Port Captain Jobs in the U.S. Maritime Industry
8 open port captain positions, updated November 3, 2026
Open Port Captain Positions
Port Captain
OFFSHORE AVIATION LLC
Charter Port Captain
Kirby Inland Marine Lp
Port Captain
Norton Lilly International
Port Captain
Royal Caribbean Group
Charter Port Captain
Kirby
Assistant Port Captain
The Steamship Authority
Port Captain
Foss Maritime Company
Port Captain / Marine Surveyor / Field Transport Engineer
Trident Cubed Solutions
About Port Captain Jobs
Port captain is the shoreside seat for someone who has already run a boat. The role is operational ownership of one or more vessels: making sure they are crewed, scheduled, compliant and doing what the customer is paying for.
Day to day that is dispatch and voyage coordination, crew rotations and the constant work of filling a hitch when someone does not show, performance and discipline issues, drug and alcohol program administration, drills and safety management system compliance, vetting and terminal requirements, and the reporting that follows any incident or near miss.
The job also sits on the seam between operations and commercial. Customers call the port captain when a schedule slips, and the port captain has to explain both the delay and what it will cost.
Employers include inland and coastwise towing companies, offshore operators, passenger and ferry systems, government and research fleets, and marine terminals. Most candidates come out of the wheelhouse with a Master or Master of Towing license and years of sea time behind them.
Positions concentrate around operating hubs: Houston, New Orleans, Morgan City, Paducah, Hampton Roads, Seattle, New York and the Great Lakes. Many are the first fully shoreside job a mariner takes.
Where Port Captains Are Hiring
Companies Hiring Port Captains
Frequently Asked Questions
- What does a port captain do?
- Manages the operational side of a vessel or fleet from ashore. That usually covers scheduling and dispatch, crewing and crew performance, safety and compliance programs, customer and terminal coordination, and incident response.
- Do port captains need a Master license?
- Most hold or have held one. Employers generally want someone who has sailed in command, because the job involves making judgment calls about vessels and crews from a distance.
- How is a port captain different from a port engineer?
- The port captain owns operations, crew and commercial execution. The port engineer owns maintenance, repairs and technical compliance. On many fleets the two work as a pair on the same vessels.
- Is it a desk job?
- Partly. Expect office work combined with vessel visits, terminal meetings, travel during crew changes or incidents, and a phone that rings outside business hours.