The SOLAS Training Manual — Purpose and Content
The training manual exists as a teaching resource, not a drill checklist. Its purpose is to ensure every crew member can understand the reasons behind emergency procedures, not merely follow instructions by rote. As Master, you are responsible for ensuring the manual is present, maintained, and actually used in crew training.
What it must contain
SOLAS III requires the training manual to cover survival and fire-fighting equipment and procedures in sufficient detail for crew to understand how to use them effectively. Work through it logically as if preparing a crew member from first principles:
1. Survival craft and rescue boats — the manual explains the purpose and operation of each type carried: lifeboats, liferafts, rescue boats. It covers launching, embarkation, engine starting, and post-launch actions. The reason for this depth is that in an actual emergency the crew must act without supervision; rote-learning "pull the painter" is insufficient without understanding why the painter activates the hydrostatic release or inflates the raft.
2. Individual life-saving appliances — lifebuoys, lifejackets, immersion suits, thermal protective aids. The manual covers donning sequences and deployment drills. Emphasis is on correct use rather than familiarity alone; a lifejacket worn incorrectly in cold water can accelerate hypothermia.
3. Distress signals — operation of EPIRBs, SARTs, pyrotechnics, and MF/HF/VHF DSC. The manual must explain what each signal communicates and under what circumstances each is used, so crew do not, for example, activate an EPIRB inadvertently during a drill or fail to activate it when warranted.
4. Fire-fighting — portable and fixed extinguishing systems, fire detection, breathing apparatus, and fire-fighting procedures. The manual should explain the logic of fire boundaries, stopping ventilation, and isolating fuel/power before applying an agent — understanding why these steps are sequenced as they are prevents improvisation that worsens a fire.
5. Ship abandonment — the sequence from muster to boarding survival craft, including search for missing persons, duties of each station, and survival at sea after abandonment.
6. Survival at sea — action in the water, boarding rescue craft, exposure protection, and signalling to rescue units.
Availability and language
The manual must be written in, or translated into, the working language of the vessel. If one volume does not cover all content, multiple volumes are permitted. Every crew member must have access to it — not just officers.
Master's exam focus
Examiners test whether you understand the manual as a training tool rather than a document to produce on inspection. Be ready to explain how you would use it in progressive crew familiarisation and how you ensure comprehension, not just distribution.