Henning Dost Captain Henning Dost leads with calm precision and passion for the sea.
Henning Dost became a captain at Hapag-Lloyd at the age of 32. Today, four years later, he looks back on eventful voyages. One highlight was taking delivery of the new “Hamburg Express” and being at the helm on its maiden voyage to Europe in 2024. Here, he explains what happens during a crash stop maneuver, what’s important when bunkering LNG, and what it feels like when two typhoons are heading your way.
A native of Bremen on the new “Hamburg Express”? Those in charge at Hapag-Lloyd’s headquarters couldn’t have come up with a better idea. After all, what would Hamburg-based Hapag be without Lloyd – or, more precisely, North German Lloyd, the Bremen-based shipping company with which it merged in 1970? Captain Henning Dost waves it off, saying: “Hamburg is our home port and the most beautiful city in the world. And I think it’s great that so many colleagues from Hamburg are working on board our new ship!”
On the way to taking delivery
“In early June of last year, I flew to South Korea to oversee the construction progress together with the Hapag-Lloyd project office on site and three engineers from the crew of the ‘Hamburg Express’,” Does explains. “At that time, the ship was still just a ‘shell.’ We checked the quality of the work from the bottom of the keel to the top of the mast. You spend the whole day walking around on board and then document your observations in the office in the evening. This had little to do with the normal operation of a container ship.”
The “Hamburg Express” then had to prove its seaworthiness on a seven-day test voyage between South Korea and Japan in early August 2024. “We ran through all the systems once and tested the navigation system and lifeboats,” Dost recounts. “This also included a so-called crash stop maneuver – in other words, an emergency stop – of the ‘Hamburg Express’ at maximum speed. It doesn’t feel so dramatic up on the bridge. But, in the engine room, the entire hull is vibrating and the engineers are sweating profusely. Ideally, this maneuver should only be performed once during the service life of a ship – namely, during the initial test voyage.”
This had little to do with the normal operations of a container ship.
Henning Dost reflecting on his early days in seafaring and the path to becoming captain.
In express mode to the master’s license
Dost also started his career at full steam ahead. Right after graduating from high school, he applied to train as a nautical officer’s assistant (NOA) and then studied nautical science at the Jade University of Applied Sciences in Elsfleth. At 24, he had his bachelor’s degree under his belt. He then sailed as an officer of the watch and, from 2017, as a chief mate for Hapag-Lloyd. At the same time, he also completed a part-time master’s degree.
In November 2021, Dost was promoted to captain at the young age of 32. Four weeks later, he boarded the “Osaka Express” in Hamburg. “As soon as I was appointed captain, I was told that I would be heading straight to a shipyard for the ship’s 15-year check,” Dost says, adding with a laugh,
"I guess you can say that shipyard stays are my specialty.“
After three assignments as captain on the “Brussels Express,” his experience with dual-fuel technology will also serve him well on the new “Hamburg Express.” “LNG behaves completely differently from heavy fuel oil, is highly flammable, and is constantly kept at minus 158 degrees,” he explains. “That’s why we need a detailed risk assessment in advance, especially for bunkering – meaning the refueling process for ships.”
In late August 2024, Hapag-Lloyd took delivery of the “Hamburg Express” in Okpo, and a farewell dinner attended by shipping company representatives was planned for the evening. But things turn out differently. “Tropical Cyclone Shanshan was heading toward the Japanese islands and was expected to hit South Korea with its low-pressure troughs in the coming days, so we cast off immediately” Dost recounts. He had the “Hamburg Express” steered around the volcanic island of Jeju toward the Chinese mainland to the Port of Ningbo, where the ship was able to load its first containers on schedule.
“Later, as we were about to cross from Yantian to Vũng Tàu in southern Vietnam, the next typhoon was already approaching,” he continues. “It hit the South China Sea with unexpected force. According to media reports, it was the most violent tropical storm in recent decades.” Dost emphasizes how grateful he is for today’s weather forecasts and the shore-based advice, saying: “We only had to take a minor detour.”
From South Korea to Vietnam with two typhoons
I would do it again in a heartbeat!
From the Cape of Good Hope to the christening
The captain is visibly proud of his crew. “From the Polish electricians to the German officers and our Filipino colleagues – everyone was highly motivated and worked together as a team,” he says. “As soon as we had a little more time and the weather was better, we got together for a barbecue and reminisced about the past few weeks.”
Soon thereafter, the “Hamburg Express” reached the Cape of Good Hope. “The southern tip of Africa isn’t nicknamed the ‘Cape of Storms’ for nothing,” Dost explains. “Low-pressure areas in the southern hemisphere are even stronger than they are in the northern hemisphere. From Durban to Lüderitz in Namibia, we sailed quite close to the coast, as the wind speeds and the probability of so-called ‘freak waves’ – meaning gigantic ones – are reduced here. One lesson from this voyage was definitely this: Even with a 400-metre ship, you can’t bargain with the sea and the forces of nature. And the safety of the crew, ship and cargo is always our top priority.”
The “Hamburg Express” reached Europe at the end of October and was officially christened in its home port of Hamburg on November 4, 2024. Captain Dost looks back on this time very fondly. “It was a great honor to be in command on the maiden voyage and to sail into the home port with the ship for the first time,” he says. “I would do it again in a heartbeat!”
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