1.3 Lookout & Safe Speed (Rules 5–6)

Rule 5 — Look-out

Learn Rule 5 close to verbatim — Q100 quotes it constantly:

Every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper look-out by sight and hearing as well as by all available means appropriate in the prevailing circumstances and conditions so as to make a full appraisal of the situation and of the risk of collision.

Three loaded phrases

1. "At all times" — day, night, open ocean, dock approach, fog, calm. There is no lawful window in which lookout may be dropped because the autopilot is on or the AIS is quiet.
2. "By sight and hearing as well as by all available means" — eyes and ears, plus radar, AIS, VHF, cameras, or any other fitted sensor appropriate to conditions. Leaving operational radar off in restricted visibility, or ignoring AIS targets while "looking," is a Rule 5 problem as much as a seamanship problem.
3. "Full appraisal of the situation and of the risk of collision" — the lookout's job is early detection and evaluation, not mere sightseeing. Detecting a ferry at two miles is useless if nobody interprets constant bearing and decreasing range.

Master 100 passenger-vessel reality

On an OUPV six-pack in open water with excellent visibility, the operator may simultaneously helm and lookout. On a Master LT 100 platform — especially an inspected small passenger vessel with a COI, or any boat where the Master is also managing passenger movement, boarding, dock lines, or a busy VHF — Rule 5 + Rule 2 (good seamanship) often demand a dedicated lookout. Exam scenarios that add fog, night, heavy traffic, or passenger distractions tilt toward posting someone whose only job is sight and hearing. A deckhand checking tickets while "watching forward" is not a proper lookout.

Hearing matters: engine noise, music on the flybridge, and closed pilothouse doors can mask another vessel's fog signal or a horn around a bend. Rule 5 does not excuse "I couldn't hear over my own diesels." Reduce noise, open a window, or post an outside lookout when conditions require it.

"All available means" includes instruments you actually have. If the vessel is radar-equipped and operational, failure to use radar when appropriate is fair game for examiners and for post-casualty investigators. AIS and radio do not replace eyes, but they are part of the appraisal toolkit.

Rule 6 — Safe Speed

Every vessel shall at all times proceed at a safe speed so that she can take proper and effective action to avoid collision and be stopped within a distance appropriate to the prevailing circumstances and conditions.

Safe speed is not a number on a tachometer. Twenty knots can be safe on a clear offshore leg and reckless in a fog bank with fishing traffic. When a Q100 choice offers "the safe speed is 6 knots" as a universal rule, treat it with suspicion — the rule-correct answer almost always describes a speed that allows stop or maneuver in time, not a fixed value.

Factors for ALL vessels (memorize the list)

Master passenger boats often have longer stopping distances when loaded, and turning circles change with trim and windage of a high cabin. Factor 3 is not theoretical: know approximately how many boat lengths you need to kill way from cruise speed with a full deck of passengers — that knowledge feeds Rule 6 judgments.

Additional factors for vessels with operational RADAR

Q100 loves the split: visibility/traffic/draft are all-vessel factors; "small craft may not paint" is radar-specific. Keep the lists separate.

Interaction with restricted visibility (preview of Rule 19)

In restricted visibility a power-driven vessel must have engines ready for immediate maneuver and, when a close-quarters situation is developing ahead, reduce to the minimum at which she can be kept on course — essentially bare steerageway. That is Rule 6 applied to fog, not a separate speed limit. Safe speed and lookout collapse into one system: slow enough to stop inside the visibility (or radar detection) you actually have, with ears and instruments working.

Worked Master scenario: fog on a tourist route

You Master a 65-foot inspected passenger vessel with radar and AIS on a near-coastal sightseeing run. Visibility drops to roughly 300 yards in fog; the route crosses a bay with lobster gear and small skiffs. Rule 5: post a dedicated bow or bridge lookout, silence nonessential cabin noise, use radar and AIS as "all available means," and keep a VHF guard. Rule 6: reduce to a speed at which you could stop well inside the visible range; weigh traffic density (skiffs), maneuverability (passenger load), draft versus shallow patches, and radar factors (small fiberglass boats may not return a reliable echo; sea clutter near range scale settings can hide targets). Do not maintain timetable speed because passengers expect a schedule — schedules are not Rule 6 factors.

Night and background light

At night, shore lights and your own deck lights can mask navigation lights of small craft. Factor 4 exists because Masters sometimes "look" without seeing. Dim unnecessary cabin floodlights forward, use red bridge lighting, and consciously scan dark sectors between bright backgrounds. A high passenger-vessel cabin with bright salon lights can create exactly the back-scatter the rule warns about.

Exam Framing

Rule 5 items test the triad sight + hearing + all available means and "at all times." Rule 6 items either list factors or reject fixed-knot answers. When a scenario stacks fog + passengers + radar, the strong answer weaves dedicated lookout, reduced speed, and use of radar — Rules 5 and 6 working together under Rule 2's good-seamanship overlay.