Daland, the Home Secretary, is navigating a storm and must steer “the ship of state” to safety. After calming his crew, Daland orders them to go and rest. He leaves his protégé, Erik, the Steuermann, to manage things overnight. Erik eventually succumbs to fatigue. As he sleeps, the ship of the Flying Dutchman appears. The Dutchman ruminates on the curse that condemns him to wander the seas until Judgement Day, making land only once every seven years. Upon returning to the office, Daland is surprised to find it in a strange state and now occupied by a mysterious figure. The Dutchman asks Daland for shelter for one night in exchange for untold riches. He also asks if Daland has a daughter. When Daland replies that he has, the Dutchman instantly asks for her hand in marriage. With an eye to the Dutchman’s apparent wealth, Daland gives his enthusiastic consent. The storm has subsided. Daland and the Dutchman plot a course for Daland’s home and his daughter, Senta.

In Daland’s premises, women are busy doing repetitive work cataloguing washed up objects. They tease Senta, Daland’s daughter, for her relationship with her father’s protégé, Erik. Instead of working, Senta is wholly absorbed by a portrait of a pale man. She sings a ballad that she was taught by Daland’s secretary, Mary, about the legendary Flying Dutchman, whose soul might find salvation through a woman’s faithful love. Although initially captivated by the story of the Dutchman, the women become concerned by Senta’s obsession with him. Erik arrives to announce that Daland has returned, and the women rush away to prepare for his arrival. Erik prevents Senta from leaving and urges her to accept his love. He tells her of a dream he has had in which Senta flees with the Flying Dutchman. Senta is filled with such joy at Erik’s vision that he leaves in despair. A moment later, Daland arrives with the Dutchman and introduces him to an enraptured Senta. Daland leaves the pair alone together, who commit themselves to one another. When Daland returns, he decides to throw a party to celebrate their union.

Daland’s crew enjoy the wedding festivities. Upon noticing the presence of the Dutchman’s ship, they attempt to offer food and drink but are met with deathly silence. Eventually, their taunting provokes the Dutchman’s crew to emerge, terrifying everyone into submission. Erik confronts Senta about her wedding to the Dutchman and claims that she promised her heart to him. The Dutchman overhears their conversation and concludes that Senta’s vow to him meant nothing. He orders his crew to make ready for sea. He explains to Senta the truth of his identity and the fate that she has avoided: eternal damnation will not be hers, for although she has broken faith with him her vow was not made before God. But she responds that she has always known who he is and that she will be his salvation. Senta is restrained by Daland and Erik as the Dutchman heads out to sea. Finally, she throws them off and, in her final deed, sets both herself and the Dutchman free.