Each week, we offer you a question about the boating license. To validate your knowledge or even to discover unexplored areas. This week, we will deal with a question about lights and marks on ships.
Ball - Bicone - Superimposed ball, what does this mark mean?
By day, the three superimposed marks we see on this vessel, a ball, a bicone and a ball, mean that we are in the presence of a vessel with limited maneuvering capacity.
According to the RIPAM or International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea, which sets the international standard in this area: " the term "restricted vessel" means any vessel whose ability to maneuver in accordance with the Rules of the Road is limited by the nature of its work, and which therefore cannot deviate from the course of another vessel. "
In our example we are in the presence of a dredger that is doing work to maintain the depth of the channel.
Among the "vessels with restricted maneuvering capacity" we will find:
- vessels laying, raising or servicing a buoy, cable or submarine pipeline
- vessels engaged in dredging, hydrographic or oceanographic operations, or underwater work
- vessels carrying out mine clearance operations, but which will be specially marked
- vessels engaged in a towing operation that makes it difficult for the towing vessel and its tow to change course, which will also be specially marked
This list is not exhaustive. It is important to differentiate between vessels with restricted maneuvering capacity and vessels with a restricted draught. The latter have a different marking.
And at night? Red - White - Red overlay
If during the day the marking must be carried in the most visible place, with the two balls superimposed and the bicone in the center, at night specific lights must be carried. Always in the most visible place, a vessel with restricted maneuvering capacity will carry three superimposed lights visible on the whole horizon, the upper and lower lights being red and the middle light white.
