It is the philosophy of the Offshore Maritime Training Centre to present courses which are relevant and interesting to all sailors, whether they go offshore in powerboats or yachts. Whether your interest is purely recreational, or necessary for your employment, you will find that you will earn a relevant and useful qualification. You will learn a great deal to assist in your seagoing life from our experienced team of mature instructors.

GAIN CONFIDENCE

We combine classroom theory with "hands on" practical experience to reduce the uncertainty which so often confronts all mariners, particularly in marine emergencies.

EVALUATE EQUIPMENT

Our equipment, with which you will train, is modern and well maintained. You can compare and test different brands of gear before you buy to assist in making the right choice for your needs. We are not equipment retailers, just dedicated maritime trainers.

MATURE EXPERIENCED INSTRUCTORS

Our instructional techniques have been developed from hard experience gained over many years at sea, in square rigged ships, multihull yachts, commercial ships, military and police vessels, racing yachts as well as Antarctic expedition vessels. We are still going out there and doing it!

Each instructor sails offshore for at least 100 days every year, from the equator to Cape Horn and beyond.

Instructors hold STCW95 commercial maritime qualifications and the principal is endorsed to command power driven ships to 80 metres as well as being endorsed to skipper "fore and aft sail" and "square rigged" ships

Instructors hold Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) workplace trainer and assessor certificates.

They are current Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Yachtmaster Offshore Instructors and Yachting Australia Sea Survival Examiners and Offshore Yachtmaster Instructors.

LIVE THE DREAM

Live the dream and be very well prepared for your offshore adventure by our experienced mature team of dedicated maritime professionals.

NATIONAL DELIVERY OF THESE COURSES

The home base of OMTC is Moreton Bay, Brisbane, in the Sunshine State Queensland. However all training courses are offered nationally through RYA Training Centres and Yacht and Sailing clubs, Australia wide.

Many sailing schools retain OMTC to deliver these courses as the courses are specialist in nature, equipment intensive, and costly to set up. All courses are supported by current audio visual presentations, copyright course notes and support materials customised for individual sailing school providers.

We come to you with all necessary approvals in place including insurance, Australian Maritime Safety Authority notifications and, where necessary, State Maritime Authority approvals. We are accredited to issue ISAF, RYA and MCA certification. We also assess competence for Red Cross Australia qualifications and invigilate on behalf of the Office of Maritime Communications. Naturally we are Yachting Australia accredited for both racing and cruising sail training schemes.

THE PRINCIPAL

Gerald "Gerry" Fitzgerald has a life long interest in sailing, commencing in off the beach catamarans in the 1960’s. He campaigned the Olympic class tornado catamaran in the1970’s for a decade, quite unsuccessfully, before moving into larger offshore mulithulls in the early 1980’s sailing and sponsoring well known trimarans such as "Assassin" (Syd Luxford) and "Yumi Maru" (Phil Smith) he then moved into offshore monohull racing, competing in his first Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race in 1984 in "Overdraft" (Dayle Smith).

So began a decade of offshore yacht racing, competing in every offshore racing event many times in a variety of yachts.

Long distance sailing during the 1990’s included transpacific crossings, trans-Tasman as well as Pacific Rim races to Ambon, Indonesia, Noumea, New Caledonia, Ghizo in the Solomon Islands and Port Moresby in PNG, with a summer in the Mediterranean thrown in (1990). The decade finished with a round trip to Antarctica from Hobart, Tasmania as relief skipper on Don and Margie Mc Intyres’ expedition vessel "Spirit of Sydney"(1998).

During this decade commercial maritime qualifications were obtained and so began a "sea change" in personal outlook and career.

Square rigged ships held the romance of a bygone era and led to command of the brigantine STV "Windeward Bound" (2000) as well as first officer roles on "Svanen" and experience on "James Craig" and "Batavia" and the replica "Endeavour".

A deep southern ocean crossing from Lakes Entrance, Victoria, to Ushuaia via Cape Horn as master on Roger Wallis "Spirit of Sydney" during the spring of 2002 rekindled his association with this grand expedition vessel, which continues to this day.

Commercial sea time on cargo vessels in the South Pacific led to command of the Australian Federal Police vessel MV "Jackpot" and the military resupply vessel "Tina 1" during the regional assistance mission to the Solomon Islands 2003-4.

Command of general cargo and trading vessels in the south west pacific added to his commercial trading experience

Gerry spends about 130 days a year at sea in a variety of sail and power driven vessels, both commercial and recreational, and regularly competes in offshore yacht races.

He is a life member of the Cairns Yacht Club.

He has been a member of the Multihull Yacht Club of Queensland since 1982.