Resolution A.918(22)

IMO STANDARD MARINE COMMUNICATION PHRASES

(Adopted on 29 November 2001)

 

THE ASSEMBLY,

 

RECALLING Article 15(j) of the Convention on the International Maritime Organization concerning the functions of the Assembly in relation to regulations and guidelines concerning maritime safety,

 

RECALLING ALSO resolution A.380(X) by which it adopted the Standard Marine Navigational Vocabulary,

 

RECALLING FURTHER the provisions of regulation V/14.4 of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, requiring that on all ships to which chapter I thereof applies, English shall be used on the bridge as the working language for bridge-to-bridge and bridge-to-shore safety communications as well as for communications on board between the pilot and bridge watchkeeping personnel unless those directly involved in the communications speak a common language other than English,

 

RECOGNIZING that the standardization of language and terminology used in such communications would assist the safe operation of ships and contribute to greater safety of navigation,

 

RECOGNIZING ALSO the wide use of the English language for international navigational communications and the need to assist maritime training institutions to meet the objectives of safe operations of ships and enhanced navigational safety through, inter alia, the standardization of language and terminology used,

 

HAVING CONSIDERED the recommendations of the Maritime Safety Committee at its sixty-eighth and seventy-fourth sessions,

 

1. ADOPTS the IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases set out in Annex 1 to the present resolution;

 

2. AUTHORIZES the Maritime Safety Committee to keep the IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases under review and to amend them when necessary in accordance with the procedure set out in Annex 2 to the present resolution;

 

3. RECOMMENDS Governments to give the IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases a wide circulation to all prospective users and all maritime education authorities, in order to support compliance with the standards of competence as required by table A-II/1 of the STCW Code;

 

4. REVOKES resolution A.380(X).

 

ANNEX 1.

FOREWORD

 

As navigational and safety communications from ship to shore and vice versa, from ship to ship, and on board ship must be precise, simple and unambiguous so as to avoid confusion and error, there is a need to standardize the language used. This is of particular importance in the light of the increasing number of internationally trading vessels with crews speaking many different languages, since problems of communication may cause misunderstandings leading to dangers to the vessel, the people on board and the environment.

 

In 1973, the Maritime Safety Committee agreed, at its twenty-seventh session that where language difficulties arise a common language should be used for navigational purposes, and that language should be English. In consequence the Standard Marine Navigational Vocabulary (SMNV) was developed, adopted in 1977 and amended in 1985.

 

In 1992, the Maritime Safety Committee, at its sixtieth session, instructed the Sub-Committee on Safety of Navigation to develop a more comprehensive standardized safety language than SMNV 1985, taking into account the changing conditions in modern seafaring and covering all major safety-related verbal communications.

 

At its sixty-eighth session in 1997, the Maritime Safety Committee adopted the Draft IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases (SMCP) developed by the Sub-Committee on Safety of Navigation. The draft IMO SMCP, following international trials, was amended at the forty-sixth session of this Sub-Committee, and was given final consideration by the Maritime Safety Committee at its seventy-fourth session in the light of remarks received by the Organization. The IMO SMCP was adopted by the Assembly in November 2001 as resolution A.918(22).

 

Under the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978, as revised 1995, the ability to use and understand the IMO SMCP is required for the certification of officers in charge of a navigational watch on ships of 500 gross tonnage or more.

 

IMO STANDARD MARINE COMMUNICATION PHRASES

 

 

INTRODUCTION

 

1. Position of the IMO SMCP in maritime practice

 

The IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases (SMCP) has been compiled:

 

- to assist in the greater safety of navigation and of the conduct of the ship,

 

- to standardize the language used in communication for navigation at sea, in port approaches, waterways and harbours, and on board vessels with multilingual crews,

 

and

 

- to assist maritime training institutions in meeting the objectives mentioned above.

 

These phrases are not intended to supplant or contradict the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 or special local rules or recommendations made by IMO concerning ships' routeing, neither are they intended to supersede the International Code of Signals, and their use in ship's external communications has to be in strict compliance with the relevant radiotelephone procedures as set out in the ITU Radio Regulations. Furthermore, the IMO SMCP, as a collection of individual phrases, should not be regarded as any kind of technical manual providing operational instructions.

 

The IMO SMCP meets the requirements of the STCW Convention, 1978, as revised, and of the SOLAS Convention, 1974, as revised, regarding verbal communications; moreover, the phrases cover the relevant communication safety aspects laid down in these Conventions.

 

Use of the IMO SMCP should be made as often as possible in preference to other wording of similar meaning; as a minimum requirement, users should adhere as closely as possible to them in relevant situations. In this way they are intended to become an acceptable safety language, using English for the verbal interchange of intelligence among individuals of all maritime nations on the many and varied occasions when precise meanings and translations are in doubt, as is increasingly evident under modern conditions at sea.

 

The accompanying CD/Cassette is designed to familiarize users with the pronunciation of the phrases.

 

2. Organization of the IMO SMCP

 

The IMO SMCP is divided into External Communication Phrases and On-board Communication Phrases as far as its application is concerned, and into Part A and Part B as to its status within the framework of STCW 1978 as revised.

 

Part A covers phrases applicable in external communications, and may be regarded as the replacement of the Standard Marine Navigational Vocabulary 1985, which is required to be used and understood under the STCW Code, 1995, Table A-II/I. This part is enriched by essential phrases concerning ship handling and safety of navigation to be used in on-board communications, particularly when the Pilot is on the bridge, as required by Regulation 14(4), Chapter V, SOLAS 1974, as revised.

 

Part B calls attention to other on-board standard safety-related phrases which, supplementary to Part A may also be regarded as useful for maritime English instruction.

 

3. Position of the IMO SMCP in Maritime Education and Training

 

The IMO SMCP is not intended to provide a comprehensive maritime English syllabus, which is expected to cover a far wider range of language skills to be achieved in the fields of vocabulary, grammar, discourse abilities, etc., than the IMO SMCP could ever manage. However, Part A in particular should be an indispensable part of any curriculum which is designed to meet the corresponding requirements of the STCW Convention 1978 as revised. In addition, Part B offers a rich choice of situations covered by phrases well suited to meet the communication requirements of the STCW Convention 1978 as revised, which mariners are implicitly expected to satisfy.

 

The IMO SMCP should be taught and learned selectively according to users' specific needs, rather than in its entirety. The respective instruction should be based on practice in the maritime environment, and should be implemented through appropriate modern language teaching methods.

 

4. Basic communicative features

 

The IMO SMCP builds on a basic knowledge of the English language. It was drafted intentionally in a simplified version of maritime English in order to reduce grammatical, lexical and idiomatic varieties to a tolerable minimum, using standardized structures for the sake of its function aspects, i.e. reducing misunderstanding in safety-related verbal communications, thereby endeavouring to reflect present maritime English language usage on board vessels and in ship-to-shore/ship-to- ship communications.

 

This means that in phrases offered for use in emergency and other situations developing under considerable pressure of time or psychological stress, as well as in navigational warnings, a block language is applied which uses sparingly or omits the function words the, a/an, is/are, as done in seafaring practice. Users, however, may be flexible in this respect.

 

Further communicative features may be summarized as follows:

 

- avoiding synonyms

 

- avoiding contracted forms

 

- providing fully worded answers to "yes/no" - questions and basic alternative answers to sentence questions

 

- providing one phrase for one event, and

 

- structuring the corresponding phrases according to the principle: identical invariable plus variable.

 

5. Typographical conventions

 

( )    brackets indicate that the part of the message

       enclosed within the brackets may be added where

       relevant;

 

/      oblique strokes indicate that the items on either side

       of the stroke are Alternatives;

 

...    dots indicate that the relevant information is to be

       filled in where the dots occur;

 

(italic letters) indicate the kind of information requested;

 

~      tildes precede possible words or phrases which can be

       used after/in association with the given standard phrase.

 

 

GENERAL

 

1. Procedure

 

When it is necessary to indicate that the IMO SMCP are to be used, the following message may be sent:

 

"Please use IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases."

 

"I will use IMO Standard Marine Communication Phrases."

 

2. Spelling

 

2.1 Spelling of letters

 

When spelling is necessary, only the following spelling table should be used:

 

 

2.2 Spelling of digits and numbers

 

A few digits and numbers have a modified pronunciation compared to general English:

 

 

3. Message Markers

 

In shore-to-ship and ship-to-shore communication or radio communication in general, the following eight Message Markers may be used (also see "Application of Message Markers" given in PART A1/6 "Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) Standard Phrases"):

 

(i) Instruction

(ii) Advice

(iii) Warning

(iv) Information

(v) Question

(vi) Answer

(vii) Request

(viii) Intention

 

4. Responses

 

4.1 When the answer to a question is in the affirmative, say:

 

"Yes .... " followed by the appropriate phrase in full.

 

4.2 When the answer to a question is in the negative, say:

 

"No ..." followed by the appropriate phrase in full.

 

4.3 When the information requested is not immediately available, say:

 

"Stand by" followed by the time interval within which the information will be available.

 

4.4 When the information requested cannot be obtained, say:

 

"No information."

 

4.5 When an INSTRUCTION (e.g. by a VTS Station, naval vessel or other fully authorized personnel) or an ADVICE is given, respond if in the affirmative:

 

"I will/can ... " - followed by the instruction or advice in full; and, if in the negative, respond:

 

"I will not/cannot... " - followed by the instruction or advice in full.

 

Example:

"ADVICE. Do not overtake the vessel North of you."

 

Respond:

"I will not overtake the vessel North of me."

 

4.6 Responses to orders and answers to questions of special importance both in external and on-board communication are given in wording in the phrases concerned.

 

5. Distress, urgency and safety signals

 

5.1 MAYDAY to be used to announce a distress message

 

5.2 PAN PAN to be used to announce an urgency message

 

5.3 SECURITE to be used to announce a safety message

 

6. Standard organizational phrases

 

6.1 "How do you read (me)?"

 

6.1.1

 

"I read you...

 

  bad/one         with signal strength one       (i.e. barely perceptible)

  poor/two        with signal strength two       (i.e. weak)

  fair/three      with signal strength three     (i.e. fairly good)

  good/four       with    signal strength four   (i.e. good)

  excellent/five  with signal strength five      (i.e. very good)

 

6.2 When it is advisable to remain on a VHF Channel/frequency, say:

 

"Stand by on VHF Channel .../ frequency ... ".

 

6.2.1 When it is accepted to remain on the VHF channel/frequency indicated, say:

 

"Standing by on VHF Channel .../ frequency ... ".

 

6.3 When it is advisable to change to another VHF Channel/frequency, say:

 

"Advise (you) change to VHF Channel .../frequency ... ."

"Advise(you) try VHF Channel .../frequency ... .".

 

6.3.1 When the changing of a VHF Channel/frequency is accepted, say:

 

"Changing to VHF Channel .../frequency ... .".

 

7. Corrections

 

When a mistake is made in a message, say:

 

"Mistake ..." followed by the word:

"Correction ..." plus the corrected part of the message.

 

Example:

"My present speed is 14 knots - mistake.

Correction, my present speed is 12, one-two, knots."

 

8. Readiness

 

"I am/I am not ready to receive your message".

 

9. Repetition

 

9.1 If any part of the message is considered sufficiently important to need safeguarding, say:

 

"Repeat... " - followed by the corresponding part of the message.

 

Example:

"My draft is 12.6 repeat one-two decimal 6 metres." "Do not overtake - repeat - do not overtake."

 

9.2 When a message is not properly heard, say:

 

"Say again (please)."

 

10. Numbers

 

Numbers are to be spoken in separate digits:

 

"One-five-zero" for 150

 "Two decimal five" or

 Two point five" for 2.5

 

 

Note: Attention! When rudder angles, e.g. in wheel orders, are given, say:

 

"Fifteen" for 15 or

"Twenty" for 20, etc.

 

11. Positions

 

11.1 When latitude and longitude are used, these shall be expressed in degrees and minutes (and decimals of a minute if necessary), North or South of the Equator and East or West of Greenwich.

 

Example:

"WARNING. Dangerous wreck in position 15 degrees 34 minutes North 061 degrees 29 minutes West."

 

11.2 When the position is related to a mark, the mark shall be a well-defined charted object. The bearing shall be in the 360 degrees notation from true north and shall be that of the position FROM the mark.

 

Example:

"Your position bearing 137 degrees from Big Head lighthouse distance 2.4 nautical miles."

 

12. Bearings

 

The bearing of the mark or vessel concerned is the bearing in the 360 degree notation from north (true north unless otherwise stated), except in the case of relative bearings. Bearings may be either FROM the mark or FROM the vessel.

 

Examples:

"Pilot boat is bearing 215 degrees from you."

 

Note:

Vessels reporting their position should always quote their bearing FROM the mark, as described in paragraph 11.2 of this