SOLAS Operations
Safety of life at sea: lifeboats, emergency generator, GMDSS, ECDIS, passage planning, fire drill, musters, Permit to Work, Ship Security Plan/ISPS, liferafts/EPIRB/SART, watertight doors, helicopter operations, immersion suits, fixed CO2/water-mist firefighting systems, escape routes, Ro-Ro/vehicle space fire detection, SOLAS Regulation II-1/3-13 lifting appliances, pilot transfer arrangements, fuel safety and flashpoint declaration.
Each topic below brings together, in a single place: an operational explanation, the regulatory reference, scope of application, procedure, practical example, what typically goes wrong, common mistakes, what the Port State Control Officer (PSCO) checks, operational tips, a checklist and FAQ — with the regulatory reference verified against the primary source.
Lifeboat Inspection (Inspection and Maintenance of Life-Saving Boats)
Weekly, monthly and the annual thorough examination of lifeboats: where most serious injuries during drills originate, and how to prevent them.
Emergency Generator Test
The periodic emergency generator test and the black-out test: the difference between a successful start in a routine test and one that is truly reliable in an emergency.
GMDSS (Global Maritime Distress and Safety System)
The system that connects a ship in distress to the whole world: what changed with the modernisation in force since 2024, and how to stay compliant with the new RMSS terminology.
ECDIS (Electronic Chart Display and Information System)
Carriage requirement, back-up arrangement and ENC updating: the most common errors that turn ECDIS from a safety tool into a source of PSC deficiencies.
Passage Planning
The four phases — appraisal, planning, execution, monitoring: how to build a berth-to-berth passage plan that truly holds up against the reality of the route.
Fire Drill and Fire Safety
The minimum frequency of fire drills, equipment inspection, and the mistakes that turn a routine exercise into a PSC deficiency.
Musters and Abandon Ship Drill
The muster list, new crew familiarization and the frequency of abandon ship drills: the first thing a PSC inspector checks on boarding.
Permit to Work System
A Permit to Work is the documented method by which the SMS controls high-risk work under the applicable procedure and risk assessment.
Ship Security Plan and the ISPS Code
The validity of the SSO's STCW VI/5 Certificate of Proficiency is checked under issuing-Administration and flag rules; its absence is a clear ground, not an automatic detention.
Life-Saving Appliances: Liferafts, EPIRB and SART
Beyond lifeboats, a ship's real survival basket depends on equipment that is rarely checked and taken for granted to work: liferafts, EPIRBs and SARTs.
Watertight Doors and Compartment Integrity
Watertight doors left open during navigation defeat the entire logic of watertight subdivision: SOLAS Regulation II-1/22 requires them to remain closed at sea, with strictly limited operational exceptions.
Helicopter Operations and Helideck Safety
Helicopter operations require dedicated firefighting personnel during refuelling, safety devices on the helideck and rigorous coordination with the flight crew: an area often neglected in general crew training.
Immersion Suits and Thermal Protection
One immersion suit for every person on board on cargo ships; three per lifeboat plus thermal protection for the rest on passenger ships. It is the count, not the suit, that changes with the ship.
Fixed Firefighting Systems: CO2 and Water Mist
A fixed CO2 system is not verified by eye: it is verified by weighing the cylinders and following a testing regime that changes at the tenth and twentieth year. That is where the deficiencies are.
Means of Escape and Emergency Escape Routes
Every Category A machinery space requires two independent means of escape, but the exact meaning of 'lower part of the space' remains subject to differing interpretations among Administrations: an issue the IMO SDC sub-committee closed in January 2026, and not in the way expected.
Ro-Ro and Vehicle Spaces: New Fire Detection and Protection Requirements (2026)
From 1 January 2026 smoke and heat detectors in vehicle, special category and ro-ro spaces must be individually addressable: it is no longer enough to know that a detector has sounded, you need to know exactly which one.
Shipboard Lifting Appliances: The New SOLAS Regulation II-1/3-13 Regime
From 1 January 2026 SOLAS directly regulates every lifting appliance permanently installed on board — cargo cranes included — with mandatory testing, thorough examination and documented SWL marking. There are four exclusions, and they are exhaustive.
Pilot Transfer Arrangements: The New SOLAS V/23 Performance Standard
The pilot ladder is no longer just a technical requirement in the text of the regulation: MSC 110 moves it into a new, standalone mandatory performance standard, with a long implementation timeline that nonetheless needs planning now.
Ship Fuel Safety: Flashpoint Declaration
For ships to which SOLAS II-2/4.2.1.6 applies, fuel documentation must state the flashpoint or prescribed declaration under a standard acceptable to IMO.
Editorial revision of 9 August 2026 · page fingerprint a0c9ed172c9b