[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 46, Volume 7]
[Revised as of October 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 46CFR176.660]

[Page 217-218]
 
                           TITLE 46--SHIPPING
 
   CHAPTER I--COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED)
 
PART 176_INSPECTION AND CERTIFICATION--Table of Contents
 
                Subpart F_Hull and Tailshaft Examinations
 
Sec. 176.660  Continued participation in the Alternative Hull Examination 
(AHE) Program.

    (a) To continue to participate in the AHE Program, vessel operators 
must conduct an annual hull condition assessment. At a minimum, vessel 
operators must conduct an internal examination and take random hull 
gaugings internally during the hull condition assessment, unless waived 
by the Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI). If the annual hull 
assessment reveals significant damage or corrosion, where temporary 
repairs have been made, or where other critical areas of concern have 
been identified, the OCMI may require an expanded examination to include 
an underwater hull examination using divers. If an underwater 
examination is required, the examination must focus on areas at higher 
risk of damage or corrosion and must include a representative sampling 
of hull gaugings.
    (b) If an underwater survey is required for the annual hull 
condition assessment, the OCMI may require the presence of a third party 
examiner and a written hull examination report must be submitted to the 
OCMI. This report must include thickness gauging results, a copy of the 
audio and video recordings and any other information that will help the 
OCMI evaluate your vessel for continued participation in the AHE 
program. The third party examiner must sign the report and confirm the 
validity of its contents.
    (c) You must submit your preventive maintenance reports or 
checklists on an annual basis to the OCMI. These reports or checklists 
must conform to the plans you submitted in your application under Sec. 
176.630 of this part, which the OCMI approved.
    (d) Prior to each scheduled annual hull condition assessment--
    (1) The owner may submit to the OCMI a plan for conducting the 
assessment, or a request for a waiver of this

[[Page 218]]

requirement, no fewer than 30 days before the scheduled assessment; and
    (2) The OCMI may reduce the scope or extend the interval of the 
assessment if the operational, casualty, and deficiency history of the 
vessel, along with a recommendation of the vessel's master, indicates 
that it is warranted.

[USCG-2000-6858, 67 FR 21086, Apr. 29, 2002, as amended at 69 FR 47384, 
Aug. 5, 2004]