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It's an example that goes right over your head.

It's irrelevant if they speak only German, they could speak gibberish. And you could be asking them in Counter-gibberish "can you turn a wrench?"

And they can be unable to effectively communicate to you AND STILL TURN THE WRENCH.

It is therefore illogical to assume that a person's competency is based upon their ability to communicate.

This doesn't qualify the statement whether it is legally required to be able to communicate to be competent, which is a separate question.

And why I'm qualifying my statement as I have previously.
As a firefighter, you probably make a great firefighter. I would probably not question your firefighting knowledge absent confirmed written knowledge to the contrary.

I am a professional ship captain and liveaboard operator, as well as a unlimited Chief Engineer. Scuba Lawyer is a maritime lawyer specializing in marine law.

Thank you for your opinion.
 
As a firefighter, you probably make a great firefighter. I would probably not question your firefighting knowledge absent confirmed written knowledge to the contrary.

I am a professional ship captain and liveaboard operator, as well as a unlimited Chief Engineer. Scuba Lawyer is a maritime lawyer specializing in marine law.

Thank you for your opinion.
Let's just not over-inflate what I originally stated, because I agree with you at large, and in principle. But I'm also a stickler for logic :)

All I was and will stand-by is that communication cannot in-of-itself determine competency.

That has nothing to do with requirements of law, or commonsense, or real world experience. Just a logic statement was all :)
 
Let's just not over-inflate what I originally stated, because I agree with you at large, and in principle. But I'm also a stickler for logic :)

All I was and will stand-by is that communication cannot in-of-itself determine competency.

That has nothing to do with requirements of law, or commonsense, or real world experience. Just a logic statement was all :)
Sometimes I really want things to be the way they logically make sense in my mind.

Sometimes they don’t work out that way. Sometimes they do. :)
 
Nimoh and TMHeimer

A good demonstration of why port and starboard are used instead of left and right. An illustration is probably the best way to define it if someone can find one.

People don't have a port or starboard, but vessels do regardless of what direction we happen to view them from. The distinction can seam obtuse to people without much time afloat, but is critically important to prevent confusion. Just ask the captains of the Andrea Doria and Stockholm.

This might be a good time to explain colors associated with Port and Starboard. Port is Red and Starboard is Green. This is especially useful for navigation lights at night and buoys marking harbor entrances.

Navigation lights let you figure out the orientation of other vessels at night. Red buoys and lights are on the left side of the harbor entrance when leaving or heading out, and green is on the right. Of course that is the opposite when entering the harbor. The term "Red, Right, Returning" is a common phrase to help people remember.

There is a large set of instructions commonly called "Rules of the Road" that define all of this so everyone is on the same page.

Navigation Rules Online
 
I like Red Right Returning, because I can remember it. But as undoubted someone else already has or will point out it's far from true everywhere. This explanation (link below) for landlubbers like me may help. The color system for marking buoys for ports and channels varies across the globe (America's mostly RRR, but the other way i.e. for Europe). Common however is the shape. When returning from sea to harbor kerp the ointy top to port and the flat flat top to starboard.

https://www.cruisingworld.com/red-right-returning/

Now how does one remember "flat top, starboard, returning"?
 
I like Red Right Returning, because I can remember it. But as undoubted someone else already has or will point out it's far from true everywhere. This explanation (link below) for landlubbers like me may help. The color system for marking buoys for ports and channels varies across the globe (America's mostly RRR, but the other way i.e. for Europe). Common however is the shape. When returning from sea to harbor kerp the ointy top to port and the flat flat top to starboard.

https://www.cruisingworld.com/red-right-returning/

Now how does one remember "flat top, starboard, returning"?
Red-red returning. IALA-A
 
The international language of the sea is English. All radio operators must have a grasp of english to communicate on the radio, and therefore all vessel masters in the World must speak English. Deposing them in English is completely legit.
Same with in the air. English is the main language for pilots as well.
 
I wish it were as simple as RRR. Around here there are too many islands, channels and rivers that are marked where that simply does not work. The more complete rule is when heading "upstream" keep the solid green buoys on your Port side. Upstream is defined as travelling toward the headwaters of a river, into port or with the flooding tide. Many times the only useful one is "with the flooding tide" as there is no port or river nearby, and even then in some weird places where the flooding tide meets coming from opposite directions even that is questionable by observation and the chart is the only way to know for sure.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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