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“Officer of the yachting 2nd class,” the program and mode is changed again. A new decree of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (you can download the official circular here) goes to amend the one dated May 20, 2024.
The new measure files down some inconsistencies and opens up new spaces for nautical schools. In addition, critical issues about training certificates are taken into account and some requirements obtained abroad are accepted. Port Authorities are also urged to assess market demand when issuing examination notices.
There are, however, also some complications: the exam is made more complex by introducing a nautical charting test and obliging candidates to attend a five-hour navigation course at a nautical school, with the issuance of a corresponding certificate to be presented to the Coast Guard. A practice similar to the one that saw these five hours also become compulsory to take the nautical license.
The latest update also impacts some already convened exam sessions in the hope that it will be the last bureaucratic hurdle for a title that has been awaited for more than two decades.
Following are the main changes for the “2nd class boating officer” exam provided in the new decree:
in addition to the theory (interview) and practical ones already provided. The test consists of four questions chosen from a specific database and is passed by giving at least three correct answers in one hour’s time. One must appear for the exam equipped with 5/D and 42/D nautical charts published by the Hydrographic Institute of the Navy. Those who have a Nautical A license with an unrestricted rating are exempt from the test.
The practical test must be conducted in maritime waters on a recreational unit of at least 15 meters in length with a motor, sailboat with a motor of at least 30 kW or a traffic unit with the same characteristics. Multihulls or fishing units are not allowed. The “sailing specialization” qualification can be taken at the same time as the practical examination.
Requirement to take a course of at least 5 hours (certified) of navigation with a nautical school. The course is defined as “familiarization” with the skills required for the practical test.
Possibility for nautical schools to conduct theory courses upon submission of specific request to the relevant bodies.
If the candidate passes at least one of the 3 scheduled examination tests, he/she may retake the failed ones once within 12 months and at the desired maritime office.
Confirmed the “at least biannual” cadence of examinations held by harbor master’s offices (including the Porto Santo Stefano maritime district office), notices are to be published online. The examination schedule must also take into account “the employment need of aspirants to obtain their professional title in time for the bathing season.”
possibility of being admitted to the examinations “conditionally” even without presenting the “First Aid” health training certificate, which must still be handed in before the title is awarded. Graduates in medicine, nursing (three-year) or nursing science (master’s) acquire First Aid without taking coursework and exams. In addition, a higher training certificate is expected to “absorb” the lower one, the Short Range Radio Operator (SRC) certificate does not require endorsement, and LRC, GOC and ROC certificates earned abroad are considered valid if endorsed
The criteria for exemption from the theory test for those who have had their A boat license “with no shoreline distance limit” for at least 10 years become more favorable:
-infact, the 36-month limit (which previously ran from the date of publication of the decree) to take advantage of the exemption isabolished, so it can now be applied at all times;
– The requirement to be at least 50 years of age is deleted;
– it is reduced from 10 years to 36 months the requirement to have entered into (before the decree came into force) with pleasure craft chartering companies or with pleasure craft for private use one or more employment contracts with the object of the command of the pleasure craft;
Title without examination: the pool of people who can obtain the professional title without taking the examination is expanded, which now includes seafarers holding STCW certificates (the international convention on training standards), even if issued by a foreign country with endorsement from the competent consular authority of the Italian Republic and valid, if they are residents or domiciled in Italy. Finally, holders of a B recreational vessel license can apply for the title immediately (previously it was necessary to have been licensed for at least 3 years).
Fabrizio Coccia
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