Chapter V - Special Training for Personnel on Certain Ships
Four special regimes
- V/1-1 – oil and chemical tankers: basic training (tanker familiarisation) and advanced training for those in charge of cargo operations.
- V/1-2 – liquefied gas tankers: the same basic/advanced structure for gas.
- V/2 – passenger ships: safety training for all, crowd management for those with passenger duties, and crisis management and human behaviour training for those nominated for emergencies and musters.
- V/3 – ships subject to the IGF Code (gas or low-flashpoint fuels).
The distinctions examiners test
Every seafarer on a tanker needs the basic course before being assigned duties; it covers tanker types, cargo hazards, safety equipment, pollution prevention and emergency procedures. It does not authorise you to supervise cargo. Advanced training requires the basic course plus approved seagoing service on that tanker type - a commonly quoted benchmark is about three months - and it is what a person in immediate charge of cargo needs.
On passenger ships the trap is scope: crowd management is not only for officers. Anyone with duties regarding passenger safety in an emergency, including ratings on muster lists, needs it, and training must be refreshed when joining a new type of ship or after a long absence.
Worked example
A second officer has completed general tanker familiarisation and is told to take charge of a cargo transfer on an oil tanker. That is non-compliant: familiarisation is basic only; charge of cargo operations requires the advanced oil tanker certificate, which itself requires the basic course plus tanker sea service.
Rule of thumb: basic gets you on board; advanced puts you in charge.