LSA Rules, Liferafts, HRU and Rescue Boats

LSA rules: SOLAS, national regulations and the LSA Code

In short: Read first: Emergency Organisation: Alarms, Musters and Drills. Next: Lifejackets, Lifebuoys, Immersion Suits and Pyrotechnics. Life-saving appliance (LSA) rules come in three layers: SOLAS says what you must have, the national regulations say how many, the LSA Code gives the technical details.

• SOLAS chapter III (Life-saving appliances and arrangements) — the “what”: which appliances a ship carries, how they are kept ready, inspected and drilled, and which manuals must be on board.
• National regulations — the “how many”: the flag state turns SOLAS into law and sets the number of each item for each class of ship. On a UK ship this is UK law (Merchant Shipping regulations and MSNs). Yachts and small craft follow an MCA code of practice instead: LY3 / REG Yacht Code for large yachts, the Workboat Code for small workboats (see the last section).
• LSA Code (International Life-Saving Appliance Code, IMO MSC.48(66)) — the “details”: mandatory through SOLAS III. It says exactly what goes in a liferaft pack, how a release hook must work, what is printed on a liferaft container. Prototype testing of LSA follows IMO MSC.81(70) (LY3 13.1.2).
• Approval: every appliance must be of an approved type. A liferaft for a SOLAS ship is SOLAS-approved; in Europe it also carries MED approval (Marine Equipment Directive, the “wheel mark”). MCA guidance refers to MED-approved rafts and HRUs (MGN 343 (M+F)).
• Memory hook: “SOLAS = what · Regulations = how many · LSA Code = details”.
• On the bridge: a surveyor asks why your raft has a B pack. The code your vessel is certified to tells you which pack you may carry; the LSA Code tells you what is inside it.

Liferaft: markings, stowage and servicing

In short: An inflatable liferaft lives packed in a GRP container on deck, held in a cradle by a hydrostatic release unit. It must float free and inflate by itself if the ship sinks, or be released by hand and thrown over (MGN 343 (M+F) 1.1). It is serviced ashore at least every 12 months (SOLAS III/20.8).

Markings on the liferaft container (LSA Code)

• Maker’s name or trade mark.
• Serial number.
• Date of manufacture.
• Name of the approving authority.
• Name and place of the servicing station where it was last serviced.
• Number of persons it is permitted to carry.
• The pack inside is also shown: “SOLAS A PACK” or “SOLAS B PACK” (next section).
• On the bridge: during the weekly round, read the container label. An out-of-date service date is a detention item at a port State control inspection.

Stowage (MGN 343)

• Two functions (1.1): float free and inflate automatically or be released by hand (e.g. a senhouse slip) and thrown over the side; then pull the painter to inflate.
• For a manual launch the painter must be made fast to a strong point. If the raft is held only by the weak link, the shock of throwing it over may break the weak link and the raft is lost (1.1.2).
• Do (3.2): stow clear of propellers and thrusters · drain holes at the bottom · longitudinally in a fixed cradle · protected from weather, smoke, soot, oil, flooding and damage · spread port and starboard · remove transport lashings · inspect the container often (damage → approved service station) · release by hand with no tools or knife.
• Don’t (3.3): lash the raft in the cradle · stow under overhanging decks or awnings · let it touch copper · hose it down · use bottle screws instead of slips · put all LSA in one place.
• Side-to-side transfer in less than 5 min (2.2): rafts of 6–15 persons carried by 2 people, more than 15 persons by 4 people. A SOLAS raft can weigh up to 185 kg. The yacht code says the same (LY3 13.2.2.3).
• Davit-launched liferafts (2.3): at least 9 m forward of the propeller where possible · embarkation at least 2 m above the waterline (fully loaded, 10° trim, 20° list) · 2 crew ready to embark and launch in under 5 min per raft.
• Remote rafts on cargo ships (more than 100 m from stem or stern to the nearest survival craft): no HRU required, but quick manual release and proper embarkation (no knotted lifeline) (2.5).
• Yachts (LY3 13.1.5): embarkation ladder if the deck is more than 1 m above the top of the buoyancy tube (lightest condition); more than 4.5 m → davit-launched rafts and a launching appliance each side.

Servicing

• Every inflatable liferaft is serviced at intervals not exceeding 12 months at an approved service station (SOLAS III/20.8). If that is impracticable, the Administration may extend to 17 months.
• Some newer raft designs are approved for extended service intervals (IMO MSC.1/Circ.1328); after their approved period they go back to the 12-month cycle.
• Yachts: liferafts, inflatable rescue boats, inflatable lifejackets and non-disposable HRUs every 12 months at a manufacturer-approved station (LY3 13.1.7).

Liferaft equipment: SOLAS A pack and B pack

In short: The A pack is the full kit for ocean voyages; the B pack is a reduced kit for short voyages near a safe haven. Exam tip: be ready to name at least six A-pack items without hesitating.

SOLAS A pack: the full list (LSA Code)

• Water options: 0.5 l per person may be replaced by a de-salting apparatus, or 1 l per person by a manual reverse osmosis desalinator; either must make the same amount of fresh water in 2 days.
• Sea-anchors: one is spare, one is permanently attached so the raft lies to the wind in its most stable position. Strong enough for all sea conditions, with an anti-twist swivel, and unlikely to turn inside out. On davit-launched rafts and rafts on passenger ships it is deployed by hand only; on all others it deploys automatically when the raft inflates.
• The flares and smoke signals are the same distress signals used from the ship: see distress signals. The SART is covered in EPIRB and SART.
• Quick six for the oral: quoit and line · knife · bailer · sea-anchors · paddles · flares. Then add water (1.5 l), food (10,000 kJ) and seasickness tablets (48 h) to show you know the numbers.

SOLAS B pack, and which pack you need

• The B pack holds only part of the A-pack items. In the LSA Code it is the reduced pack allowed for passenger ships on short international voyages; the container is then marked “SOLAS B PACK”.
• Yachts (LY3 13.2.2.1): Short Range Yachts, or vessels operating within 60 miles of a safe haven, may carry a B pack; all other vessels carry an A pack.
• Rule of thumb: A pack = unlimited / more than 60 NM · B pack = less than 60 NM.
• On small commercial vessels the usual split by area category is: categories 0 and 1 → A pack; categories 3 to 6 → B pack. Always check the code your vessel is certified to.

First moves after boarding the raft

1. Cut the painter.
2. Paddle away from the ship.
3. Look for survivors and pick them up.
4. Stream the sea-anchor once clear of the ship.
5. Close the raft (entrances shut).

The full survival routine in the raft has its own topic: Abandon Ship and Survival in a Liferaft.

Hydrostatic release unit (HRU)

In short: The HRU holds the liferaft in its cradle and frees it automatically if the ship sinks. It releases at a depth between 1.5 m and 4 m; the LSA Code limit is not more than 4 m. The same float-free idea is used for the EPIRB.

How it works (MGN 343 1.1.1)

1. The ship sinks; water pressure on the HRU diaphragm fires a spring-loaded knife that cuts the securing strap.
2. The raft container floats up on its own buoyancy, pulling the painter out. The painter is now tied to the ship only by the weak link.
3. At the end of the painter the gas cylinder fires and the raft inflates.
4. The buoyancy of the inflated raft breaks the weak link; the raft floats free, ready for boarding.

• Weak link: on MED-approved rafts it breaks at 1.8–2.6 kN (MGN 343 1.1.1) — that is 2.2 ± 0.4 kN. Random bits of thin line are not acceptable as weak links.
• Release depth: approved units are rated 1.5–4.0 m; the LSA Code sets the maximum at 4 m.

Servicing and fitting

• Re-usable HRUs: serviced every year (MGN 343 2.1; SOLAS III/20.9; LY3 13.1.7).
• Disposable HRUs: no servicing during their working life (typically 2 years, see the expiry date) — then replace them.
• One HRU per raft: approval normally covers one liferaft only. In trials at 4 m depth, the extra up-thrust of several rafts sometimes stopped the HRU opening (MGN 343 2.7). If one HRU holds several rafts, each painter needs its own weak link.
• Tension: straps taut but not over-tight; too much or too little load can stop the HRU working (MGN 343 2.8).
• Small rafts (fewer than 6 persons) may not have enough buoyancy to break a standard weak link: use an HRU made for them (MGN 343 2.9).
• Shallow water: a sinking ship may touch bottom before the HRU releases or before enough painter is pulled out. Open reversible liferafts usually fire after 1–1.5 m of line (MGN 343 2.6).
• On the bridge: weekly check — HRU expiry date, strap slip free, painter attached to the weak link, weak link fixed to a strong point on the ship.

Rescue boat

In short: A rescue boat is built to rescue people from the water and marshal survival craft. Every cargo ship carries at least one (SOLAS III/31); under the yacht code every yacht of 24 m and over has one (LY3 Table 1). It is the boat you use for a man overboard.

SOLAS rescue boat (LSA Code 5.1)

• Length 3.8 m to 8.5 m.
• Carries at least 5 seated persons and 1 person lying on a stretcher.
• Speed at least 6 kn for at least 4 h.
• Tows a fully loaded 25-person liferaft at at least 2 kn.
• Kept ready to launch in not more than 5 min (SOLAS III/14).
• Launched with its crew every month where possible, never more than 3 months apart (MGN 71 (M+F) Amd 1, 11.1).
• Inflatable or RIB rescue boats are serviced every 12 months (LY3 13.1.7).

Rescue boats on yachts (LY3 13.2.3)

• Recovery of a person: assume the casualty is unconscious. A boarding ladder or scrambling net must reach at least 600 mm below the lowest operational waterline.
• 500 GT and over: a full SOLAS rescue boat (white hull also accepted); a powered crane must also work by hand or from the emergency power source.
• Under 500 GT: a non-SOLAS boat is accepted if it carries at least 4 persons, one lying down; RIB or inflatable tubes with at least 3 buoyancy compartments; highly visible colour; launched within 5 min.
• Launching appliance: static proof load 2.2 × the maximum working load; safety factor 6 for wires, hooks and sheaves, 4.5 for the rest; dynamic test at 1.1 × working load.
• Short Range Yachts: may rely on the vessel’s own manoeuvrability — but never recover over the stern or near the propellers; the recovery point must be visible from the conning position; nobody else should have to enter the water.
• At least 2 SOLAS inflatable lifejackets for the rescue boat crew (LY3 13.2.4.3).

On-load and off-load release gear

In short: The release hooks join a lifeboat or rescue boat to its falls. Off-load release opens only when the weight is off the hooks — the boat is waterborne. On-load release opens with the weight still on — for when the boat cannot take the load off (ship still moving, heavy swell).

• Off-load (normal) release: the usual way. The boat sits in the water, the falls go slack, the hooks open.
• On-load release: opens under load. Because it can drop a boat from height, it is protected against accidental or early use and needs a deliberate action by the crew (LSA Code 4.4.7.6). Many systems add a hydrostatic interlock that blocks release until the boat is afloat, unless overridden on purpose.
• Why the rules changed: hooks opening by accident during drills killed and injured crews. IMO MSC.320(89) tightened the LSA Code hook rules; SOLAS III/1.5 made ships replace non-compliant lifeboat on-load hooks at the first scheduled dry-docking after 1 July 2014, and in any case by 1 July 2019. It does not apply to free-fall lifeboats; the MCA applies it also to similar on-load systems on rescue boats.
• On the bridge: never use on-load release with the boat still high above the water. Release on-load only at or very near the water, on the order of the person in charge.

Training manual, maintenance instructions and SOLAS No. 1 and No. 2

In short: Two LSA books must be on board: the training manual (how to use the LSA and survive, SOLAS III/35) and the instructions for on-board maintenance (how to keep LSA working, SOLAS III/36). Every yacht has both (LY3 Table 1).

Training manual (SOLAS III/35)

Kept in each crew mess room and recreation room, or in each crew cabin. It explains the LSA and how to survive:

• putting on lifejackets;
• boarding, launching and clearing survival craft from the ship;
• lighting in the launching areas;
• use of all survival equipment and all aids to location;
• use of sea-anchors;
• recovery of persons from the water;
• dangers of exposure and the need for warm clothing;
• making the best use of the survival craft to survive;
• retrieval methods, including helicopter rescue gear (slings, baskets, stretchers), breeches-buoy and shore life-saving apparatus;
• emergency repair of LSA;
• a personal survival booklet can be added (the MCA publishes a “Personal Survival at Sea” booklet).

Instructions for on-board maintenance (SOLAS III/36)

1. A checklist for the required inspections.
2. Maintenance and repair instructions.
3. A schedule of periodic maintenance.
4. A list of replaceable parts.
5. A list of sources of spare parts.
6. A log of inspection records.

• They drive the routine checks: weekly visual check that survival craft, rescue boats and launching appliances are ready, and a monthly inspection using the checklist, recorded in the log (SOLAS III/20).

SOLAS No. 1 and No. 2

• SOLAS No. 1: the life-saving signals and rescue poster, displayed in the wheelhouse (LY3 Table 1).
• SOLAS No. 2: the two-sided life-saving signals card packed in the liferaft (the waterproof card of SOLAS V/16 in the A pack).
• Where wheelhouse space is short, both sides of a SOLAS No. 2 may be displayed instead of a No. 1 poster (LY3 13.2.11).

Workboat Code and small vessels

In short: SOLAS chapter III is written for ships on international voyages. Small UK commercial vessels follow an MCA code of practice that applies the SOLAS III ideas at a scale that fits the boat. For workboats and pilot boats this is the Workboat Code.

• Workboat Code Edition 3: in force 13 December 2023 for new workboats and pilot boats.
• Existing vessels (Brown Code, the MGN 280 technical annex, or Workboat Code Edition 2) move to Edition 3 at their next renewal examination or 3 years after entry into force, whichever is later — so the transition ends on 13 December 2026.
• A vessel cannot mix Edition 3 with parts of older codes.
• Large yachts (24 m and over) use LY3, now folded into the REG Yacht Code (in force 1 January 2019).
• On the bridge: when you join a small vessel, first ask which code she is certified to. That tells you how many rafts, which pack, and whether a rescue boat is needed.