Question 1

Your examiner describes a scenario: your vessel is in a TSS, in a crossing situation with another vessel, and visibility suddenly drops into fog. Which rules now apply, and how do you brief the OOW to think about it?

Accepted Answer

Rule 10 (TSS) continues to apply as a navigational discipline (stay in your lane, don't cross without cause), but Rule 19 (restricted visibility) now governs the collision-avoidance decision-making rather than the crossing-situation give-way/stand-on hierarchy of Rules 15-17, since the vessels may no longer be 'in sight of one another.' The OOW needs to stop thinking 'am I give-way or stand-on' and start thinking in Rule 19 terms — safe speed for the conditions, avoiding an alteration to port for anything forward of the beam, and being ready to take all way off This is a deliberately layered, multi-rule integration question — exactly the kind of scenario Master/Chief Mate orals use to separate candidates who know individual rules from those who can reason about how several rules interact in a single, realistic, high-pressure situation. Rule 10 and Rule 19 operate on different axes (lane discipline vs. collision-avoidance hierarchy) and both remain live simultaneously; it's Rules 15-17 specifically that step aside once vessels are no longer in sight of one another.

Question 2

Rule 5 (Look-out) requires every vessel at all times to maintain a proper look-out by sight and hearing, as well as by all available means appropriate in the prevailing circumstances and conditions — and this duty applies even when the vessel is at anchor in a busy anchorage.

Accepted Answer

True True. Rule 5 applies 'at all times' and to 'every vessel'. A vessel at anchor in a busy anchorage still needs an effective look-out to detect drifting vessels, dragging anchors, or approaching traffic that may pose a risk of collision or contact.

Question 3

Under Rule 6 (Safe Speed), a vessel fitted with a fully operational radar and ARPA never needs to reduce speed in restricted visibility, because the equipment guarantees early detection of other vessels.

Accepted Answer

False False. Rule 6 explicitly lists radar capability as one factor to consider, but also requires accounting for the state of visibility, traffic density, manoeuvrability, and the limitations of radar (range scale, sea/rain clutter, blind sectors). Even a vessel with excellent radar must proceed at a speed that allows proper and effective action to avoid collision and to be stopped within a distance appropriate to the prevailing circumstances.