Electrical Engineer
On a large yacht, everything from the stabilisers to the guest cabin lighting runs on electricity. The electrical engineer looks after that power, from the generators and main switchboard down to the last galley socket. Most posts are on yachts of 70m and over, where the electrical load is too much for one ETO. It suits qualified shoreside electricians who want to go to sea.
The jobWhat fills the day
The job covers generators, shore power converters, main and emergency switchboards, distribution panels, UPS systems, battery banks, motors, pumps, lighting and galley equipment. You fault-find, test insulation, keep up the planned maintenance system, and keep the electrical records that the class surveyors and flag inspectors will ask to see. Plenty of the work is unglamorous. You trace a nuisance trip at 2am, swap a failed bilge pump motor, or relabel a panel that a previous refit left in a mess.
With guests aboard, the priority is keeping things running without anyone noticing. You stay out of guest areas unless something breaks, and when it does you fix it quickly and quietly. Planned work is moved to crew areas and technical spaces. In the yard or at the dock between trips, the pace changes. You isolate systems, supervise contractors, run thermographic surveys and get through the backlog. On 100m+ yachts with high-voltage plant or diesel-electric propulsion, there is a lot more to it and you will need formal HV training.
Captains and chiefs hire on trade qualifications first. A City & Guilds, NVQ Level 3 or equivalent electrical apprenticeship, plus a few years on industrial, commercial or marine installations, is the usual baseline. Merchant navy electricians and offshore technicians move across easily. Yachts want people who can read schematics, use a megger properly and work safely under permit to work. Yacht experience helps, but a good trade background with no yacht time will still get interviews for the right boat.
The normal next step is ETO. That means getting the MCA ETO Certificate of Competency (STCW III/6), which needs documented sea time and approved training. Some electrical engineers pick up AV/IT skills and move that way. Others take an AEC and go through the engineering certificates. After a decade at sea, many go ashore into technical management, new build supervision or refit project work, where an electrical background is well paid.
Skills captains look for
- Switchboard and distribution maintenance
- Electrical fault-finding
- Generator and shore power systems
- Reading electrical schematics
- Insulation and thermographic testing
- Permit to work and isolation
- Planned maintenance systems
A day aboardGuest trip, 85m motor yacht, Maldives
Engine room rounds with the ETO. You check generator loads, switchboard readings and the alarm log from the night.
A stew reports that a guest cabin dimmer is flickering. You replace the module during breakfast service while the cabin is empty.
Coffee and a quick handover in the engine control room.
You megger test a seawater cooling pump motor that has been running hot, log the readings and plan to rewind it in port.
Lunch in the crew mess.
You chase a nuisance earth fault on the 230V system by isolating circuits one at a time, working round guest activity on the aft deck.
You update the PMS with the morning's jobs and order spare contactors to collect at Malé.
You check the tender garage charging circuits and the beach club lighting before the evening barbecue on the sandbank.
Off watch. You stay on the call list for electrical faults overnight.
Pay by yacht sizeMonthly, before tips. Estimates. Bars share one scale.
Rotation (often 10 weeks on, 10 off on larger yachts) means a smaller annual figure per month worked, in exchange for paid leave. Charter tips are shared with technical crew on most yachts and can add a month's pay or more over a season. See the ETO & AV/IT salary guide for figures from live adverts.
Tickets and visas
Must have
- STCW Basic Safety Training
- ENG1 medical certificate
- Recognised electrical trade qualification (NVQ/City & Guilds Level 3 or equivalent)
Gets you hired
- MCA ETO Certificate of Competency (STCW III/6)
- High Voltage safety and operational training
- BS 7671 18th Edition
- AEC 1 and 2
- PDSD
Visas
- US B1/B2
- Schengen visa if not an EU national
Where it leadsA typical career path
ETO & AV/IT jobsOpen now on SuperyachtRoles.com
Questions crew ask
What is the difference between an electrical engineer and an ETO?
The ETO usually runs the whole electrical and electronic department and often holds the STCW III/6 certificate. The electrical engineer focuses on power and electrical plant and normally reports to the ETO. On some yachts the titles overlap, so read the advert carefully.
Can I get this job without yacht experience?
Yes, if you have a solid electrical trade background. Industrial, offshore and merchant navy electricians are hired straight into the role. Get your STCW and ENG1 done first and register with crew agents in Antibes, Palma or Fort Lauderdale.
Do I need high-voltage training?
Only on yachts with HV plant, which in practice means many diesel-electric yachts of 100m and over. It makes your CV much stronger for the biggest boats, and you will need it later for the ETO certificate.
Is the work mostly in the engine room?
Much of it is in technical spaces. You will also work right through the yacht, in guest cabins, galleys, the bridge and tender garages. Being tidy and discreet in guest areas matters as much as technical skill.