T&T: M/V use?

[Gary Bell]

>>I can make a guess as to what the M/V that precedes some  vessels  
>  
>
names stands for.. is it Motor Vessel ?

But when is it  appropriate, or what is the protocol to use the  term?


Let's watch Mr. Science climb out on a limb with a saw in his hand!

Without looking any of this up, here is my take on the terms in question:

Two part terms are used to describe these floaty things.  I think John 
touched on the core of the matter when he descussed customs and 
harbormaster sorts of issues overseas.  I suspect these terms relate to 
describing the nature of a vessel in terms of how customs and port 
officials would treat it.  Clearly, domestic bridgetenders and 
harbormasters could (and perhaps should) insist on standardized 
distinctions of this sort to help them identify one vessel among many -- 
but sadly the American boating public resists any such pressures to 
conform to official standards, so these issues here in The States are 
probably just academic. 

The first part describes the sort of floaty thing, according to it's 
appearance:  S for sail; M for motor, F for fishing (I can't recall any 
others).

The second part describes the commercial or private nature of the floaty 
thing:  V for vessel, implying a commercial use; and Y for yacht, 
without commercial use -- just for pleasure. 

Thus we have M/V for motor propelled commercial boats, including things 
like ferry boats, all manner of workboats, coastal freighters and 
particularly charter craft that are motor propelled.  We have M/Y for 
motor propelled pleasure craft without commercial use (we certainly 
spend almost as much on our boats, but with absolutely no hope of ever 
making any $ back).  There are S/Y's and if they go into the charter 
fleet they become S/V's.  There are F/V's, but I think that instead of 
F/Y, the designation just reverts to M/Y.  

I don't recall any instances (like printed forms) where the US 
government harps on us to use the proper term, but I believe that these 
terms are still in use in other nations, and as with all things that 
should be used in common between the many nations and cultures in this 
wide world, there is darn little that is actually in common among them 
all.   In international matters like these, which ever way ya like it, 
there's some countries that go that way, and whichever way ya don't like 
it, there's even more countries that go that way. 

As for the terms ship vs. boat, here is the way I heard it way back in 
the stone age when I was in the Navy ("My Bosun Done Tol' Me"):  A boat 
can be lifted onto a ship.  Soooo, my PDQ 34, a motorized, non-sailing 
trawler style catamaran is a boat, with no commercial application, hence 
I give you the boat M/Y "Stray Cat."  Our 80 foot sidewheel paddleboat, 
also without commercial application (now) should be the good ship M/Y 
"Liberty Bell."  Clearly, there are longer boats that can be lifted, and 
shorter ships that cannot. 

BTW, when we were delivering our brand new PDQ westward across the Great 
Lakes a fellow we met in Port Sanilac (I think) suggested that 'if we 
yarded these things out of the water and slapped wheels on them we would 
be Trailer Trash, but out on the water we're Yachtsmen!'  An astute 
observation.  And, to distinguish our distinguished selves from charter 
boats operated by inexperienced vacationers, I suggest that we 
Trawlermen refrain from using M/V when we really mean M/Y.

Gary Bell