Question 1

During an internal audit, the Master discovers a pattern of permits across several months being informally extended past 24 hours by Chief Officers under operational pressure, with no incidents resulting. How should the Master treat this finding?

Accepted Answer

Treat it as a system failure requiring correction regardless of the absence of incidents — normalised deviation from a hard time limit is a precursor to failure, not evidence the limit is unnecessary Repeated informal deviation from a hard safety limit, even without incident, is exactly the pattern behind normalisation of deviance — the absence of consequence so far is not evidence the practice is safe, and the Master's job is to correct the pattern before it produces one.

Question 2

A cadet is told a hot work permit was issued "this morning" and asks the bosun how long it's valid for, without checking the form itself. What is the maximum validity period a permit to work can have?

Accepted Answer

24 hours from issue, with any shorter job-specific time limits also stated on the permit COSWP Chapter 14 sets 24 hours as the maximum validity period a permit can be issued for, with any further job-specific time limits stated on the permit itself.

Question 3

An OOW taking over the watch finds a permit for overside work was issued 20 hours ago and the job is still running. The outgoing OOW says it's "basically the same job, don't worry about it." What should the new OOW do?

Accepted Answer

Check elapsed time against the 24-hour limit, recognise it's close to expiry, and flag to the authorising officer that revalidation will be needed rather than letting it lapse unnoticed A permit approaching its validity limit needs proactive attention at handover, not passive monitoring — the new OOW's job is to flag it to the authorising officer before it lapses, not to wait for it to expire.