🔍 Key Concepts

• SOLAS emergency equipment maintenance and testing requirements for survival craft • Typical inspection and testing intervals for EPIRBs (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons) and SARTs (Search and Rescue Transponders) carried in lifeboats • Difference between weekly/monthly shipboard checks vs. annual shore-based service

💭 Think About

• Think about how critical EPIRBs and SARTs are in an actual abandonment situation—would regulations likely require very frequent testing (like weekly) or more periodic, documented checks? • Consider how often other survival craft equipment (like lifeboats and rescue boats) must be inspected on board. Does that pattern seem closer to monthly or quarterly? • Ask yourself whether the same testing interval is applied to both EPIRBs and SARTs assigned to lifeboats, or if one would logically differ from the other.

✅ Before You Answer

• Verify the specific SOLAS/flag-state guidance on on‑board testing intervals for EPIRBs and SARTs (not the battery replacement or shore service interval). • Confirm whether the exam is asking about on-board operational tests only, not annual or 5‑year services. • Check if the required interval matches the standard survival craft inspection schedule used in most SOLAS drills and maintenance routines.