HOW I GOT HERE
The captain of Celebrity Edge cruise ship Kate Mccue charts her career path
Kate Mccue charts the route she took to become the captain of a cruise liner
Afamily cruise holiday and unwavering support from her dad inspired captain Kate Mccue to work her way up through the ranks to become America’s first female cruise ship captain. From academy novice to maritime trailblazer and social media sensation, she’s now taking the helm of the over 1,000ft-long, $1b cruise ship Celebrity Edge.
MY FIRST CRUISE WAS A FAMILY TRIP FILLED WITH DISNEY CHARACTERS, WHEN I WAS 12 YEARS OLD. I loved the holiday so much that, when we got off the ship, I told my dad I wanted to work on cruises myself one day. He told me I could do anything, even drive the cruise ship.
WHEN I WAS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT I WANTED TO DO AT
18, DAD REMINDED ME OF THAT DREAM. He’d always wanted to work at sea himself and, although it never worked out for him, Dad knew where I could train and told me he’d take out loans so I could get there.
WHEN I JOINED THE MARITIME TRAINING ACADEMY IN CALIFORNIA, I DIDN’T KNOW MY PORT FROM MY STARBOARD. But, over the next four years, I learned the ropes and fell in love with working at sea. In 1999, I graduated as one of eight women in a class of more than 100. I began working on cargo ships, transporting bananas between Ecuador and California, but commercial cruise ships were my ultimate goal.
OVER THE NEXT YEAR AND A HALF, I SENT OUT COUNTLESS CVS, BUT DIDN’T HEAR ANYTHING BACK. Determined to get my foot in the door, I applied to be a bartender with a cruise line, hoping that could be a way in. I’d never served a drink in my life, so they told me I wasn’t qualified. Instead, they wanted to hire me as third officer, which meant I’d be helping drive the ship – I couldn’t believe it!
THAT FIRST JOB WAS ON INDEPENDENCE OF THE SEAS, WHERE I MET THE ENGINEER WHO BECAME MY HUSBAND, NIKOLA.
I left the ship in 2003 to work as a second officer with Royal Caribbean. Slowly, I worked my way up the ranks to staff captain (second-in-command). In 13 years, I worked on seven different ships.
I WAS SAILING WITH NIKOLA ON QUANTUM OF THE SEAS, WHERE HE WAS CHIEF ENGINEER, WHEN I GOT A CALL FROM THE CEO AND PRESIDENT OF CELEBRITY CRUISES. I was offered the position of captain in its fleet and I said ‘yes’ immediately, but asked if I could keep it quiet until I’d told my dad. On Father’s Day, I handed him a print out of the email explaining why I’d been offered the job. Dad started reading it aloud until he got to the part about being a captain and stopped. He looked up at me and then back down at the paper and said, ‘Captain?’ I’d finally done it. In 2015, I became America’s first female cruise ship captain.
‘I BECAME AMERICA’S FIRST FEMALE CRUISE SHIP CAPTAIN’
ALTHOUGH I TRAVEL ACROSS THE WORLD AND AM OFTEN FAR FROM HOME, I’M WITH 1,250 CREW MEMBERS WHO HAVE BECOME MY FAMILY. Even though Nikola and I are often on opposite sides of the world, we keep in touch every day with technology and he comes to stay with me on board.