What is a merchant marine?

What job title would a GMDSS maintainer in the Merchant Marine officially hold?

• I'm a little confused as to who actually works as a GMDSS radio maintainer. To satisfy the requirement of at-sea maintenance, it's obvious that SOMEONE aboard has to hold the license to perform maintenance on the GMDSS equipment, but I can't figure out who that person would be. Someone from the engineering department? Or maybe one of the deck officers...? Help! Also, if you know the answer to this one... To operate the GMDSS equipment, you have to have licensing through the FCC. But from what I've been reading, it seems like -anyone- can use it. I know that (except for Military Sealift Command) there isn't a designated radio operator, but would an unlicensed crewmember with no radio operator license be allowed to operate the radio? Or is it ONLY proper for licensed crew to perform radio communications using GMDSS equipment? Sorry for the barrage, but I'm having a hard time finding answers!

• Answer:

  A GMDSS maintainer would be called the Radio Operator. That's the job title- realistically, you have to have a good knowledge of computer networks, electronics installation, and how to change the settings on the captain's TV, because that's what the radio operator mostly does. Larger shipowning companies have a couple of radio operators in their fleets, and they play musical ships, jumping between vessels on both an as-needed and regularly-scheduled basis. The only people who operate the GMDSS system are the captain and the officer of the watch (in a limited fashion). As you're aware, no one wants unnecessary traffic, and an extra warm body sitting at the GMDSS station while the captain and the OOW are walking the bridge is annoying. Modern GMDSS sets are almost idiotproof, anyhow, requiring little more than knowledge of how to send and print emails, spoof the Alarm system so that the idiot arabs and their love of false distress calls don't drown out the VHF traffic, and trying to keep the bridge quiet to allow the man on watch to focus on what's out the window vs. 3,000 miles away.