The Maritime Safety Committee,
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Statutory Documents - IMO Publications and Documents - Resolutions - Maritime Safety Committee - Resolution MSC.163(78) - Performance Standards for Shipborne Simplified Voyage Data Recorders (S-VDRs) - (adopted on 17 May 2004) - The Maritime Safety Committee,

The Maritime Safety Committee,

 RECALLING Article 28(b) of the Convention on the International Maritime Organization concerning the functions of the Committee,

 RECALLING ALSO resolution A.886(21), by which the Assembly resolved that the functions of adopting performance standards for radio and navigational equipment, as well as amendments thereto, shall be performed by the Maritime Safety Committee on behalf of the Organization,

 NOTING that the provisions of regulation V/20 of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, as amended, do not apply to the existing cargo ships with respect to the carriage requirements of voyage data recorders (VDRs),

 RECALLING FURTHER resolution MSC.109(73), by which the Committee decided that a study should be carried out, as a matter of urgency, to assess the feasibility for existing cargo ships to carry VDRs and instructed the Sub-Committee on Safety of Navigation accordingly,

 NOTING ALSO that the report on the feasibility study clearly demonstrates the compelling need for mandatory carriage of a simplified version of VDRs on existing cargo ships,

 HAVING CONSIDERED the recommendation made by the Sub-Committee on Safety of Navigation at its forty-ninth session,

  1. ADOPTS the Recommendation on Performance Standards for Shipborne Simplified Voyage Data Recorders (S-VDRs);

  2. INVITES Governments to encourage shipowners and operators of the existing cargo ships entitled to fly their flag to install S-VDRs on such ships, as soon as possible, especially considering that the carriage of S-VDRs may soon be mandatory under the SOLAS Convention;

  3. RECOMMENDS Governments to ensure that S-VDRs installed on board the existing cargo ships flying their flag conform to performance standards not inferior to those specified in the Annex to this resolution.


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