🔍 Key Concepts

• Rule 18 – Responsibilities Between Vessels (pecking order of who keeps out of the way of whom) • The priority of vessels: Not Under Command (NUC), Restricted in Ability to Maneuver (RAM), Fishing, Sailing, Power-driven • Difference between a vessel engaged in towing and one that is officially classified as restricted in her ability to maneuver

💭 Think About

• First, place a sailing vessel in the hierarchy from Rule 18, then list which categories are above her (that she must keep clear of). Which one of the options does not clearly belong to those categories? • Think about whether every towing vessel is automatically considered "restricted in her ability to maneuver," or if that depends on the nature of the tow. • Ask yourself: which of these four options is not explicitly named in Rule 18 as something a sailing vessel must keep out of the way of?

✅ Before You Answer

• Verify, in the text of Rule 18(b) – Responsibilities Between Vessels, exactly which vessel types a sailing vessel is required to keep out of the way of. • Check whether "engaged in towing" is listed separately in Rule 18(b), or if it only matters when that tow makes the vessel restricted in her ability to maneuver. • Make sure you can distinguish between the labels: "engaged in fishing", "restricted in her ability to maneuver", and "not under command", all of which are clearly defined in the Navigation Rules.