USCG Able Seafarer (AB)
198 questions for the Coast Guard Able Seafarer rating: nautical terms, running lights, passing and fog signals, helm orders, pollution rules, and lifesaving and fire duties.
- Questions in this course
- 198
- The mock test
- 100 questions in 2 parts — Navigation General and Rules of the Road: 50 questions, 35 to pass; Deck General and Safety: 50 questions, 35 to pass.
- Written from
- Titles 33 and 46, Code of Federal Regulations
This course is for anyone who prepares for the U.S. Coast Guard Able Seafarer (AB) rating. It follows the exam subjects in 46 CFR 12.405: nautical terms, the compass, running lights, passing, fog and distress signals, helm orders and bridge to engine room communication, pollution rules and discharge procedures, and lifesaving and fire duties.
The mock test follows the real exam: two written modules of 50 questions, each passed at 70 percent (35 correct), with 3.5 hours for each. Q450 covers Navigation General and the Rules of the Road; Q451 covers Deck General and Safety. The numbers come from the National Maritime Center's exam guide MCP-MA-NMC2-08(01), not from 46 CFR 12, which states none. You show knots, bends, splices and hitches by making them for the examiner, so this course does not test them.
You take the real exam at a Coast Guard Regional Exam Center or through an approved course.
This course drills 198 questions. Every one is written from Title 33 or Title 46 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and names the section that proves its answer.
Official links
- 46 CFR 12.405 — Able Seafarer examination — The subjects of the AB exam
- 33 CFR Part 83 — Inland Navigation Rules — Lights, passing and fog signals
- 33 CFR Part 151 — oil and garbage pollution — Discharge rules and record books
Questions
Common questions
Is there an official test, and how is the mock test scored?
The official format, from the National Maritime Center exam guide MCP-MA-NMC2-08(01): two modules of 50 questions, each passed at 70 percent (35 correct), 3.5 hours for each. Q450 is Navigation General and Rules of the Road; Q451 is Deck General and Safety. Knots and splices (AB02) are shown to an examiner and are not tested here. 100 questions in 2 parts — Navigation General and Rules of the Road: 50 questions, 35 to pass; Deck General and Safety: 50 questions, 35 to pass.
Where do the questions in this course come from?
Every question is written from Titles 33 and 46, Code of Federal Regulations, and names the passage or section that proves its answer.
Where do I take a boating, captain or rating exam?
You take the real exam at a Coast Guard Regional Exam Center or through an approved course.
Is this course free?
Part of every course is free: a slice of every topic and one short practice test a day. Full access is $5 a month for one course, or $20 a month for every course on the site.