David Burdett on Transport

My job as Barge Master had ended and I’d come back and I thought well, what do I do next. It was in the Spring, so I went to Wightlink and said, “Can I have a job?”

For my training, at the age of 15 I’d gone to HMS Conway which was a pre-sea training ship based on Anglesey and had a thorough grounding before going to sea, and when I went to Wightlink I was wearing the Conway tie.

I was talking to the Personnel Officer and one of the Managers came in wearing the Conway tie. He said, “Oh, hello, fancy seeing you here.” I said, “Yes, nice to see somebody else from the Conway.” He said, “What are you doing?” “I’m wanting to know if you’ve got a job.” “Oh yes, come on in.”

So, I was taken on as a Seasonal Officer, not a Captain, but as a … I think they called them Chief Officers, working …I did a few rounds on the high-speed catamarans between Portsmouth & Ryde but most of the time I was on the Car Ferries from Fishbourne.