EAGLE ’ s 2019 summer cruise began in early April with a passage from Baltimore , Maryland , to Portsmouth , England , where I joined the ship . For the past thirteen years , I have served as Temporary Assignment Duty ( TAD ) crew on the ship with the specific job of being a qualified QMOW ( Quartermaster of the Watch ) and navigation instructor .
The ship ’ s enlisted personnel and officers generally spend somewhere between two to four years on the ship … so , with thirteen years under my belt , I do bring a bit of long term perspective to the mix . Typically , I stand two 4 hour QMOW watches a day and , when not on watch , I will assist with navigation training , or sail handling ( during “ Sail Stations ”). Relaxation it is not the word that comes to mind – EAGLE is NOT a cruise ship !
THE EVENING before our departure , we had a reception for various diplomats ( including the U . S . Ambassador to the UK ) and high level naval officers from a variety of countries . As you might imagine , security was tight . Very tight . The ship was carefully inspected before the reception ( including by bomb sniffing dogs ) and a number of agents from the British Secret Service were posted in various locations , on the ship , and ashore . It felt like we were in a James Bond movie .
THE NEXT morning , we departed Portsmouth and headed east into the English Channel . In addition to the fulltime EAGLE crew and officers , we also had , on board , over a dozen TAD crew , a mix of sailors from other tall ships ( EA- GLE does frequent “ exchange programs ”), and some civilian guests .
Early in the afternoon , we conducted “ School of the Ship ” which included my annual trip up the rig , to “ The Tops .” As we headed down the Channel , a particular
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