Sea service fundamentals
Governing: 46 CFR 10.107, 10.232; 11.211(a); 12.203. Companion course: USCG Engineering: Sea Service, Manning and the Yacht covers the engineer's side. This course deals with the deck side only.
Why this section matters
Every deck officer requirement in Part 11 is written in months or years of service, with conditions on route, tonnage and capacity. 11.211(a) and 12.203 both refer applicants to 10.232 "for information regarding requirements for documentation and proof of sea service." If you understand 10.232, the rest of Part 11 becomes arithmetic.
The structure of 10.232
| Paragraph | What it does | Lesson |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | How service is documented; letter contents; owner attestation under 200 GRT | L4.1 |
| (b)-(c) | Route credit toward oceans, near-coastal, STCW and Great Lakes endorsements | L2.2 |
| (d) | Military and US government civilian service | L4.2 |
| (e) | Service on vessels that do not get underway | L1.3 |
| (f) | Foreign sea service | L4.2 |
| (g) | Closely related service ashore | L2.3 |
| (h) | The definition of a day | L1.2 |
Days, not calendar time
10.107 defines service as "the time period, in days, a person is assigned to work." The NMC converts months to days at 30 days a month: a 36-month requirement is 1,080 days, 12 months is 360 days.
10.232(h)(1): "a day is equal to 8 hours of watchstanding or day-working not to include overtime." Three points follow:
- A long day is still one day, unless an exception in (h)(2)-(5) applies.
- Rest days, leave and travel are not service. A 10-week rotation with 8 weeks on board is 56 days, not 70.
- Day-working counts as well as watchstanding. Deck maintenance on passage is service. What it is not, necessarily, is bridge watchkeeping (below).
What the letter must show
10.232(a)(2) lists eleven items. For a deck officer applicant, the important ones are:
- (ii) Gross tonnage. Drives tonnage limitations (module 3).
- (iii) Propulsion power and mode. Drives self-propelled, sail or auxiliary sail endorsements.
- (iv) Amount and nature of experience. "Mate", "Deckhand" or "Bosun". The capacity matters, because many requirements are for service as Master or Mate.
- (vi) Routes. Drives route credit (module 2).
- (ix)-(x) STCW and SOLAS status. Drives whether day-for-day STCW credit applies.
- (xi) Bridge watchkeeping under supervision, "where required for an officer endorsement."
CAUTION — "Deck service" is not "bridge watchkeeping" OICNW and most Mate endorsements need 6 months (or 3 months, for Mate < 500 GRT near-coastal) of bridge watchkeeping under a qualified officer. A letter that reports 700 days of deck service and says nothing about watches proves the first requirement and not the second.
Evidence that is already on file
10.232(a)(3): "An MMC endorsement, in certain cases, may be considered as satisfactory evidence of any qualifying experience for obtaining other endorsements." A national AB-Unlimited, for example, already proves ocean deck service. Do not rely on this without asking. Send the letters as well.
The evaluator's standard
10.232(a)(1): "The Coast Guard must be satisfied as to the authenticity and acceptability of all evidence of experience or training provided." The burden is on you. Where the rule says "may be creditable", the evaluator has discretion. Your job is to make the decision easy: complete letters, consistent dates, and every item from (a)(2) answered.