2 years ago, 18th October 2018 to be precise, we featured the Ocean Clean Up's launch  of System 001, AKA Wilson.  About to be towed out from San Francisco Bay, for it's intermediary trial before heading a further 1200 miles offshore to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch – the largest accumulation of trash in the world. 2 years on, we're thrilled to report that The Ocean Clean Up team have not only continued their work, but overcome what could have been an absolute disaster, to develop their first product made entirely from recycled plastics recovered from the Patch. After initially high hopes for Wilson, the team got a call in early 2019 reporting that plastics were starting to drift out of the system and that Wilson had broken into 2 parts and nee...

Why PDSD rather than PSA onboard a Superyacht? Security Duties or Security Awareness training. Working onboard a ISPS code compliant vessel, crew are often required to engage in some form of security duties as part of the ship's security plan.  The Proficiency in Designated Securities (STCW A-VI/6-2) instead of Security Awareness (STCW A-VI/6-1) is recommended. This will enhance your prospects of employment as well as career progression and not losing out on a chance to get hired (if you only have the Security Awareness certification, you may be minimizing your opportunities). The UK MCA Approved Designated Security Duties (PDSD) Course for Superyacht Crew & Staff can be completed 100% online with the award winning company virsec.org  https://rb.gy/dpsrnc from th...

Vessel navigation and propulsion systems, cargo handling and container tracking systems at ports and on board ships, and shipyard inventories and automated processes, are all controlled using software that is fundamental to smooth running operations. Highly-skilled, non-ethical hackers continue to demonstrate their ability to penetrate systems that are used by the maritime industry, with potentially disastrous consequences. Events over the last four years continue to suggest that these types of systems are growing increasingly vulnerable to these forms of attack, resulting in extremely costly results for the sector.   VIRSEC hade developed a course is designed to provide the user, who is at any level in the company or on board ship, with a firm grounding in Maritime Cyb...

After many years in the military and at sea you begin to see what is relevant to accomplishing your job or mission and what is irrelevant. Close confinement with different types of people mandate that you realize other's points of view. How do they reference the world, how do they see you? Friction or disagreement with others in your crew is not a reason to lose sight of the job. An unpleasant person can be treated like any other obstacle to be overcome. Bad weather, deal with it. A broken water purifier, deal with it. Faulty air conditioner, deal with it. Loud, complaining shipmate, deal with it. Your job on board still needs to be done. At some point though, competent management and good leadership are essential for crew function. An unpleasant shipmate that threatens the well-being o...

Luxury superyacht gym design specialists, Gym Marine, choose only specific brands and pieces of gym equipment because of their design, high-specification and quality. Here they share their top 10 picks: Our most popular is the Kinesis personal vision cable machine. Great if there's not much floor space, because it's conveniently built into the wall. The Technogym Kinesis Personal Vision has a beautiful flat-wall, mirror design so users can check their posture mid-exercise.  And with a staggering 200 exercises in one multi-functional piece, resistance can be changed with the soft touch digital display. If you'd like to add a splash of glamour, why not request the more luxurious Black, Leather or Gold finishes?   Popular with superyacht clients ...

Fingers crossed the magnitude of the Coronavirus pandemic is receding as we learn to live in a cleaner and healthier way. Mindful to limit the spread of the virus, we now need to focus on our own health, fitness, strength and well-being. So, with health and wellness top of mind, we approached Gym Marine Yacht & Interiors, the luxury gym designers who specialise in the design and build of jaw-droppingly beautiful gyms onboard superyachts, to find how high net worth individuals keep fit onboard superyachts, what sort of gym equipment they're using and why. With their work predominantly dedicated to building permanent gyms onboard superyachts for owners, charter guests wanting temporary treadmills, spin bikes or weights, or smaller scale gyms for crew, we asked Gym Marine how t...

A recent rise in fake yachting job ads has been reported, with individuals falling foul of the scamming trickster.  In particular, Facebook have seen a rise in ad scams, where so-called employers invite men or women to attend interviews for jobs that don't even exist. Whether it's for the purposes of getting hold of your personal documentation for identity fraud, money or something more sinister, we want you to be warned, be smart and stay safe. Here's Yotspot's Top 10 Tips for what to look out for and how to avoid getting scammed: If you've agreed to meet a yacht captain, owner or recruiter, make sure you meet in a public place in daylight hours. It should be obvious but please tell a friend or colleague where and when your interview is and who ...

We're really excited to announce a new layer of tech to our online yachting application process, a personal but remote method of pairing up the right candidate with the right yachting opportunity. Pre-recorded Video Interviews.  Ideal for candidates.  Easier and more efficient for recruiters. And there's never been a better time for it. Big shout out to our tech team who have tapped into available tech to add this additional pre-selection layer of Video Interviews for our candidates. As we get to grips with our "new normal" we're realising that limiting face to face contact doesn't have to mean we're any less efficient.  Yotspot's Director Steve explains "recruiters might not want to see lots of applicants face to fa...

UK's Channel 5 transmitted Episode 1 of "Secrets of the Luxury Super Yachts" last night, revealing more than a few of the industry's best kept secrets.  From the stewardess who blew the whistle on her boss removing all traces of his visiting wife one week to be replaced by a group of hookers the next (not sure she'll get another gig?!) to the amount of money deemed acceptable to spend in this industry. Interviewing British businessman and billionaire John Caudwell, founder of Phones4U, who candidly discusses his 73metre superyacht Titania, with a weekly charter fee of over £600,000, you would need a cool £1.2million to charter this baby for you and your mates for a couple of weeks in the sun.  Currently one of the largest and most luxurious charter yachts in Asia....

2 days ago, 50 miles off the coast of Costa Smeralda, fire raged and smoke billowed from 48M M/Y Lady MM.   Thankfully the 9 crew and 8 guests who were onboard managed to evacuate the yacht, reaching the coast safely by tender. Travelling from Capri to Porto Cervo, Lady MM sent out a distress signal at approximately 6am local time, responded to by Olbia Coast Guard who despatched two SAR patrol rescue boats and the Coast Guard helicopter to help rescue the crew and guests and start work putting out the blaze. When rescuers arrived at the scene, they spotted an empty life raft but according to local reports, didn't hear until a few hours later that the Lady MM crew had already informed the Coast Guard that they had abandoned the yacht safely and were already heading towards ...