Focused inspection campaign – Vessel adventure rides and experiences

Domestic commercial vessels operating as adventure rides and experiences often conduct operations that involve intentional high speeds, vertical or horizontal accelerations, have aerial equipment attached or are used in other higher risk situations.

Careful consideration must be paid to vessel design, operation and crew competencies to address the unique risks associated with these operations. This ensures the safety of everyone on board.

From October 2023 – March 2024 marine inspectors throughout the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia will be focusing their inspection efforts on vessel adventure rides and experiences in the lead-up to the busy summer holiday period.

Specifically, marine inspectors will look for:

Evidence of appropriate crew and skill levels
Evidence of induction and training records appropriate to the operation
Evidence of a risk assessment to identify high speed and safety limitations
Written procedures for the management of emergent situations
Ready availability of lifejackets in an emergency and appropriately stored and secured safety equipment
Observations that the vessel is fit for purpose and designed for adventurous type activities

AMSA has investigated very serious and serious incidents involving vessels operating as adventure rides and experiences in recent years and frequently receives reports of unsafe operations.

Safety guidelines for marine adventure tourism operators are available to help domestic commercial marine adventure tourism operators develop their safety management systems (SMS)

Expect to be inspected.

Inspection process

Marine inspectors will undertake this FIC in conjunction with regular DCV inspections.

Where a marine inspector finds a deficiency in relation to the checklist below, they will discuss this with the person in charge of the DCV with a view to ensuring the vessel is brought into compliance.

Outcome of the FIC

The results of the FIC will be analysed, and a report prepared. This report will be published on the AMSA website.

Inspection checklist

Below is a sample of the checklist that marine inspectors will be using for this FIC between October 2023 – March 2024.

FIC Checklist
Name of Vessel:			UVI:	Class of Vessel:
Date of inspection:			Port inspected:

No.	Question	Yes	No	NA
All answers need to satisfy current operations, otherwise the answer is N
1	Is the vessel certified for the current operation and fit for purpose?
2	Does the vessel carry safety equipment which is placed according to the requirement of NSCV?
3	Does the vessel have appropriate crewing?
4	Are the records of crew/operator onboard induction, familiarization, and training current?
5	Has the operator developed a risk assessment of the operation of the vessel, has it been carried out, documented and up to date?
6	Has the operator addressed the risks associated with potential projectiles: Securing of items in spaces normally occupied by persons?
7	Are safety inductions about relevant operational (including adventure activities) and emergency procedures, effectively given out to the passengers?