Watchkeeping & Bridge Procedures

Under STCW Chapter VIII, Regulation VIII/1, watchkeeping personnel must receive a minimum of 10 hours of rest in any 24-hour period and a minimum of 77 hours of rest in any 7-day period. Within the 10-hour daily rest, no more than two periods are allowed, and one of those periods must be at least 6 consecutive hours. These rest periods may not be divided into more than two intervals. Port state control officers and the USCG enforce these requirements; falsification of rest hour records is a serious offense that can result in license revocation.

The Officer of the Watch (OOW) is responsible for the safe navigation of the vessel during their watch. Primary duties include: maintaining a proper lookout by all available means including sight, hearing, and radar; assessing traffic and applying COLREGS to all potential collision situations; monitoring the vessel's course and speed against the passage plan; making frequent position fixes at the required frequency; maintaining the deck log with all required entries; monitoring weather, sea state, and navigational hazards; supervising all bridge team members; and knowing when to call the master without hesitation. The OOW must never leave the bridge without being properly relieved.

Before formally relieving the watch, the relieving officer must: check the vessel's position on the chart and confirm the course steered; review the radar picture and identify all traffic within a safe distance; review the master's standing orders and night orders and acknowledge them in writing if required; note the weather, visibility, sea state, and any navigational hazards ahead; verify compass error by recent comparison; check the status of all navigation lights; note the draft and UKC at the current and planned positions; review the passage plan and any waypoint changes; and confirm no exceptional situations are ongoing. The relieving officer must not accept the watch if impaired or if conditions require the master's presence.

Position fixing frequency depends on proximity to hazards and the speed of the vessel. In coastal or confined waters, a fix should be taken every 3 to 15 minutes depending on traffic density and distance from dangers. Offshore, fixes every 30 to 60 minutes may be acceptable. Acceptable methods include GPS (primary, but must be cross-checked), radar ranges and bearings to charted objects, visual cross bearings to charted landmarks, celestial lines of position (LOPs) from sun, moon, stars, or planets, depth sounding compared to charted depths, and LORAN-C where available. GPS must be verified by an independent source because satellite errors, signal spoofing, and equipment failure can cause large position errors with no visible warning.

COLREGS Rule 10 governs conduct in traffic separation schemes (TSS). A vessel using a TSS shall proceed in the appropriate traffic lane in the general direction of traffic flow for that lane. A vessel shall join or leave a lane at the termination of the scheme or, when joining from the side, at as small an angle as practicable. A vessel crossing a TSS must do so on a heading as nearly as practicable at right angles to the traffic flow. A vessel not using a TSS (e.g., a fishing vessel working in the area) shall avoid the scheme as far as practicable. Vessels under 20 meters, sailing vessels, and fishing vessels are not required to use the separation zone but must not impede vessels using the lane.

Rule 19 (Conduct of Vessels in Restricted Visibility) requires: every vessel to proceed at a safe speed adapted to the prevailing conditions; power-driven vessels to have engines ready for immediate maneuver; every vessel to have due regard to prevailing conditions when complying with Section I rules. A vessel that detects by radar alone a vessel forward of the beam must avoid an alteration of course to port if the other vessel is to port, or avoid turning toward a vessel abeam or abaft the beam. If you hear a fog signal apparently forward of the beam and cannot determine if a close-quarters situation is developing, reduce to minimum steerage or stop. The risk of collision under restricted visibility is higher because sound signals travel unpredictably; crossing in thick fog is strongly discouraged.

Bridge Resource Management (BRM) is the systematic application of all available resources — personnel, information, equipment, and procedures — to ensure safe and effective navigation. BRM principles include: effective communication among bridge team members; shared situational awareness and a shared mental model of the vessel's position and intentions; proper authority gradient where the master's authority is clear but crew members are encouraged to speak up about safety concerns; use of checklists and briefings; cross-checking critical information; and assertive communication protocols when safety is at risk. USCG exam questions test BRM in the context of grounding and collision casualties — most marine accidents involve BRM failures: failure to call the master, failure to question a wrong course, or failure to speak up about a developing hazard.

GMDSS (Global Maritime Distress and Safety System) watchkeeping requirements include: a continuous watch on VHF Channel 16 (the international distress, safety, and calling frequency); a watch on DSC Channel 70 using a DSC-equipped VHF radio; and, for vessels equipped with MF/HF radios, a watch on DSC distress frequencies on those bands. Radio logs must record all distress calls received, distress traffic observed, and results of DSC watch periods. Watchkeeping officers must be familiar with all GMDSS equipment aboard, know how to send a DSC distress alert and a voice MAYDAY, and know how to acknowledge a distress. Annual testing and inspection of EPIRB and SART equipment is required.