- Blog
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by Pete Green
Our yacht delivery skippers are some of the best in the industry. In order to skipper for us you must be a commercially endorsed Ocean Yacht-Master and have lots of experience. We deliver yachts and powerboats of various sizes to places all over the world. We don’t just expect our skippers to be excellent sailors, we also expect them to be highly conscientious and willing to go the extra mile to ensure the best possible service for our clients. We also require that our delivery skippers are great leaders and enthusiastic team players. Our delivery teams are typically made up of three people. The delivery skipper should be there to support the crew and to build a professional and effective team.
What do our delivery skippers do on a typical delivery?
1) We connect the skipper up with the yacht owner and their delivery crew.
The delivery skipper will then take the lead in making sure the delivery runs smoothly. They will coordinate travel plans with the crew and will liaise with the owner regarding any initial practicalities. Our back-office support will be there to help every step of the way. We will send the skipper our standard delivery pack along with any extra information we have about the yacht (including insurance documents, registration papers and recent surveys).
2) The delivery skipper will thoroughly check the yacht.
As part of the delivery skippers pack, we provide a checklist to help the skipper and crew run through all the systems. If there are any areas of concern, then this will be flagged up straight away. In particular, the yacht must have in date safety equipment and engine spares. If there is any remedial work needed, then our skipper will liaise with the owner to solve the problem as soon as possible.
3) Passage plans are made and communicated back to the office.
The delivery skipper will make a plan for departure. They will take into account the weather forecast, the suitability and condition of the yacht for the conditions and the strengths of the crew.
4) After departure.
Our delivery skippers are fantastic at keeping everyone up to date during the delivery. We try to send regular photos and video clips to the owner and keep them informed with progress reports and eta’s. We are also on hand to help with weather forecasting or any other support needed along the way. We are the only yacht delivery company to have an engineering support service, so if there are any issues the skipper knows that they can call our engineer anytime.
5) On completion.
We aim to hand over the yacht in better condition than we found it. The delivery skipper will lead a thorough clean of the vessel. They will also write up some handover notes for the owner and will present this along with our client feedback form and delivery acceptance form. We are quite happy to hand over in person, but if this isn’t convenient, we are very used to leaving the yacht clean and tidy with the keys safely at the marina office.
We appreciate that it is a very hard decision to entrust another skipper with your pride and joy, but please rest assured that our delivery skippers are highly professional and extremely conscientious sailors.
If you want to find out more about becoming a yacht delivery skipper for Halcyon Yachts then please visit our website www.halcyonyachts.com