Hawsepiper is an informal

maritime industry Maritime transport (or ocean transport) and hydraulic effluvial transport, or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used throu ...

term used to refer to a merchant ship's officer who began his or her career as an unlicensed merchant seaman and did not attend a traditional maritime college or academy to earn an officer's license. In the United States after accumulating enough sea time in a qualified rating, taking required training courses, and completing on-board assessments, the mariner can apply to the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

for a license as a Third Mate or

Third Assistant Engineer A fourth engineer or third assistant engineer is a rank of engine officer who is part of the engine department on a merchant vessel. Summary A third assistant engineer’s license is earned through the U.S.C.G or other regulatory body (such as ...

. If approved, the applicant must then pass a comprehensive license examination before being issued the license. The U.S. military rough equivalent to this term is

mustang The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticated animals, they ...

. A ship's

hawsepipe Hawsehole is a nautical term for a small hole in the hull of a ship through which '' hawsers'' may be passed. It is also known as a cat hole. In the (British) Royal Navy, a man who had risen from the lowest grade to officer was said to have "come ...

is the pipe passing through the bow section of a ship that the

anchor An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek ἄγ ...

chain passes through. Hawsepiper refers to climbing up the hawsepipe, a nautical

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wit ...

for climbing up the ship's rank structure. This is in turn derived from the traditional British Naval usage of "came up through the

hawsehole Hawsehole is a nautical term for a small hole in the hull of a ship through which '' hawsers'' may be passed. It is also known as a cat hole. In the (British) Royal Navy, a man who had risen from the lowest grade to officer was said to have "come ...

", referring to sailors who first entered the ship as foremast jacks before becoming

officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

, metaphorically by climbing up the hawser rather than being received directly onto the

quarterdeck The quarterdeck is a raised deck behind the main mast of a sailing ship. Traditionally it was where the captain commanded his vessel and where the ship's colours were kept. This led to its use as the main ceremonial and reception area on bo ...

. There is also the phrase, "going down the hawse pipe" which refers to an officer who cannot find a ship's billet and signs on as an ordinary seaman or wiper. Several merchant seamen's unions offer their members the required training to help them advance, and some employers offer financial assistance to pay for the training for their employees. Otherwise, the mariner must pay the cost of the required training. Since the requirements of STCW '95 were enacted there have been complaints that the hawsepiper progression path has been made too difficult because of the cost in time and money to meet formal classroom training requirements. Critics said that the newer requirements would eventually lead to a shortage of qualified mariners, especially in places like the United States.

References

{{reflist Marine occupations Nautical terminology de:Klüse es:Escobén fr:Écubier nl:Kluisgat no:Klyss sv:Ankarklys

See also

References