Vessels are now almost exclusively fitted with lifeboats that are of the Totally Enclosed Motor Propelled Survival Craft (TEMPSC) variety. These can either have twin fall davit or freefall launching arrangements. A ships officers competence to launch a TEMPSC lifeboat is examined thoroughly during the Proficiency in Survival Crafts and Rescue Boats (PSC & RB) course and also potentially during MCA oral examinations. The standard procedure described below is for a twin fall davit launched TEMPSC lifeboat. Regardless of rank the Coxswain is always in charge of the lifeboat and its crew during the launching and recovery. Finally always refer to your vessels Safety Management System for ship specific launching instructions.
External Checks
- Check harbour pins are removed.
- Release gripes.
- If fitted check the remote brake wire is correctly rigged.
- Visually check the lifeboats integrity for any damage to the boat or its windows.
- Check for any damage to the rudder or propeller.
- Check the gantry is clear and there is no riding turns on the fall wires.
- Check over the side of the vessel at the launch position for persons, debris, fire or aerated water.
Internal Checks
- Open the lifeboats door and visually check that the safety pin is inserted into the release gear and the hydrostatic lever is in the locked position.
- Enter the lifeboat.
- If launching for a drill then ensure that fall preventer device is fitted. With recently fitted modern lifeboat release gear this is not required as these units effectively have a built in fall preventer mechanism. Always refer to your vessels SMS for guidance.
- Check the plug is in.
- Switch on the water deluge lever.
- Open the main valve on the compressed air system if fitted and check the contents.
- Switch on the main battery isolator and commence the lifeboat engines cold start procedure as per the instruction card on the console. Warm up the engine then stop it.
- Conduct a radio check with the bridge.
Launch/Radio Procedure
1. Report the following to the bridge via radio “Bridge, this is lifeboat X. All internal and external checks have been completed. Permission to load the passengers.” If permission is granted begin to load the passengers and distribute the persons evenly around the boat. At this point appoint the following key personnel and seat them appropriately:
- Bowman
- Stern man
- Pin man
- Brakeman
- Air man
7. The coxswain will then lift and operate the release arm to release the lifeboats hooks. The engine is set ahead at slow revs until the hooks are clear of the boat. In a real emergency you may now need to clear the immediate vicinity of the mother vessel at best speed.
Recovery Procedure
1. The coxswain instructs “Reset the Hooks”. The bowman and stern man open their hatches and makes sure the hooks are a placed into the reset position. The bowman and stern man then report “Hook Reset (FWD/AFT as appropriate)”. The coxswain then resets the release gear lever which locks the forward and aft hooks.
2. The coxswain then instructs the bow man and stern man to “recheck hooks fore and aft”. The bowman and stern man will now check that each of their hooks has been locked into position before reporting “Hook reset Fwd” or “Hook reset Aft”. If either of the hooks has not secured properly the release gear lever must be released and step 1 repeated.
(Bowman resetting FWD Hook)
3. Once the hooks are confirmed as fully reset the bowman will instruct the pin man to replace the safety pin into the release gear.
4. The coxswain then contacts the bridge via VHF and states “Bridge this is lifeboat x, permission to come alongside and recover the boat.”.
5. Once permission has been granted the coxswain instructs his crew to “standby fore and aft” and makes his recovery approach. The bowman and stern man have a vital role to provide distances to the hooks as the coxswain position often has a limited view. As soon as they are in a position to do so the bow and stern man should attached their hooks to the boat and report “Hooked on FWD” and “Hooked on Aft”
6. Once the hooks are on the coxswain makes the following radio report “Bridge, this is lifeboat x, hooked on please take the weight”.
7. Once the weight of the boat has been taken the coxswain instructs “check the hooks”. The bowman and stern man then check their hooks are fully secured and also visually check the fall wires for any entanglement/issues. During a drill if fitted the coxswain will then instruct the bowman and stern man to reapply the fall preventer device before proceeding to the next stage.
8. All crew then secure themselves into position and the coxswain reports “Bridge, this is lifeboat x, my falls are secure. All strapped in please recover the boat”.
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