So I’m a deckhand on a super yacht.
I basically get paid to travel around the world
working for billionaires.
From the Instagram and Snapchat stories,
everyone seems to think that you've got the coolest job in the world.
The reality of it is that you are clearing up rooms that have just had
sex parties, orgies, prostitutes.
Coke residue on the tables the next day.
Veal or livestock so fresh
that it actually gets flown in on a helicopter,
slaughtered on board,
and served to the guests as fresh as can be.
Unfortunately, it can sometimes get a bit seedy,
a bit creepy with drunk people who think they can do whatever they want.
These owners, these millionaires,
these billionaires, they’re incredibly powerful people,
and a lot of the time, they get their own way.
Drug smuggling can go on in the industry.
If people wanted to be moving drugs and illicit substances,
I reckon it’d be pretty easy to do.
It’s an incredibly secretive world
which no one really knows much about.
The guests just use super yachts as their little playground.
They live in this little bubble
where they think anything goes, anything can happen.
[Informer]
[Super Yacht Deckhand]
These yachts are always pretty mad, particularly the larger ones.
They will pretty much always contain a pool or some sort of hot tub,
equipped with a gym.
Some of them have cinemas.
Some of them have their own spas,
helidecks, and will store a helicopter on board.
The cost of these yachts can exceed anywhere about half a billion pounds.
I think some of the most expensive chartered yachts
on the market at the moment can actually cost
four million a week.
You do always secretly know that the people you’re working for
haven’t always done the best things in their lives.
I’ve received job offers for the owner of a boat who is
one of the most notoriously corrupt people on the planet.
And during the job interview,
the chief officer actually asked me
am I morally OK with who this person is
and what he’s done.
And you kind of just have to ask yourself,
“Am I OK with this?”
The expectations of the guests are pretty much whatever they ask for,
we can deliver to them.
As the day tends to go on
and the more alcohol that gets consumed,
their expectations go up
and our ability to deliver goes down.
Sexual harassment definitely does go on in the industry.
You do hear quite a few stories which
make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.
There is a sexual element to the job, 100 percent.
It’s a very superficial industry
that a lot of boats will only hire on the way you look
and what waist size you are
or what dress size you are, et cetera.
I think they can forget that you’re here for work,
you’re not here to be violated in any way.
The victims of these cases are paid off.
They’re told to keep their mouths shut
in order for their bonuses or perks.
It gives the people this right to think
that they can get away with anything.
There have been a few serious incidents in super yachting
that have gone wrong and actually led to fatalities.
One of the most famous ones in the industry
was actually an anchor chain coming loose.
The chain span around in what’s called the mooring bay,
which is the forward section of the boat called the bow.
The chain span around
and actually took the leg off one of the officers,
and unfortunately, he bled to death and died.
Basically, you’ve just got to stay really switched on at all times,
which can be a big part of the reason why
working in the industry can make you so tired and run down.
I did a pretty long stint working on a charter boat.
It was nearly 130 days of season, back-to-back charters,
and within that time, we only had one day off.
At the end of that, when I actually left that boat,
I felt like I was ready to leave the industry
because it was just killing me, essentially.
You can burn out really quickly.
And you can look at guys who are,
you know, they’ve been in yachting for ten years or so,
and they look pretty weathered.
Their skin’s
destroyed by the sun.
The lack of sleep has just f***ed them over.
And it can really have quite a physical effect on your body,
and it's pretty visible.
The reason that we’re so busy is because obviously
we only have a certain number of crew cabins on board.
You’re always in a cabin for two,
if not four on some bigger boats,
and if not six on some super large ones.
Cabin fever is definitely, definitely a real thing.
You can feel cooped up like a caged animal sometimes, and
personal space becomes a serious issue.
Working in yachting
definitely teaches you a lot of mental fortitude.
You know, you work very long hours with little rest,
and that teaches you how to be resilient
and just kind of push on, push on through.
Obviously, there are some negative effects on your mental health.
I don’t really understand the mindset of a billionaire,
but when a lot of money is involved, it changes people,
and I think it always brings out the worst
in a lot of people’s personalities.