Moving From Yachts to Ships

Prerequisites

Read the earlier lessons in this course and the professional pathways lessons on MCA yacht certificates. This lesson follows the UK rules: MSN 1856 (Amendment 1), section 13.3 and Annex F, for merchant certificates, and MSN 1858 (Amendment 1) for yacht certificates. Other administrations have their own conversion rules, so ask yours for an assessment.

Learning Objectives

• Explain why a yacht CoC does not convert directly to a merchant CoC.
• State the UK route from OOW (Yachts) less than 3000 GT to OOW unlimited.
• Count yacht sea service the way the MCA does: actual sea days, standby days and yard days.
• Explain the extra rule for merchant officers who serve on yachts and want to move up.
• Build a realistic plan and timeline for crossing over.

Why It Is Not a Simple Conversion

Yacht CoCs are full STCW certificates, but they are limited to yachts. The functions are also different. A merchant deck CoC covers four STCW functions. A yacht CoC covers three:

(MSN 1856, section 2.4; MSN 1858, section 2.4.) The missing knowledge is mainly cargo work, the stability of loaded merchant ships, ship structure, and commercial ship operations. That is what the extra study fills in.

The UK Route: OOW (Yachts) to OOW Unlimited

MSN 1856, section 13.3, gives holders of an OOW (Yachts) less than 3000 GT, II/1 CoC a direct route to OOW unlimited, II/1. You must:

1. Complete 36 months in yachts of more than 24 m registered length or at least 80 GT, with evidence of at least 6 months on bridge watchkeeping. Yacht service is counted under Annex F, described below.
2. Hold a certificate for the "Underpinning Knowledge for OOW certification" (HNC) from an MCA-approved college (section 11.4).
3. Hold the merchant ancillary and safety course certificates (section 10). That means adding whatever your yacht route did not require. The usual gaps are NAEST (Operational), HELM (Operational) and the GMDSS General Operator's Certificate if you only hold the Restricted Operator's Certificate.
4. Hold a Signals certificate issued within the last 3 years.
5. Pass the MCA OOW Safety Examinations in Navigation, and Stability and Operations.
6. Hold a valid ENG1.
7. Pass the MCA OOW (unlimited) oral.

No merchant ship time is required for this step, as long as the 36 months are on large enough yachts. In practice many crossing officers also seek a trip on a cargo ship before or soon after, because the oral and the first job assume familiarity with merchant ship routines.

How the MCA Counts Yacht Service

Under MSN 1856, Annex F, service on yachts of 24 m or more in registered length, or 80 GT or more, counts in full towards an unlimited II/1 or II/2 CoC. It is made up of three kinds of day:

Yacht service must be submitted on yacht service testimonials that break the time down into actual sea days, standby days and yard days (Annex F, referring to MSN 1858). A month is a calendar month, or 30 days for broken periods (MSN 1856, section 9.2). At least 6 months must fall within the last 5 years.

Worked example: counting a season

Sam is a bosun on a 55 m motor yacht. His testimonial for one year shows:

• 140 days at sea, in voyages of mostly 3 to 7 days;
• 160 days alongside between charters, crew aboard;
• 65 days in a refit yard.

1. Sea days count in full: 140.
2. Standby: each standby period is capped by the previous voyage and by 14 days. His testimonial shows qualifying standby of 95 days. The other 65 alongside days fall outside the caps and do not count.
3. Yard: 65 days. This is within the 90-day lifetime cap for OOW, so all 65 count, but only 25 yard days remain for the rest of his qualifying period.
4. Total for the year: 140 + 95 + 65 = 300 days, or 10 months at 30 days a month.

To reach 36 months, Sam needs about 3.5 similar years, including at least 6 months standing bridge watches, which he should start as soon as his yacht OOW CoC allows.

Already a Merchant Officer, Now on Yachts?

The reverse also happens. Merchant officers often take yacht jobs. If you hold OOW unlimited or Chief Mate unlimited and serve on yachts, the time counts towards Chief Mate or Master unlimited (sections 3.3 and 3.4), but it must include either (Annex F):

• at least 6 months on yachts of 500 GT or more operating beyond categorised waters or harbour limits; or
• at least 6 months on vessels of at least 24 m on voyages of more than 300 nautical miles.

This stops a career's worth of "sea time" being built in marina hopping.

Higher Rungs After Crossing

Once you hold OOW unlimited, you follow the normal merchant ladder:

• Chief Mate unlimited: 12 months' watchkeeping as OOW, HND-level study, the Chief Mate/Master Safety Examinations (Navigation, and Stability and Structure), the management courses (NAEST (M), HELM (M), Medical Care) and the oral (MSN 1856, section 3.3).
• Master unlimited: 36 months' watchkeeping as OOW, or 24 if at least 12 were served as Chief Mate with the CoC, then the oral (section 3.4).

Watchkeeping service means at least 4 hours in every 24 as the officer in full charge of the navigational watch on a voyage (section 9.3).

What Yacht Experience Gives You, and What It Does Not

Strengths: ship handling of twin-screw and thruster-equipped vessels, guest and crew management, ISM-style safety management on large yachts, radar and ECDIS use, and familiarity with STCW courses and MCA orals.

Gaps to close:

• cargo operations, loading computers, and stability and longitudinal strength of large loaded ships;
• bridge teamwork in heavy traffic with pilots aboard, and the formal three-watch system;
• big-ship manoeuvring: momentum, squat, interaction, and tug work;
• merchant documentation: oil record book, cargo documents, ISPS and port state control routines.

A cautionary case: MAIB Safety Digest 2/2007, Case 25. A high-speed passenger craft at 34 knots, give-way to a motor yacht, first altered 15 degrees to starboard. Then, at about 1 nautical mile, it altered to port across the yacht's bow and passed only 2.5 cables ahead, swamping her crew with wash. Neither radar had any target acquired, and the chief officer did not challenge the master. The MAIB's lessons: act early and clearly, hold to the action, consider how big-ship manoeuvres look from a small craft, and cross-check each other on the bridge. This is a 2007 case, but the points remain current. As a former yacht officer you will know the small-craft view well. Bring it to the bridge team.

A Realistic Plan

1. Ask the MCA, or your administration, for a sea service assessment and confirm which route applies to you.
2. Get your testimonials in order. Every yacht needs a testimonial with the breakdown of sea, standby and yard days.
3. Gather 36 months on yachts of 24 m or 80 GT, including 6 months of bridge watchkeeping, ideally with long passages and larger yachts.
4. Study the HNC Underpinning Knowledge at an approved nautical college, part-time or in blocks between seasons.
5. Fill the course gaps: GMDSS GOC, NAEST (O), HELM (O) and Signals, and refresh any 5-yearly safety courses.
6. Pass the OOW Safety Examinations, apply on MSF 4274 for a Notice of Eligibility, and pass the oral.
7. Find a first merchant berth. Some companies take ex-yacht officers as junior or supernumerary officers. Then follow the ladder.

Common Mistakes

• Assuming Master (Yachts) 3000 GT converts to a merchant Master CoC. The route starts at OOW unlimited.
• Counting all days aboard. Standby and yard days are capped, and unsupported days are rejected.
• Using service on yachts under 24 m and under 80 GT. It does not count towards merchant CoCs.
• Ignoring the GMDSS gap. A ROC is not enough for an unlimited CoC.
• Letting recent service lapse. You need 6 months within the 5 years before applying.

Summary

• Yacht CoCs lack STCW function 2, cargo handling and stowage, so there is no direct conversion.
• UK route: OOW (Yachts) less than 3000 GT plus 36 months on yachts of 24 m or 80 GT (6 months on bridge watches), HNC Underpinning Knowledge, merchant courses, Signals, the OOW Safety Examinations, ENG1 and the oral gives OOW unlimited.
• Yacht service counts in full on 24 m or 80 GT yachts. Standby is capped at 14 days per period and at the previous voyage length. Yard days are capped at 90 for OOW and 30 for Chief Mate or Master.
• Merchant officers serving on yachts need 6 months on yachts of 500 GT or more at sea, or 6 months on voyages of more than 300 nm, to move up.

Check Your Understanding

1. Which STCW function is missing from a yacht CoC, and why does it matter?

Answer: Function 2, cargo handling and stowage. Merchant officers must be competent in cargo work and loaded-ship stability, which yacht training does not cover.

1. What sea service does an OOW (Yachts) holder need to apply for OOW unlimited?

Answer: 36 months on yachts over 24 m registered length or at least 80 GT, with at least 6 months on bridge watchkeeping (MSN 1856, section 13.3).

1. What academic requirement replaces the cadet programme on this route?

Answer: The HNC "Underpinning Knowledge for OOW certification" from an MCA-approved college, plus the MCA OOW Safety Examinations in Navigation, and Stability and Operations.

1. A yacht does a 5-day passage and then stays 20 days alongside with crew aboard. How many standby days can count?

Answer: 5. Standby cannot exceed the previous voyage (5 days) and is never more than 14 days per period.

1. What is the maximum yard service that counts towards OOW unlimited, and towards Chief Mate?

Answer: 90 days towards OOW, and 30 days towards Chief Mate or Master.

1. Does pleasure sailing on your own 12 m yacht count?

Answer: No. Service must be on yachts of at least 24 m registered length or 80 GT, and documented on testimonials.

1. A Chief Mate unlimited holder works on a 60 m, 480 GT yacht doing short Mediterranean hops. What must their service include to count towards Master unlimited?

Answer: At least 6 months either on yachts of 500 GT or more at sea, or on vessels of 24 m or more on voyages of more than 300 nautical miles. Short hops on a 480 GT yacht do not meet either condition.

1. Which radio certificate gap is common for yacht officers?

Answer: They may hold only the GMDSS ROC. An unlimited OOW CoC needs the GMDSS GOC.

Sources

• MCA, MSN 1856 (M) Amendment 1: UK requirements for Master and deck officers (merchant), section 13.3 and Annex F
• MCA, MSN 1858 (M) Amendment 1: yacht deck officer certificates of competency
• MAIB Safety Digest 2/2007, Case 25 (an older case; the lessons remain current)