COVID19 – One year On

It was back one year ago that the UK went into its first Covid-19 lockdown.  Back then we saw how our day-to-day normal life changed overnight. The team at Viking Crew moved to working from home, mastering the challenges that video conference calls and homeschooling was going to bring. The question that was on everyone’s mind was just how long this was going to last; weeks, months or years before our industry was to return to normal service. One year on we are now gearing up for the industry to start back operating again.

Viking Crew’s Operation’s Director Paul Rutterford remembers that our crew management team worked with all our clients in the repatriation of crew from vessels located all over the globe, with ever changing travel and quarantine restrictions.

Since then, cruise ships have remained manned with their core onboard team who have been keeping ships on standby, ready for the time when the industry has the green light for guests to return. This has kept the Viking Crew team busy with the everchanging restrictions and requirements for international crew to navigate through.

Rebecca Adams, Placement Manager at Viking Crew comments on a year of challenges for seafarers wishing to return to work.  We have seen potential start up dates  being pushed back, which has left crew members having to make important decisions about their future career paths. 

The yachting industry has had its own challenges, with a number of yachts being affected financially, including being laid up or put up for sale.  During the summer of 2020, the calendar of yacht shows, and industry events were cancelled or moved to an online presence.  The Charter side of the industry was hit hard, and over the winter, many yachts have decided to remain in Europe. We think we will see a similar pattern for this year with a later start to the season.

Sue Price Operations Director at our Fort Lauderdale office added that there is a lot of yachts In US and the Caribbean at this current time. There is activity in New England looking to be very busy over Summer.   

We are now starting to see some green shoots of recovery across the cruise industry, with our clients now actively working on dates for their return to service.   Our Placement and Crew Management Teams have been busy with shortlisting, interviewing, training and onboarding crew.

 As we continue to navigate our way through the COVID pandemic, we are more than ever looking forward to our industry getting back into operation over the next few months.

Viking Crew is part of Viking Maritime Group.