After the vessel is launched, manoeuvring trials take place as a...

After the vessel is launched, manoeuvring trials take place as a part of the sea trials and help assess the vessel’s manoeuvring ability and performance under different modes of operation. These manoeuvring trials are based on the plausible manoeuvres the ship must undergo during its lifetime under different situations it may encounter.

As per the guidelines for manoeuvring trials from the MSC 76 codes of IMO, all sea-going vessels above 100 metres in length are required to undergo these manoeuvring trials. And irrespective of length, all gas and chemical tankers must undergo them after launching and before delivery to the client.

All planning and high-speed crafts are exempted from the requirements of manoeuvring trials as they have entirely different hydrodynamics of motion. Some common manoeuvring trials are turning circle, zig-zag, spiral, reverse-spiral and full astern stopping tests.