Huh?? We are operating 26 foot motor equipped sailboats.
Per the Federal guide on equipment for recreational boats:
"Visual Distress Signals (33 CFR 175.101)
Vessels operating on U S coastal waters, the Great Lakes, and territorial seas, as well as those waters connected directly, up to a point where the waterway is less than two nautical miles wide, must be equipped with U S Coast Guard-approved visual distress signals (VDS) Vessels owned in the United States and operating on the high seas must also be equipped with U S Coast Guard-approved visual distress signals.
The following vessels are not required to carry day signals, but must carry night signals when operating from sunset to sunrise:
• Recreational boats less than 16 feet in length [does not apply]
• Boats participating in organized events, such as races, regattas, or marine parades [irrelevant]
• Open sailboats less than 26 feet in length that are not equipped with propulsion machinery [we have motors]
• Manually propelled boats [we have motors and sails]"
So, we are required to carry day signals (26 foot and motorized) - none of the exceptions referenced above apply
And if we operate at night we must also have night signals (there are no exceptions to this).
USCG Vessel safety checklist
http://www.uscg.mil/directives/cim/1600 ... 6796_8.pdf
USCG Federal Requirements
http://www.uscgboating.org/assets/1/wor ... ns/420.PDF
All vessels 16 feet and over, operating on the high seas and the coastal waters of the U.S., as defined by Federal regulations, must be equipped with Coast Guard approved visual distress signals. Between the hours of sunset and sunrise
ALL boats, on both International and Inland Waters, must carry on board a means of distress signaling suitable for night use.
This means that ALL boats over 16 ft are required to carry the below with the exceptions we have both outlined.
The Coast Guard requires that recreational vessels carry three day and three night visual distress signals.
The exceptions to this regulation are powered vessels under 16 feet and open sailing vessels under 26 feet without motors. These two exceptions are required to carry them if operated at night on coastal waters.
During Inspection: Verify that the boat has on board suitable devices in the number and type required for day and night use. Different combinations are acceptable. The type of device determines the number required.
The following are just a few of the many combinations of devices that will meet the requirements:
• 3 hand-held red flares that are approved for day/night use
• 1 hand-held red flare and 2 parachute flares for day/night use
• 1 hand-held orange smoke signal and 2 floating orange smoke
signals for day, and 1 electric distress light for night
*Electric device caveat -
Acceptable for night use only
Automatically flashes the international SOS distress signal
Must be marked with an indication that it meets U S Coast Guard requirements in 46 CFR 161 013
Under Inland Navigation Rules, a high-intensity white light flashing at regular intervals from 50-70 times per minute is considered a distress signal. Such devices, however, do not meet the Visual Distress Signal carriage requirement.
