How often are merchant seamen away from home?

Those who are merchant seamen, how often are they home?

• what kind of voyages they take when they are away? what is the longest they are away from home?

• Answer:

  It depends on the job. On an oil tanker or container ship, the voyages are often 30, 45, 75, 90, 120 or 180 days, depending on the route, nationality of the ship's registry, etc. Some Flag-Of-convenience ships carrying bulk cargo or frozen fruit do 9 month and 12 month voyages. Research ships can be longer or shorter, too. I've done as much as 10 months as captain of an oceanographic vessel. Container and tank ships usually visit larger ports, and are often on a regular run to the same places. Very large tankers often never go to port, instead loading and discharging at offshore stations. Breakbulk ships can go anywhere, from anywhere, depending on where the business takes them. The smaller the ship, the more variable it seems like the destinations can be. OIl field and tug boats usually have shorter voyages- coastal boats are often on 2 to 4 week schedules, and many coastal boats work 2 week trips.