Growing up by the sea in Southern Ireland cultivated my profound love for maritime life, and as a result, at 18, I chose a different path from traditional higher education, opting to join the United Kingdom Sailing Academy in 2006. Here, I underwent training, earning my Yachtmaster Ocean certification in sailing and later acquiring powerboat certification, all geared towards entering the industry.
My Summers were filled with sailing and family boat adventures in Morfa Nefyn, North Wales where I learned to sail, water ski and fish with my Uncle and Stepdad.
Living in the scenic Irish fishing village of Courtmacsherry further deepened my connection to the sea, especially through maintaining our family Boston Whaler with my younger brother.
My professional journey began fortuitously with day work on an 86m Motor Yacht after meeting a family friend when sitting outside the Blue Lady in Antibes, leading swiftly to a permanent position on a 74m Charter Yacht in 2007. This role included a memorable Royal Caribbean tour with certain members of the Royal family, truly a once in a lifetime experience!
In the subsequent years, I honed my skills on vessels ranging from 70m to 132m, ensuring mastery at each rank before advancing. In 2014, the day before my OOW exam, I received a call from the Captain of a 74m Motor yacht offering me a job, the Captain had said if I passed he would hire me as 2nd officer and If I failed he would hire me as Bosun….. Just what you need the day before your Oral exam. Thankfully a few days later, I was flying out to Germany to start on board as 2nd officer. The vessel, which was heavily chartered, provided exposure to a dynamic charter environment, tailoring each trip to suit the needs of each of our new guests.
After a short break away to gain further experience as an officer on vessels between 70 – 90m, I returned to the 74m vessel as rotational Chief in 2017. We cruised in the Maldives and the far east with season after season of back to back charters.
Here, I was also involved in the build of a 100m project in Northern Europe and later served as rotational Chief Officer on board before assuming my first captaincy on a 55m Damen support vessel in 2022.
My time as Captain on board the 55m support boat was characterized by a close-knit crew dynamic and learning the support vessel role, having only ever been on the guest facing boats. It was also a great opportunity to build relationships with the Heli teams and the additional staff that support the fleet I was now a part of.
We cruised in the Mediterranean and Caribbean but also had the chance to spend three months in the Norwegian Fjords, which are still, to this day, one of the most picturesque locations I’ve ever sailed in.
During this time, due to my previous build experience, I was lucky enough to be involved in the early build stages of our current 100m+ project, and subsequently moved back to Northern Europe to oversee the build of the project as build Captain.
This whole journey has been marked by diverse experiences, from navigating the seas to overseeing vessel construction, all rooted in a lifelong passion for the maritime world.
