ship captain
Ship captains are in charge of a vessel for the transportation of goods and passengers, operating in offshore and coastal waters. The size of the vessel can range from a small vessel to a cruise liner depending on the tonnage that they are certified to sail. Ship captains have vast experience with ships and their operation, and are likely to have worked their way through the ranks of other ship-related positions.
ship captain ship captains are in charge of a vessel for the transportation of goods and passengers, operating in offshore and coastal waters. The size of the vessel can range from a small vessel to a cruise liner depending on the tonnage that they are certified to sail. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include geographic areas, international regulations for preventing collisions at sea, principles of mechanical engineering, types of maritime vessels, freight transport methods.
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Technicians and associate professionals” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only ship captain, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 3. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Transportation
- Public Safety and Security
- Mechanical
- Law and Government
- English Language
- Geography
- Administration and Management
- Customer and Personal Service
What you'd actually do
- Direct courses and speeds of ships, based on specialized knowledge of local winds, weather, water depths, tides, currents, and hazards.
- Prevent ships under navigational control from engaging in unsafe operations.
- Serve as a vessel's docking master upon arrival at a port or at a berth.
- Consult maps, charts, weather reports, or navigation equipment to determine and direct ship movements.
- Steer and operate vessels, using radios, depth finders, radars, lights, buoys, or lighthouses.
- Operate ship-to-shore radios to exchange information needed for ship operations.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does ship captain do?
Ship captains are in charge of a vessel for the transportation of goods and passengers, operating in offshore and coastal waters. The size of the vessel can range from a small vessel to a cruise liner depending on the tonnage that they are certified to sail. Ship captains have vast experience with ships and their operation, and are likely to have worked their way through the ranks of other ship-related positions.
What skills does ship captain need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include geographic areas, international regulations for preventing collisions at sea, principles of mechanical engineering, types of maritime vessels, freight transport methods, International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace ship captain?
Our AI-durability model gives ship captain a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.