MCA OOW Yachts Less Than 3000gt - Sea Service, Modules & Oral

Prerequisites

This lesson covers the MCA Officer of the Watch (Yachts less than 3000gt) Certificate of Competency, the first full STCW deck officer certificate on the large yacht ladder. Before starting you should:

• Have read the lessons on going commercial and on Master 200; the commercial endorsement, STCW basic safety, ENG1, HELM and the Notice of Eligibility process are assumed.
• Hold, or be working towards, a commercially endorsed RYA Yachtmaster Offshore (or Coastal) Certificate of Competence and the Yachtmaster Offshore shorebased certificate.
• Understand gross tonnage and load line length, because every limit in this certificate is expressed in them.
• Be comfortable with the Coastal and Offshore collision-avoidance, radar and watchkeeping material, which the OOW oral examines at a professional standard.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Explain what the OOW (Yachts less than 3000gt) certificate is and what role it qualifies you for.
• State the sea service requirement in full: 36 months of yacht service, 365 days on vessels of 15 m or more, with the 250-day actual sea service minimum and the allowances for yard and standby service.
• Describe the Training Record Book and the exemption from it.
• List the required courses: the RYA Yachtmaster certificates, Navigation and Radar, General Ship Knowledge, Efficient Deck Hand, HELM (Operational), GMDSS GOC, ECDIS, Proficiency in Survival Craft and Rescue Boats, Advanced Fire Fighting, Medical First Aid and the basic safety modules.
• Set out the OOW oral examination syllabus.
• Explain how large-yacht sea service is verified and why.
• Plan the certificate as a sequence of courses, service and exams over a realistic period.

What an OOW Is

On a yacht over 24 m under the Large Commercial Yacht Code, the deck department is organised like a ship's: a master, a chief officer (mate) and one or more officers of the watch, with deckhands below them. The Officer of the Watch is the officer in charge of the bridge for a watch at sea or in charge of the deck in port, responsible to the master for the safe navigation of the vessel during that watch. It is a licensed role: STCW Regulation II/1 requires the holder of an OOW certificate to have completed approved training, sea service and examination.

The MCA OOW (Yachts less than 3000gt) CoC qualifies you to serve as OOW on yachts up to 3000gt anywhere in the world. It is the gateway to Chief Mate and Master (Yachts), and most professional deck careers on large yachts run through it. Until the OOW is obtained, deck crew on large yachts serve as deckhands, bosuns or (on the smaller vessels) under the Master 200 or OOW (Yachts less than 500gt) certificate.

Sea Service

The sea service requirement is the long pole in the OOW timetable. You need:

• 36 months of yacht service on vessels of any size, of which
• 365 days must be sea service on vessels of 15 m or more in load line length, of which
• at least 250 days must be actual sea service (the vessel at sea), the balance of up to 115 days being made up of
• up to 90 days of yard service (the vessel in refit or under maintenance with you aboard and working) and
• standby service in blocks of up to 14 consecutive days at a time (the vessel idle with the crew aboard).

At least six months of the qualifying service must have been performed within the five years before the MCA receives the application.

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Points on counting:

• Yacht service is the 36-month total and includes time aboard in port, in the yard and on standby as well as at sea; it is the calendar measure of your time in the industry.
• Load line length is close to the waterline length and is on the vessel's tonnage or load line certificate. A 15 m load line length is roughly a 17 to 18 m yacht overall.
• Dual-role service counts at 50 per cent, and standby cannot exceed actual sea time claimed.
• Service on vessels under 15 m counts towards the 36 months but not towards the 365 days.

The Training Record Book

Unless you can show 36 months of actual sea service on vessels of at least 24 m load line length, you must complete the MCA Yacht OOW Training Record Book (TRB) over a period of at least six months. The TRB is a structured record of tasks performed and competences demonstrated under the supervision of a qualified officer, signed off aboard. It is available from the MCA; Marine Information Note MIN 521 clarified the exemption wording when MSN 1858 replaced the earlier guidance. Start it early: a TRB left to the last six months is hard to complete while also doing the job.

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The Certificate Stack

The OOW application needs the following, all in date on the day the MCA receives it.

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The Navigation and Radar and GSK modules each end in a written examination set by the awarding body for the MCA yacht modules; a course completion certificate is not enough, you must also hold the pass certificate. Module passes are valid for three years when used towards the next certificate, so sequence them close to the application.

The Oral Examination

With a Notice of Eligibility issued, you sit the OOW (Yachts less than 3000gt) oral with an MCA examiner. The published syllabus has three sections.

Section 1: Navigation

• Plan and conduct a passage and determine position: passage planning with the publications; IALA A and B; the limitations and errors of electronic systems, ECDIS and RCDS; radar and ARPA in practice; the sextant and its errors; azimuth mirror and pelorus; meteorological sources and interpretation; checking position and taking corrective action; variation and deviation; fixing by bearings and radar ranges; magnetic course and ETA; weekly notices to mariners; tidal heights at any time; tidal set and rate.
• Maintain a safe navigational watch: watchkeeping at sea including under pilotage; the collision regulations; bridge equipment including rate of turn indicators, course recorders, echo sounder and NAVTEX; steering control and autopilot procedures; the ICS Bridge Procedures Guide and STCW Code A-VIII; AIS principles, limitations and modes; the navigational record; handover and relief.
• Manoeuvre the ship: getting under way and harbour procedures; use and care of mooring lines; helm orders and conning; propeller effects, wind and current, stopping, turning, interaction and squat; pilot embarkation; failures of bridge control, telegraph or steering; anchoring.

Section 2: Response to emergencies

• Navigational emergencies: first actions after man overboard, collision, grounding, flooding or mechanical damage; receipt of distress; damage assessment and control; protecting the environment; the IAMSAR manual; distress signals and search and rescue in the UK and worldwide.
• Other emergencies: emergency parties and drills; fire prevention and appliances; shutdown and isolation of plant; escape and breathing apparatus; fire and safety plans; classes of fire; lifesaving appliances including hand-held radios, EPIRBs, SARTs and immersion suits; line-throwing apparatus; survival craft markings and launching; rescue boat recovery; passenger safety; survival; medical information sources.
• Communications: distress and emergency signals; the International Code of Signals; IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases; GMDSS.

Section 3: Onboard ship operations

• Pollution prevention: MARPOL precautions, special areas, disposal of pollutants; the SOPEP manual, garbage management plan and anti-pollution equipment.
• Seaworthiness: watertight integrity and closing procedures; preparation for heavy weather; the effects on stability of weight changes, low freeboard, deck obstructions and slack tanks.
• Legislative requirements: Merchant Shipping Notices, Marine Guidance Notes and Marine Information Notes; health and safety legislation and the Code of Safe Working Practices; IMO conventions; the ISM Code; flag and port state control; the ISPS Code.
• Business and law: the Small Vessels code and the Large Commercial Yacht Code; musters and drills; the legal duty of seaworthiness; salvage; safe manning, hours of work and watchkeeping; crew agreements.

The depth is greater than at Master 200. A candidate is expected to know the Bridge Procedures Guide, to explain how an ARPA acquires and tracks a target and what its limitations are, to quote the hours-of-rest rules, and to describe the ISM Code's purpose and the documents it generates aboard.

Watchkeeping Standards

Because the certificate is about keeping a watch, the oral returns again and again to watchkeeping practice. The checklist below is the kind of handover the examiner expects you to describe.

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Elements: the vessel's position by at least two means, course and speed, the traffic situation and any vessels being tracked, the weather and visibility and the forecast, the state of the navigation equipment and any defects, the master's standing orders and night orders, the passage plan and the next waypoint, any hazards or reporting points coming up, the state of machinery and any work in progress on deck, and the relieving officer's confirmation that they have adjusted to the conditions (night vision, in particular) before taking over. An OOW who is in any doubt calls the master; the standing orders will say when, and the examiner will ask.

Verifying Large-Yacht Sea Service

The MCA has delegated verification of sea service on large yachts to the Professional Yachting Association (PYA) and Nautilus International under MIN 543. Every seafarer in the large yacht sector, whether or not a member, must have their sea service verified by one of them before it is sent to the MCA with a Notice of Eligibility application. Both organisations issue MCA-approved Service Record Books, and a properly completed Nautilus Service Record Book is accepted by the MCA without separate testimonials or discharge certificates. Applications that arrive at the MCA without verification suffer delays of around 160 days.

The practical rule: get a Service Record Book at the start of your career, have every period of service entered and signed by the master before you leave the vessel, and keep copies of every testimonial.

Gross Tonnage and Length in Practice

The chart below shows where typical yachts fall against the thresholds that name the certificates. Tonnage depends heavily on beam and enclosed volume, so lengths are only indicative.

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A 24 m load line length is close to the point at which the Large Commercial Yacht Code applies in place of the small vessel codes, and it is the length used in the TRB exemption and in the Master (Yachts less than 3000gt) service requirement.

Worked Example: A Deckhand's Route to OOW

Ben joins a 45 m motor yacht (about 450gt, 40 m load line length) as a deckhand straight after his Yachtmaster Offshore and STCW basic safety. His plan:

His 365 days on a vessel over 15 m are met many times over (480 days at sea alone), his 250 actual sea days are met, his 36 months of yacht service are met at month 36, the TRB is complete, and all module passes are within three years. The one risk he manages is the three-year validity of the Navigation and Radar and GSK passes: he sits them in year 3, not year 1.

Common Mistakes

• Counting yacht service as sea service. 36 months aboard is not 365 days at sea; the 250 actual days are the binding constraint for crew on yachts that rarely move.
• Service on vessels under 15 m load line length counted towards the 365 days. It only counts towards the 36 months.
• Starting the TRB too late. Minimum six months, in practice longer.
• Modules too early. Navigation and Radar and GSK passes are valid for three years.
• Unverified service. The 160-day delay is real.
• Thinking the OOW oral is Master 200 again. The Bridge Procedures Guide, ISM, ARPA theory, hours of rest and the legislative framework are examined in depth.
• An ENG1 with restrictions. Check early; a restricted ENG1 blocks STCW certificates for vessels over 24 m.

Summary

• OOW (Yachts less than 3000gt) is the STCW II/1 deck officer certificate for yachts up to 3000gt, the gateway to Chief Mate and Master (Yachts).
• Sea service: 36 months of yacht service; 365 days on vessels of 15 m or more load line length, of which at least 250 are actual sea days, with up to 90 yard days and standby in blocks of up to 14 days; six months within the last five years; a Training Record Book over at least six months unless you have 36 months of actual sea service on vessels of 24 m or more.
• Certificates: STCW basic safety, Yachtmaster Offshore shorebased, a commercially endorsed Yachtmaster Offshore or Coastal, PSCRB or Advanced Sea Survival, Advanced Fire Fighting, Medical First Aid, GOC, Navigation and Radar (theory, pass and simulator), GSK (course and pass), EDH, HELM (Operational), ECDIS and ENG1; module passes valid three years.
• Large-yacht service must be verified by PYA or Nautilus (MIN 543); keep a Service Record Book from day one.
• The oral covers navigation (passage, watchkeeping, manoeuvring), response to emergencies (navigational, other, communications) and onboard operations (pollution, seaworthiness, legislation, business and law) at a professional depth.

Check Your Understanding

1. State the OOW (Yachts less than 3000gt) sea service requirement in full.

Answer: 36 months of yacht service on vessels of any size, including 365 days of sea service on vessels of 15 m or more in load line length, of which at least 250 days must be actual sea service; the remaining 115 days may be made up of up to 90 days of yard service and standby service in periods of up to 14 consecutive days. At least six months of qualifying service must be within the five years before the application.

1. When is a Training Record Book not required?

Answer: When the candidate can demonstrate 36 months of actual sea service on vessels of at least 24 m in load line length, as clarified by MIN 521.

1. Which two modules require both a course completion and a separate written pass, and how long are the passes valid?

Answer: OOW Navigation and Radar (theory, plus the simulator course) and OOW General Ship Knowledge; the passes are valid for three years.

1. What is the difference between the GOC and the ROC, and which does the OOW need?

Answer: The ROC covers VHF/DSC operation for sea area A1; the GOC covers the full GMDSS including MF/HF and satellite for areas A2 to A4. The OOW requires the GOC.

1. What restriction applies to Advanced Sea Survival when used in place of PSCRB?

Answer: It carries the restriction "not for use on ships equipped with davit-launched lifeboats".

1. Why must large-yacht sea service be verified before it reaches the MCA, and by whom?

Answer: Under MIN 543 the MCA has delegated verification to the Professional Yachting Association and Nautilus International for all seafarers in the large yacht sector; unverified service causes delays of around 160 days.

1. Name four items an OOW must cover in a watch handover.

Answer: Any four of: position by two means; course and speed; traffic and tracked targets; weather, visibility and forecast; equipment state and defects; master's standing and night orders; passage plan and next waypoint; upcoming hazards and reporting points; machinery state and work in progress; the relief's adjustment to conditions.

1. A deckhand has 30 months aboard a 20 m yacht and 10 months aboard a 12 m yacht, with 300 days at sea on the 20 m yacht. Does she meet the service requirement?

Answer: Yes on all counts: 40 months of yacht service (over 36); 300 actual sea days on a vessel over 15 m load line length (over 250 and, with yard or standby days, over 365 can be reached, or 365 actual if she has them). The 12 m yacht counts only towards the 36 months. She still needs the TRB unless exempt.

1. Which oral syllabus section covers the ISM Code, and what will the examiner expect?

Answer: Section 3, onboard ship operations, under legislative requirements. The examiner expects the candidate to explain the purpose and application of the ISM Code and the safety management system documents it produces aboard.

1. Why does a restricted ENG1 matter for this certificate?

Answer: Because restrictions on an ENG1 prevent the issue of STCW qualifications for vessels over 24 m, which is the sector the OOW certificate serves.

Sources and Further Reading

• HSS: requirements for OOW (Yachts) less than 3000gt: sea service breakdown, certificates, TRB and oral.
• gov.uk: certification for deck officers on commercial and private yachts: official routes, required courses, module validity.
• MSN 1858 Amendment 1 and MIN 521: service definitions and the TRB exemption.
• MCA oral syllabus: OOW (yachts less than 3000gt).
• MIN 543: sea service verification on large yachts and Nautilus sea service verification guide.
• HELM (Operational).
• Bluewater: yacht deck career progression chart.
• Boat International: gross tonnage explained.