Rib too Rib person transfer

[timboli]

Is there any reccomended way of doing this in biggerseas?transfer was covered in my level 2 in calm water but it strikes me it could be quite hazardous in the rough.
Would tieing the boats together be a bad idea,resulting in a burst or severly damaged tube.
Are there any disadvantages to throwing a line across first attached to the transferee in case of a slip.
I know a lot would be down to individual judgement on the day but I am interested in whether there is any laid down procedure,or reccomendations-how would the RNLI go about it for instance.

[antiqueboy]

not covered on my pb2 course!

[tim griffin]

Not part of the RYA PB2 syllabus .
Is part of the safety boat syllabus

[Gray]

The RNLI use a method that is not meant to be practised very often as is quite dangerous when transfering from Inshore Lifeboat i.e. Inflatable to all weather boats. The larger boat continues in a straight line and the smaller boat puts its nose/side of nose up against the larger boat and holds it there till the transfer is done. It is quite dangerous as the smaller boat can end up in all sorts of trouble. I never had the opportunity to test this but I was told it was not to be practised away from the training centre.

I think its called pacingand I guess if you had the balls to transfer at speed then this would be the way to do it as it would go some way to ensure the two boats remained close together.

I've probably got some of that wrong and if so, someone on here with infinately more wisdom and experience will put it right!

[SDGANDER]

We don't usually do RIB to RIB at work but regular do RIB to anything from 12' to over 120'...

Easiest is to get them to maintain constant speed and course into wind if possible and we come parrallel then close and hold the nose against the other vessel, usually done on the lee side.

Tip is for the helmsman of the vessel receiving not to look as whats going on but concentrate on holding the course and speed.

And the person transferring should wait until the helm of the boat s/he is leaving says to go else you might end up in the water.

SDG.

[Paul F]

Good drill if you can do it.
RN used to train at 20knots+, once alongside if wheel set right you can even let go of the helm as pressure wave and suction keeps you alongside. Be prepare for speed increase as your boat gets sucked in alongside. bit harder on rib to rib as boat can ride up onto tube or go under tube.
Paul

[Ezgoing]

Maybe it is just me but I always thought transfering people between moving boats is a no no.

Much safer to stop the target boat come up alongside and with the tubes alongside one another slide over from one boat to the other., keeping your weight as low as possible.

best fo luck.

rgds

[benc]

I definately agree with being under way while doing the transfer.

I had a fuel system problem (dirt in fuel) a little while ago, and another rib came help me sort the problem, I had stopped my boat though, and then asked the other boat to come alongside so that he could keep me under control while I tried to sort the problem.

Once we'd realised being along side in rough water was a bad Idea, I panicked and untied the bow rope... BIG mistake... that allowed the boats to swing around and my twin engines clunked with a big a*s jet drive! not good! however - oddly, I came off relatively unscathed, a scratch on my gel coat, a scratch on the engine and a popped tube. However, was a completely seperate story with the jet drive My boat clunked the hydrolic ram and bent it

I was thinking about what was said about tying a line around the person first... it would have to be a shortline and tied up close to the bow.. otherwise the person will drag behind the boat, rope get caught in the prop and the person pulled into the prop?

[Paul Glatzel]

Timboli

Indeed what you are referring to is known as pacing. It isn't (or shouldn't) be part of a Level 2 course even at slow speed. Certainly there are times where bringing one vessel alongside another is essential although i would urge strong caution as it can be a very dangerous manouvre, evidence of this is that i understand that practice pacing is not allowed at RNLI stations but is only undertaken with training teams. Equally RYA TCs have received a specific statement to the effect that it is not to be undertaken on courses except SB.

The technique (generally speaking) is for one vessel to hold course & speed whilst the other comes alongside between the bow and stern waves. As it glides alongside then certainly in the case of a RIB the technique is to then steer toward the vessel and increase power to lock the vessels together. To break away decrease power, straighten up and gently steer away taking great care not to be caught by the stern wave (which in effect can be a breaking wave).

Around a moving vessel are high and low pressure areas and in part this is one of the key areas of danger. At the bow there is a high pressure area, ditto in the area of the stern wave however towards the middle of the vessel and the rear there are low pressure areas that can suck a vessel in. There have - as i understand it - been instances of Atlantics being held beam onto the the transom of larger lifeboats having been dragged into the area of the stern.

In short i would suggest that anyone looking to practice this skill does so only with someone who really knows what they are doing as there are real dangers without even considering the issue of two high speed craft in close proximity. A good way to practice is to do it without actually bringing the vessels to touch - holding position slightly back a couple of boat lengths off can be a real challenge.

Paul

[wavelength]

Equally RYA TCs have received a specific statement to the effect that it is not to be undertaken on courses except SB.

because of an accident and injury doing just this. We have done it in the past with Coastguard boat teams and did it on my first trainers course, but never on an update, in a howling wind with horizontal snow on Southampton water alongside a moving Arun. The look on the poor assessors face as he was poised to leave the safety of the Arun for our perfectly positioned rib was a picture in itself. On being asked "what do you want to do now boss" (creep!) his answer from where he was curled up in the bow was simply "to survive". Wouldnt do it now-older and wiser!