of rest, workrest combines a simple app for crew to log hours in both online and offline modes with a powerful vessel dashboard for captains to track compliance and digitally sign off and export timesheets.   Despite being incredibly simple to use, workrest is packed with industry leading functionality including a specially designed algorithm which performs 200 potential calculations per second to generate the most accurate demonstration of compliance to MLC, STCW and US OPA legislation.   The system helps captains...

I didn't know that this place existed until I did my Day Skipper training.   We arrived at the Hercules marina at midday and I was enchanted by the unusual character of the city. It was something like Spain, something like Italy, something like Morocco, very elusive to define or describe.  The people in the marina were sweet and super-friendly and soon I was eager to explore.   The beach was without any enigma, a very lacklustre beach populated by some deeply engrossed readers.  The colours were very muted there.   However the streets were intriguing with their tall buildings and far away horizons.   They felt like they were streets to eternity.  They exuded a strong flavour of classicism.  I did not know anything about Ceuta, have n...

Seminar on the French Social Security Decree, Monaco On the 18th May 2017 there was a seminar in Monaco to discuss the recent decree regarding French Social Security payments for seafarers. GEPY, PYA and IYM hosted the tri-association seminar in which a panel of experts addressed many unanswered questions that the yachting industry has on the subject. This was the first time that representatives from the French government had liaised with our sector in this way, so the answers relayed from this seminar were directly 'from the horse's mouth'.   The guest panel included: Patrick Chaumette (Professor of Maritime Social Security and Law at Nantes University) The lawyer for ENIM (the mariners' social security regime) Representatives from&...

The PYA would like to advise all seafarers that the MCA has published MIN 543 to implement new arrangements for the verification of Sea Service Testimonials (SSTs) in the yachting sector. The MCA is transferring the task of verifying SSTs from their own staff to an approved 'Verifying Organisation', which the PYA has been since 1994 - when it was first approved by the MCA to verify sea service on its behalf. As from the 24th May 2017, all seafarers in the yachting sector who wish to apply for an NoE or for the renewal of a CoC will be expected to have their SSTs verified PRIOR TO SUBMISSION to the MCA. What does this mean for crew and how can the PYA help both members and non-members?  There will be no change in the procedures for PYA members who are al...

Launched at the very beginning of this year, the 98.4-metre Abeking & Rasmussen built Aviva has left the yard's facilities in Germany and is now en route to her new owner. Aviva's design is the work of design studio Reymond Langton, who also designed her owner's smaller, 68-metre, yacht by the same name that was launched back in 2007. The team worked with Toby Silverton on the exterior of the yacht. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....

Three Britons have been injured - one seriously - after a helicopter fell from a superyacht in Norway. The helicopter lost control when a tarpaulin got entangled in its rotors as it tried to land on a luxury yacht in Bergen on Wednesday, Norwegian investigators say. Haukeland University Hospital confirmed it was treating a 57-year-old man, who is in a critical condition. The other two hurt suffered what have been described as "minor injuries". The pair were released from hospital on Thursday and the Foreign Office said it was assisting all three Britons. An investigation into the incident has found that a loose fuel tank cover was sucked into the helicopter's rotors as it attempted to land. The pilot tried to avoid it but the helicopter span out of control, landing upside down in ...

We've compiled a list of our top 20 instagram accounts that are definitely worth a follow. There are some absolutely stunning images out there showcasing the beauty and luxury of the yachting industry for those who live it, love it and work it! Let us know your favourites by tagging us @yotspot_crew. Prepared to be inspired for the season ahead #yourewelcome ;) In no particular order...     SuperYacht Times @SuperYachtTimes SuperYacht Times is the leading website and newspaper for the superyacht industry. www.superyachtgallery.com/tickets Image: @SuperYachtTimes - Up close with the 98m Abeking & Rasmussen built Aviva. Now on her way to Gibraltar.     SuperYacht Gallery @SuperYachtGallery Luxury exposition about superyachts in Saatchi...

Seeking your first yacht job? Visited all the agencies already? Now what? Camp out at the local yachtie bar and wait for the phone to ring? Uhh no! You need to be more proactive than that. Chances are maybe 50/50 that your first job could come from dock walking or an agent. What is dock walking, you ask? Dock walking is exactly what it sounds like. Put on your comfortable walking shoes, wear your best smile, pack a stack of your most perfect CV, and get ready to explore the beautiful coastline on foot! Plan on walking each dock of every port, mustering your courage over and over again as you respectfully approach every shiny (and maybe not so shiny) vessel to inquire for the possibility of employment. Employment could come in the form of a permanent, seasonal, short term work or da...

The French Flag RIF is the French registry for commercial vessels and commercial yachts. Within the framework of harmonising community policies, reinforcing maritime safety and security, developing competitiveness of shipping companies and maritime employment, a register for overseas commercial vessels, international cabotage and commercial yachts more than 24 metres l overall length, the law of 3 May 2005 was created (consolidated text). Commercial vessels under the French Flag are in the "white list" of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding [1], thereby confirming the quality of French vessels regarding compliance with international safety standards. Beyond tax benefits and comprehensive social protection, the French Flag is the modern symbol of France's commitment to ...

The start of the Med season is upon us and if you haven't already many of you lovely newbies should be giving serious thought to heading to a yachting hub. Many of you have already started asking the question: Palma or Antibes? I admit, when it comes to a job searching for those new to the industry, I heavily lean towards Antibes, and here are my reasons why: More access to ports/vessels. Palma is a beautiful place to be and you should see it someday, but as an island, you are highly limited to the amount of places you can dock walk and therefore, access to the most vessels limited. Antibes' location and ease of transportation allow you to be as pro-active and diligent as you want to be in your dock walk search. From Genoa, Italy to even Marseille, France, one has the entire co...