IT Support Engineer
The IT support engineer is the first call when a guest's laptop will not join the Wi-Fi or a crew tablet stops syncing. You sit in the engineering department, usually under an AV/IT officer or ETO, and you look after the hundreds of devices, access points and accounts that a modern superyacht depends on. It is a hands-on helpdesk job with a sea view.
The jobWhat fills the day
Most of the work is support. You set up guest phones and laptops on the network, reset passwords, fix printers, replace failed access points and keep the crew mess TV working. Behind that sits the infrastructure: switches, firewalls, VLANs, the VSAT and Starlink terminals, 4G and 5G routers, and the backup systems. You patch and update everything, keep an asset register and log every fault. A tidy rack and good documentation matter more than clever fixes.
With guests aboard the job changes shape. You are on call for long hours, you may wear interior uniform when entering guest areas, and you learn to fix things quietly before anyone notices. Bandwidth management becomes a daily task, as a family streaming in four cabins can swamp a satellite link. In the yard or over winter in Antibes or Palma you get the project work: cabling, upgrades, cyber security reviews and testing new kit before the season.
Yachts hire people with proven IT support experience ashore, usually two or more years on a helpdesk or in managed services, plus solid networking. CompTIA or Cisco certificates help a CV stand out. Discretion counts as much as skill, because you will handle the owner's devices and private data. Most IT support roles exist only on yachts above 80m, so competition is real and a previous superyacht season or AV installation background is a strong advantage.
The usual step up is to AV/IT engineer, taking on the audio-visual systems as well as IT, then AV/IT officer running the department. That normally takes three to six years. Some move sideways into ETO work by adding electrical qualifications, and others go ashore to integrators, management companies or new build yards as technical project staff. Keeping your certificates current and learning the yacht's cyber security requirements under the ISM code will speed things up.
Skills captains look for
- Windows, macOS and iOS support
- Network switching and VLANs
- VSAT and Starlink management
- Firewall and Wi-Fi configuration
- Cyber security basics
- Clear written documentation
- Discreet guest manner
A day aboardGuest trip, 95m motor yacht, North Malé Atoll, Maldives
Check the network dashboard, satellite link status and overnight alerts. Restart a stuck access point on the bridge deck before guests wake.
Interior radios that the owner's son cannot cast to the cinema screen. Fix the pairing in the main saloon while he is at breakfast on the aft deck.
Throttle crew streaming during guest hours as bandwidth climbs. Agree priorities with the AV/IT officer and update the bandwidth policy.
Lunch in the crew mess, radio on in case a guest call comes through.
Set up two laptops for arriving guests on the guest VLAN and test their video calls. Log both devices in the asset register.
Apply security patches to crew workstations in the engineering office and purser's office, one at a time to avoid downtime.
Hour off on the crew deck while the guests are out on the tenders.
Check the beach dinner setup's Wi-Fi bridge and speakers with the deck team. Stay on standby nearby through service.
Run backups, note the day's faults in the IT log and hand the on-call phone to the AV/IT officer.
Pay by yacht sizeMonthly, before tips. Estimates. Bars share one scale.
Salary is usually tax-free with food and accommodation covered. Charter yachts add tips, and rotation on larger yachts often means fewer working months at a similar monthly rate. See the ETO & AV/IT salary guide for figures from live adverts.
Tickets and visas
Must have
- STCW Basic Safety Training
- ENG1 medical certificate
Gets you hired
- CompTIA A+ or Network+
- Cisco CCNA
- PDSD (Proficiency in Designated Security Duties)
- Food Hygiene Level 2
- Starlink or VSAT vendor training
Visas
- US B1/B2 visa
- Schengen visa if non-EU
Where it leadsA typical career path
ETO & AV/IT jobsOpen now on SuperyachtRoles.com
Questions crew ask
Do I need yachting experience to get hired?
Not always. Strong IT support and networking experience ashore is what captains and AV/IT officers look for first. You will still need STCW Basic Safety and an ENG1 before you join.
Is this the same job as an AV/IT officer?
No. The IT support engineer is a junior position focused on devices, users and the network. The AV/IT officer runs the whole department, including audio-visual systems, budgets and suppliers.
Which yachts have dedicated IT support crew?
Mostly yachts over 80m, and almost always over 100m. On smaller yachts the ETO or an engineer covers IT, so the role is rarely advertised below that size.
What hours should I expect?
With guests aboard you are on call for most of the day and some nights. In the yard or between trips the hours settle into a normal working day with weekends often off.