| Able seaman | |
| Able seamen generally serve as a ship's helmsmen, relying on visual references, compasses, and a rudder angle indicator to steer a steady course as directed by the mate or other officer on the bridge. | |
| General | |
|---|---|
| Other names : | Able-bodied seaman |
| Department : | Deck department |
| Reports to : | boatswain, chief mate |
| Licensed : | No |
| Requirements : | Able seaman's certificate |
| Watchstanding | |
| Watch (at sea) : | Helmsman, Lookout (varies) |
| Watch (in port) : | Varies (varies) |
An able seaman (AB) is an unlicensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. An AB may work as a watchstander, a day worker, or a combination of these roles.
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At sea an AB watchstander's duties include standing watch as helmsman and lookout. A helmsman is required to maintain a steady course, properly execute all rudder orders and communicate utilizing navigational terms relating to heading and steering. A watchstander may be called upon to stand security-related watches, such as a gangway watch or anchor watch while the ship is not underway.
An AB day worker performs general maintenance, repair, sanitation and upkeep of material, equipment, and areas in the deck department. This can include maintenance of the ship’s metal structures such as chipping, scraping, cleaning, priming, and painting. Areas frequently in need of such maintenance include the hull, decks, superstructure, cargo gear, and smoke stack. Day workers also frequently perform maintenance on lifeboats, rescue boats and liferafts, and emergency and damage control gear.
An AB may be called on to use emergency, lifesaving, damage control, and safety equipment. Able seamen perform all operations connected with the launching of lifesaving equipment. An AB is expected to be able to operate deck machinery, such as the windlass or winches while mooring or unmooring, and to operate cargo gear.
Able seamen require advanced training, including lifeboatman certification.
The ship's boatswain, if carried, is typically a senior AB. The boatswain is in charge of the able seamen and ordinary seaman that comprise the unlicensed deck crew, and reports directly to the chief mate.
The Code of Federal Regulations establishes in 46 CFR 12.05[1] five categories of able seaman for the United States Merchant Marine:
Time served in certain training programs and school ships may be substituted for the time of service listed above. Special certificates of service are available for able seaman, Great Lakes—18 months service; able seaman, any waters—12 months; able seaman, tugs and towboats—any waters; able seaman, bays and sounds—12 months, vessels 500 gross tons or less not carrying passengers; and able seaman, seagoing barges—12 months.
For the United States Merchant Marine, the Code of Federal Regulations establishes in 46 CFR 12.05[1] examination requirements for the certification of able seamen, which includes:
Some notable able seamen from the merchant service include:
Some modern references claim that AB stands for able-bodied seaman as well as, or instead of, able seaman. Able seaman was originally entered using the abbreviation AB instead of the more obvious AS in ships' muster books or articles. Such an entry was likely to avoid confusion with ordinary seaman (OS). Later the abbreviation began to be written as A.B., leading to the folk-etymological able-bodied seaman. The correct term, able seaman, remains in use in legal documents, in seaman's papers, and aboard ship.
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