Common sense of naval etiquette

The most common flags hung on naval vessels are various flags. Navy flag is the general name of the flag used by naval forces for identification, communication and etiquette. According to the nature, it can be divided into identification marks and communication marks. Identification flags, according to their functions, include navy flags and marine corps flags representing services and arms; Captain's flag, commander's flag and general's flag representing positions, ranks and ranks; Represents the state of the ship, the flag of the active ship and the flag of the sailing ship. There are many flags with different styles and colors, which represent letters, numbers and a certain meaning. They are used for communication between ships and between ships and land.

All kinds of flags are printed with corresponding emblems, signs or words, and the color, shape and size of the flag surface are clearly defined. Navy flags first appeared on ships of the navies of Kyrgyzstan, Greece and ancient Rome. Later, it was widely adopted by navies all over the world, and there were special regulations. In ancient China, warships used flags as symbols and used them to direct operations. "Historical Records" records: "The more we have to fight against China warships, the more we have to overhaul Kunming Lake. The building ship is more than ten feet high, and the flag is added on board, which is very strong. " During the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang recorded in his military orders: "As soon as the drums were heard and the white flag was raised, all ships, large and small, entered the war, and those who did not enter were beheaded. Those who smell gold, raise the green flag, the ship stops, and many people are beheaded. " Qi Jiguang's "Ji Xiaoxin's Book Sailor" in the Ming Dynasty recorded the flags of various warships with pictures and texts. During the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, the navy also formulated various special flags.

1950 In April, the China People's Liberation Army stipulated that the navy flag should be replaced by the China People's Liberation Army flag, and the captain's flag and the bow flag were stipulated; The naval communication flag uses the international signal flag, supplemented by six special flags. The Regulations on Naval Vessels stipulates the military flag and its hanging regulations, the daily raising of the national flag, the grand lifting of the flag, the hanging of the whole flag or the hanging of the whole flag, the etiquette of soldiers to the national flag and the military flag, and the use of the naval flag in various ceremonies and ceremonies.

The flag raising (lowering) ceremony of naval vessels mainly includes daily flag raising, grand flag raising and flag lowering.

The daily flag-raising of ships is a ceremony for ships to raise the navy flag every day. China Navy berthing ships usually raise the national flag at the flagpole at the stern of the ship at 8 o'clock every day according to the signals of the signal station or the command ship and the duty ship, and lower it at sunset; When a single ship is anchored, the flag shall be raised (lowered) by itself within the specified time. Usually, a flag-raising ceremony is held every Monday, and all crew members are dressed according to regulations, and a flag-raising ceremony is held on the back deck; There is no formation when the flag is lowered. Soldiers on deck and dock salute the national flag when they hear the flute of raising (lowering) the flag.

The grand flag-raising of ships means that ships line up to raise the whole flag, the bow flag and the mast flag at the same time. It is used for ceremonies such as major festivals, military parades, naming, awarding flags and awarding honorary titles.

The flag lowering ceremony is a ceremony to lower the navy flag at sunset for ships berthed daily, and to lower the military flag at the naval ship retirement ceremony. The flag lowering ceremony in the naval ship retirement ceremony was presided over by the captain, and all the crew members dressed in flag-raising formation held the ceremony as required.

The flags of naval vessels in the world mainly include navy flag, bow flag, stern flag, long flag, commander flag and captain flag.

Navy flag, also known as "ship flag" or "navy flag", is a flag indicating the nationality of a ship. The color, specification and style of the flag surface are all specific. Some are similar to their national flags but slightly different, such as Norway, Finland and Australia. Some are quite different from their national flags, such as Britain, Japan, Belgium and other countries. Some countries use national flags or military flags instead of naval flags, such as the United States, France, Chile and North Korea. The usual hanging methods of naval flag are as follows: surface ships are hung on the flagpole at the stern when berthing, and on the diagonal truss of the rear mast when sailing; When the submarine sails and berths on the water, it hangs on the flagpole behind the bridge.

The bow flag is a flag hung on the flagpole at the bow of a ship. The colors, styles and hanging time of the bow flags of naval vessels in different countries are different. When the first-class and second-class warships of the Russian Navy are moored, the first flag of the ship is raised and lowered at the same time as the tail flag every day; When the Chinese People's Liberation Army naval vessels held a grand flag-raising ceremony, the flag of China People's Liberation Army was hung on the flagpole at the bow, and there was no special bow flag.

The stern flag is a flag hung on the flagpole at the stern of a ship. Navy ships in many countries usually fly the navy flag at the stern, and there is no special stern flag.

A long flag is a long flag hanging from the mast on a warship. Its shape is usually a narrow flag with a pointed or dovetail tail. The long flags of different countries' navies have different colors and uses, including the flag of active ships indicating the service of ships, the flag of formation commanders, the flag of generals and the flag of captains indicating their positions.

The commander's flag is an identification flag hung by commanders above naval formations in many countries on stationed ships. Used for identification, command and international communication activities. Usually when the commander boards the ship, his flag will be raised; When leaving the ship, the flag is lowered; If the commander instructs not to fly, the national flag shall not be hoisted. Ships flying the commander's flag are called flagships. Some national navies also stipulate that commander lights should be hung at night, while the Chinese People's Navy does not hang commander flags and commander lights on command ships.

Many countries also use the captain's identification flag on naval vessels, that is, the captain's flag. Its usual hanging method is that the captain hangs on the top of the main mast when he is on board; If the captain visits a foreign warship by boat, it will be hung on the bow.

The navies of various countries also have the etiquette of hanging "full flags" and "full lights". Full flag is a grand etiquette for ships to hang flags from bow to stern during the day. The Chinese people's navy ships hang communication flags between two masts, which are connected with flagpoles at the bow and stern respectively. At the same time, the mast and the flagpole of the bow are hung with the national flag and the military flag respectively. It is used for major festivals, ceremonies, military parades, welcoming leaders, governments and armies of China or other countries, welcoming visiting warships of other countries, and visiting and berthing ports of other countries. And it's all lights at night. When sailing or under other special circumstances, the flag representing Manchu can be hung, that is, the national flag can be hung on the mast, the military flag can be hung on the bow and the naval flag can be hung on the stern. "Full of lights" is a grand etiquette for ships to hang lights along the full flag position and the outline of the ship's side and superstructure at night on major festivals. Usually, the lights are turned on after the flag is lowered and turned off at 24: 00.

Second, the naval salute.

Salute ceremony originated in16th century. When British warships sail into other countries' waters or meet other countries' ships, they will discharge all the shells in the gun bore to show friendship and goodwill, which later evolved into an international etiquette to show respect. Naval salute is a grand ceremony for naval vessels to launch blank ammunition or special salute shells, which is used in foreign affairs activities to express welcome, tribute or thanks. Under normal circumstances, warships above the second level use two guns or port battery with medium caliber or above to shoot according to the prescribed procedures. Navy salute is divided into national salute and personal salute. When warships visit, national salute is used to show respect for the countries visited, or to express gratitude when warships from other countries visit. Its specification is 2 1. When ships visit and greet warships of other countries, personal salute is used to show respect or answer to the highest-ranking naval officer above the rank of general or an official with the same rank. Its specifications are usually 2 1- 1 1 by rank, and the salute is fired in odd numbers. In addition, there are funeral salutes.

Third, district parades and boat parades.

The divisional formation, commonly known as "standing slope", is a grand etiquette for the crew to line up along the port and starboard sides of the ship according to the prescribed division and order. Usually used to welcome heads of state, military parade and other occasions. When standing on the slope, the crew should dress in accordance with the regulations, and line up along the main deck to the left and right sides of each deck of the podium at equal intervals. Line up outside. On each deck, the officers stood in the bow direction. Sometimes, according to the need, it can be put aside.

The naval parade is a ceremony to review the naval forces. China Navy usually holds celebrations, pays tribute and shows its achievements on national or military festivals, receives the party and the country, military leaders, large-scale military exercises and other occasions. The military parade of ships is divided into sea parade and dock parade. Military parade at sea, including military parade and decisive. Military parade, in which participants take a boat and conduct a review through a moored boat; In discrete form, the ships to be read pass through the ships of the team to be read in turn according to the prescribed formation and are reviewed. Dock parade, parade participants review the read ships docked at the dock on shore or by boat; Or the crew left the ship and lined up at the dock for inspection. On the specified parade day, all the ships under review were hung with flags, and the crew lined up in different areas of the ship.

Fourth, boarding and disembarking etiquette

Soldiers must salute the national flag when boarding and disembarking. When China soldiers boarded and left the ship, they saluted the national flag at the stern; Like several ships, only salute when boarding the first ship or leaving the last ship; Collective boarding and disembarkation should be saluted by the team leader. When the national flag is raised, salute it.

When the heads of all levels board and leave the ship, the ship has only special etiquette and ceremony. China navy ships usually fly full flags when welcoming party, state, government and military leaders; When welcoming the heads of the navy, major military regions or equivalent positions, the national flag group will welcome them; All the crew members lined up by region, the captain and political commissar greeted them at the entrance of the ladder, and the military band and honor guard played the national anthem or welcome music. When seeing off the heads of the fleet, base and detachment, the captain, political commissar or duty ship will meet them at the stairs. When the heads of all levels boarded the ship, more people honked their horns and the crew paid attention. The etiquette when leaving the ship is basically the same as when boarding the ship. When China navy ships don't know the position of the boarders, people with the rank of senior colonel need to whistle when boarding.

When foreign guests board and leave the ship, ships usually greet their peers according to their duties, and the procedures are the same as those for ships to welcome their peers.

Verb (abbreviation for verb) military band and honor guard

Warship military band is a military music performance team, which performs ceremonial tasks on warships. It is usually used with the honor guard of warships to greet the leaders of this country or other countries, governments and armies. The military band of China navy warships is composed of 8- 12 people, who wear standard clothes according to the regulations and line up in one or two rows. Submarines and ships below level 3 have no military bands.

The guard of honor on the ship is a small unit that performs ceremonial tasks on the ship. It is usually used with the military band on board to greet the leaders of this country or other countries, governments and armies. The honor guard of China naval vessels consists of 1 captain (officer) and several sailors. Officers wear guns, while sailors hold automatic rifles or semi-automatic rifles. They wear uniforms according to the regulations and line up in a row. Submarines and ships below level 3 have no honor guards.

Six, ship etiquette

Etiquette between ships refers to the etiquette of showing respect when ships meet. China navy ships honked a long horn to show their respect and return the gift, and two short horns to show the end of the ceremony. According to the regulations, people with lower ranks salute the ships with higher ranks than themselves, the commanded ships salute the commanding ships, the ships with lower ranks salute the ships with higher ranks, the ships with the same ranks salute each other, and the civilian ships salute the warships first. You don't have to salute after sunset and before sunrise in the case of heavy wind and waves or poor sight distance.

The courtesy of visiting ships is a courtesy to show respect and friendship when ships visit foreign countries or ships from other countries. According to the agreement reached in advance between the two governments and the armed forces. The usual practice is that when a passenger ship visits, the host country sends a ship to meet him at the assembly point and hangs a national flag group to welcome him; Visiting ships fired naval salute, saluted the ships, and guided the visiting ships to dock; Ships of the host country honked their horns along the way and raised the national flag group to welcome them; During the farewell period, the host country sent ships to guide the visiting ships to their respective locations, and the two sides respectively hung national flags to express their farewell and thanks.

VII. Boarding Ceremony

Ship ceremonies are usually held when the ship is named, the flag is awarded, the honorary title is awarded and the ship is retired. The general procedure of China naval vessel ceremony is that all the crew members dress in accordance with the regulations, form a flag-raising formation, greet the chief to board the vessel in accordance with the regulations, and the superior chief reads the order and gives it to the captain, captain or political commissar for speech. If the flag is awarded or retired, the captain will raise or lower the military flag; Except for the decommissioning ceremony of ships, all other ceremonies held a grand flag-raising ceremony.

Eight. Flags at half mast and funerals at sea

When the leaders of China's state, government and army died, flags were flown at half mast as required. When the current commander of the navy at or above the ship died, the ships moored in the port under its jurisdiction lowered their flags at half mast as required. When the flag is flown at half mast, it is hung at the top third of the flagpole. Ships sail (except for funerals at sea), undertake combat missions and lower flags at half mast in the battle.

Sea burial is a unique ceremony for naval vessels to hold sea burial or scatter ashes. Sea burial is usually carried out when naval personnel die or die at sea, and the remains can not be transported to land in time, nor can they be kept on board. The ceremony of scattering ashes into the sea is a ceremony of scattering the ashes of state, government and military leaders or approved naval soldiers into the sea by ship. When a funeral is held, the flag of the ship carrying the remains or urns will be lowered at half mast at a slow speed to the scheduled place, and funeral music will be played. The crew will form a flag-raising formation and observe silence in front of the remains or urns. The latitude and longitude of the places where the remains enter the sea or scatter ashes will be recorded in the log book. Domestic ships near the funeral also lowered flags at half mast to mourn until the ceremony was over.