Plank owner

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A "plank owner" is an individual who was a member of the crew of a ship when that ship was placed in commission. Originally, this term applied only to crewmembers present at the ship's first commissioning. Today, however, it is often applied to members of a recommissioning crew as well. "Plank owner" is not an official Navy term, and has consequently been variously defined by different Navy units.

Unofficially- Term given to a crewmember of the original crew of a newly commissioned ship. Implies that a crew member was around when the ship was being built and commissioned and therefore has bragging rights to the ownership of one of the deck planks in the main deck.