Ettlin Becomes Silversea's First Female Captain

Silversea's Captain Margrith Ettlin

Another woman has taken command of a cruise ship, because Silversea has appointed their first female captain in their 20-year history.

Margrith Ettlin was promoted to the rank of captain and took command of Silver Explorer in Reykjavik yesterday. Her first tour of duty will extend into October.

A Swiss citizen, Captain Ettlin has extensive maritime experience in remote regions, including the Arctic and Antarctica, and this will be put to good use on Silversea’s expedition ship, Silver Explorer.

Ettlin joined Silversea as a staff captain in March 2010. Prior to that, she worked for Germany's F. Laeisz shipping group and has nearly nine years as a staff captain with the German shipping company Hapag Lloyd.

"We're very pleased and proud to extend this promotion to Captain Ettlin," said Christian Sauleau, Silversea's executive vice president of fleet operations. "Although we're not the first cruise company to have a female captain, we hope Captain Ettlin's achievement will inspire other women to pursue careers at sea."