Following many requests from the superyacht charter industry, we have launched a new basic PW course for guests using PWs during their charter holiday the Introduction to Personal Watercraft Safety course.
Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be issued with a certificate valid only for the duration of the charter, and only whilst being supervised by the crew/PW instructor on board the yacht.
In order to offer this training, the captain of the superyacht will need to train as (or employ) an RYA PW Instructor, apply for RYA recognition and undergo an inspection visit in the usual way.
When devising this new course, we consulted with the Professional Yachtsmen's Association (PYA) and the superyacht charter industry.
Captain Peter Evans, President of the PYA:
"The PYA is pleased that the recent discussions with the RYA have led so quickly to the introduction of this new PW training scheme tailored to the needs of the superyacht industry. We expect that this scheme will be taken up by many of the larger yachts and we hope that it will bring about a significant improvement in the levels of skill and safety awareness of occasional PW users. We look forward to co-operating with the RYA in other areas of mutual interest as and when the opportunity arises."
Existing PW training
This new course will not affect existing recognised PW training centres and will not change the delivery of the existing PW proficiency course. However, PW instructors need to be aware of it and able to deliver the basic course on board a superyacht if requested. Therefore PW trainers need to include guidance on how to teach the course when they are training new instructors.
In the links above are Guidance Notes for instructors and training centres, which include the course syllabus.
PW Instructors need to be familiar with the course as potentially you could be asked to provide training for a superyacht. If you wish to be approached you need to ensure you are on our available for work list so that we can forward your contact details to any interested superyacht.
We believe there will be a significant uptake for this course which will result in an increased demand for instructor training, from which you may benefit.
If you have any queries about this course, or are an instructor wishing to be added to our 'available for work list' please email us using the link above.