[esailor Team]

Chief Mate Unlimited / Master < 3,000GT
Examiner: Alec Keep (D-02)
Attempt- First
Result: Pass
Time: 1hr 30minutes (Exam Time), 10 minutes (General)
June 2025
The Examiner logged in spot on the hour, I joined 15min early, long wait! I was happy
that I was in the right Teams meeting at the right time
Introduced himself, verified my ID. Asked if I had switched off my phone and that I
wasn’t recording the exam in any way. Confirmed that I didn’t have any study material
at hand and instructed me not to do any google searches. If I had a comfortable chair
and a Glass of water nearby. Told me that he would be sharing his screen multiple times
to aid in his questioning.
Asked about the types of vessels that I had served on and experience. (Bulk Carrier &
Oil-Chem vessels) .which Company I am working with?
Asked About my OOW Unlimited Passing year (2023). Was little stunned and in the
follow up I had told I have passed my both written in first attempt in March Diet. (Just to
ease the pressure of detailed follow up questions on these Nav & Stab).
1. Started off by saying you are a Chief Officer, what are the duties & responsibilities as
Chief.
2. I heard you mentioned SMS, what is SMS.
3. What requires SMS to be in place on-board?
4. Who governs SMS on UK vessels
5. You have ISM audit what you think who will carry out and what things he is going to
check?
6. What are the certificated associated with sms for ship and their frequency.
7. You mentioned Annual SMC are you sure (panicked answer before instead of INITIAL
I said A/I/R and company internal Audits)
8. You said you have been on bulk carrier what different cargo u can load?
9. What is Heavy density Cargo and problems associated with the,?
10.Where you can get all information about all these cargo?
11.What is the code associated with bulk cargo
12.Why you think Solas need to have a complete new chapter for this
13.What is the Chapter number and contents of IMSBC code?
14. If you can’t quote the contents tell me what is this all about?
15. How bulk carrier and general cargo is different from each other
16.What past occurrence’s/failures lead to these codes in place.
17. You are loading IRON ore what precautions as a chief mate you will take?
18. You mentioned Shear force and Bending Moment what was that?
19.Can you briefly explain Shear Force? (was totally blanked as all of it I know I said
already was bit of a panic situation)
20. Okay as u said bending moment how vessel get HOG & SAGGED?
21.So if you have 5 cargo holds determine me the position of cargo in holds for Hogging
Sagging?
22.And what will be for the shear force hold positions. (he lead me to this easy example
to explain what he wants to get in answer)
23.What is GRAIN Cargo and problem Associated with it?
24.What you mean by non-cohesive Nature?
25.What is the stability requirement for Grain?
26. You are on a general cargo vessel and wants to load Grain how you will proceed.
27.What are the different types of Grain Cargo securing methods
28.Showed me a picture of draft marks and asked me to read what I can see
29. You mentioned picture is of Loadline kindly explain? ( instead of saying loadline draft
marks I said loadline)
30. Let’s talk about LSA/FFA now what are the Lifeboat fully enclosed port and stbd
Inspections.
31. Okay okay you have loaded weight 1.1 times what’s next
32. Ok how you are going to perform on load test on lifeboat?
33.What are the intervals of ON LOAD RELEASE to be carried out on a ship.(Trickkyy.. I
sticked the whole time with in case of emergency only otherwise never)
34. You talked about management level works explain.
35. You have AB working on Deck and got a major injury on hand what things you are
going to do.
36.What’s DPA?
37.What roles are of DPA
38. The person is sent ashore whom you will contact.
39. The AB not able to join back your vessel what things you are going to do?
40. Is he is still liable to get paid?
41. Under what Regulation you saying that he will get paid till he is declared fit and unfit.
42. You mentioned Ship Safety Officer. How you are going to know you are a SSO?
43.Where it is documented?
44.Coloured Synoptic Chart – what’s the weather?
45. You have told me all the features of synoptic charts u can see but whats the weather
will be xxxxx(I had no clue where he said some port in uk).
46. Yes it’s an Low what alternative names you can say for it
47. Ok what’s the weather associated?
48.What’s the weather associated with cold front passing?
49. You mentioned you have done oil-chem tanker what are the discharge criteria for an
oil tanker vessel…
50. You have a Major fire in engine room Engine is melting. Actions
51.Checks on ba sets
52. Is CO2 release only a good option.
53.What else system you have other than CO2.( I was a bit fumbled here he rephrased
me again)
54.What localised system you will have other than co2
55.What do you understand by hi fog mist system and how it react with fire.
56. How many fire pumps you had on your last ship and location
57.Why there is a requirement to have emgcy fire pump outside machinery space
58. Okay the fire is out of control and no one was able to press localised hi fog mist
button and sensors didn’t work what are your options
59. Ok you are near you control panel what things you have
60. You said co2 release and hi fog mist control for localised area in machinery space
what else.
61.What isolation valve you are trying to explain (I was talking about deck isolation
valve unnecessary and got nervous what he wants out of me).
62.Rephrased how u can stop the fire (looking for operating fuel shut off valves for
engine)
63.Where these valves are situated?
64.What is squat and how u can reduce the effect?
Take your time analyse and brief me with whole situation you can see
65.
66. Is your vessel in centre is ground stabilised or sea stabilised
67. Explain why u think its ground stabilised
68.What other vessel is doing
69. How you can say he is overtaking you ( explained more than 112.5)
70.Buoyage ————————————————————————————-
————
71.West Cardinal- your course 180*Actions? Light?
72. Emergency Wreck- Light?
73.Are IALA regions the same across the world? What are the differences between
Region A and Region B?
74.What places are part of region B?
75.Safe water mark buoy
76.Special mark buoy
77.Colreggss——————————————————————-
78. Open sea SV on port side
79.Can you go to port for SV
80.Why you are not going to port for SV. According to which rule quote.. ( was little
shaken down in remembering and quoting rule but stick to stbd side alteration)
81.
82.
83. Green light actions? Why u are not going to port for SV but gone for RAM?
84.
85.What will be your action
86. You see the above lights on 6 points to stbd actions ? (confirmed able to see all lights
or only 1 sidelight he confirmed all above lights)
87.What is points in degrees
88. Yes so what will be your action (she is passing my stern let continue our course and
speed then)
89.
90.Whats the sound signal of pdv making way in RV
91.What is safe speed how u determine?
92.What is RAM
93. You listening fog signals forward of your vessl and nothing is painted on your radar
actions (quoted rule)
94.Still you able to listen what will be your actions (use gain and other settings to adjust
radar and after getting echo takes actions accordingly)
Capt. Alec Keep said it’s been 90 minutes of our exam and Congratulation you
are Passed. Contact MCA for Certification & I will send the email.Capt. Alec
Keep is such a Gem as an Examiner No tricks always encourages and direct you
towards the answer and rephrase when required.
Also to everyone with this Vast Syllabus I have lost my hope days before
attempting my first attempt
But With my TRUST ON LORD MAHADEV and my Family and friends encouraged
me to give an attempt despite worrying about result and it’s a Pass first
Attempt in all my orals and written.
With only 12 months experience being an officer and bagging OOW Unlimited in
2023 I have able to Get my Chief Mate Unlimited Ticket in 2025. There is lots of
hard work and efforts behind the Curtain but the major blessings is from
Mahadev and my family stood and encourage me at every step. Everyone
nothing is IMPOSSIBLE you just need to keep your head down and Grind you
can achieve miracles..
BIG SHOUTOUT to GMA for teaching everything with their Creative and
interactive classes for a month covering every corner of SYALLABUS.
Also CAPT. SAMIR RASUL guiding many seafarers for the success of PASS by
Having a Massive Guidance TELEGRAM GROUP.

[Author]

Posts