PST exit exam questions and answers — Set 6 — Personal Survival Techniques
Set 6 of the Personal Survival Techniques (PST) exit exam bank — 30 of 781 questions, with the correct option marked and a one-line explanation for every one. Read it end to end, jump to a single set, or search it — then sit the same bank as a timed paper. The real DG Shipping exit exam is 30 marks with 15 to pass.
These are the bank's original groupings. Practising deals the whole bank out again every time you reshuffle, so a practice “Set 3” is a different 30 questions each time — the set numbers below are the source file's, and are only used here so the key stays navigable. Options are listed in their original order with fixed letters; when you practise, those move too.
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Set 6 — 30 PST exit exam questions with answers
1. A SART typically uses a lithium primary battery of:
- A. 1.5 Volts
- B. 6 Volts
- C. 12 Volts
- D. 24 Volts
2. What is the minimum number of channels required for a portable 2-way VHF radio used for survival craft?
- A. Channel 70
- B. Channel 12 only
- C. Channel 16
- D. Channels 6, 13, and 16
3. Which channel is designated as the VHF follow-on communication channel and is mandatory in all portable survival craft equipment?
- A. Channel 6
- B. Channel 22
- C. Channel 13
- D. Channel 16
4. GMDSS regulations require that cargo vessels carry two-way VHF for survival craft. How many are required and when did the regulations fully apply?
- A. 1 set per lifeboat station
- B. 5 sets for any container ship
- C. 2 sets for all ships built after 2000
- D. 3 sets; new builds from February 1992, other ships from February 1995
5. Batteries fitted in an EPIRB, SART, etc., are to be changed when:
- A. They look old and dusty
- B. Every 6 months automatically
- C. Only after they drain out completely during an emergency
- D. Battery to be changed as per the expiry date mentioned by the maker
6. If a distress signal is received on board, what should you do?
- A. Try to make contact with the vessel in distress
- B. All of the alternatives together
- C. Contact SAR authorities via the nearest coastal radio station
- D. Post an extra lookout
7. What is the minimum required duration of a buoyant smoke marker?
- A. 1 minute
- B. 2 minutes
- C. 5 minutes
- D. 3 minutes
8. Life jackets should be stored in:
- A. Readily accessible spaces
- B. The steering flat
- C. Sealed boxes requiring tools to open
- D. Under lock and key by the Chief Mate
9. Which one of the listed requirements regarding lifeboat fittings does NOT correspond to present regulations? All lifeboats shall be fitted with:
- A. Lifelines becketed around the outside
- B. continuous bright flame burning bucket around the outside of the lifeboat
- C. An efficient drain valve
- D. rudder and tiller
10. Every lifeboat is required to be launched and maneuvered in water at least once in every:
- A. Three months
- B. Year
- C. Month
- D. Two months
11. After abandoning ship, survivors in a lifeboat must be given:
- A. Double rations of water if they feel hot
- B. Seawater to drink
- C. No water for the first 24 hours
- D. Rations and water immediately
12. Fire-protected lifeboats, when waterborne, should be capable of protecting their full complement when subjected to a continuous oil fire that envelops the boat for a period of not less than:
- A. 5 minutes
- B. 8 minutes
- C. 15 minutes
- D. 20 minutes
13. An enclosed lifeboat is fitted with a self-contained air support system. With the engine running, what is the minimum period of time the air should remain safe and breathable?
- A. 5 minutes
- B. 20 minutes
- C. 10 minutes
- D. 30 minutes
14. The smoke detector panel indicates a fire in a cargo hold loaded with general cargo. What first action should be taken?
- A. Run fire hoses into the hold immediately
- B. Increase the mechanical ventilation speed
- C. Open all hatches to look inside
- D. Close the ventilation system and other openings to the hold in order to choke the fire
15. Lifebuoy self-igniting lights shall be capable of burning continuously for a period of not less than:
- A. 1 hour
- B. 4 hours
- C. 2 hours
- D. 8 hours
16. The centrifugal brake mechanism incorporated in a lifeboat handling winch is intended to:
- A. Stop the boat instantly if a cable snaps
- B. Increase the lifting speed of the winch motor
- C. Automatically control the speed of lowering by gravity
- D. Lock the davit arms in the stowed position
17. If the water is rising in the bilge of a survival craft, you should first:
- A. Use a hand flare to signal for help
- B. Start drilling holes to let water out
- C. Abandon the survival craft
- D. Check the bilge drain plug
18. The maximum speed of lowering for a lifeboat on gravity davits is controlled by the:
- A. Electric winch motor
- B. Governor brake
- C. Hand crank handle
- D. Limit switch
19. The function of the lifeboat davit limit switch is to:
- A. Turn on the lifeboat internal lights
- B. Cut off power to the winch when the lifeboat nears the final stowed position
- C. Stop the boat from lowering too fast into the water
- D. Release the hooks automatically
20. Most lifeboats are equipped with which type of rudder configuration?
- A. Flap rudder
- B. Unbalanced rudder
- C. Semi-balanced rudder
- D. Balanced rudder
21. At what speed and for how long must a fully loaded motor lifeboat operate in calm water?
- A. 5 knots for 6 hours
- B. 6 knots for 24 hours
- C. 10 knots for 48 hours
- D. 4 knots for 12 hours
22. Which item in the lifeboat is considered a regulatory study/instructional material?
- A. Engineering blue print of the ship
- B. Instructions on how to survive on board the craft
- C. Nautical almanac
- D. Solas Consolidated Edition
23. What is the standard minimum length of a lifeboat painter?
- A. 50 meters
- B. 30 meters
- C. 15 meters
- D. 10 meters
24. What is the purpose of the hydrostatic interlock in the keel of an enclosed lifeboat?
- A. It automatically pumps out the bilges
- B. It stabilizes the boat's rolling
- C. It prevents release of the hooks until the keel of the boat is fully under water
- D. It prevents the engine from starting out of the water
25. Steering a motor lifeboat broadside (parallel) to heavy waves and sea could cause it to:
- A. Align smoothly
- B. Capsize
- C. Pitch heavily
- D. Go faster
26. With the water sprinkler system and the air system turned on and all hatches shut, an enclosed survival craft will provide protection from:
- A. Shark attacks
- B. Heavy rain only
- C. External fire and a toxic gas environment
- D. High pressure waves only
27. Which data is NOT painted on the bow of a lifeboat?
- A. Carrying capacity of persons
- B. Dimensions of the boat
- C. Name of the parent vessel
- D. Total weight of the boat with full load
28. Every lifeboat requires to be launched into the water and maneuvered at least once in every:
- A. Three months
- B. Six months
- C. Month
- D. Two months
29. The mandatory distress pyrotechnics required to be kept inside a lifeboat container are:
- A. Rocket parachutes + Line throwers
- B. Sound signals + Strobe lights
- C. Rocket parachutes + Hand flares + Buoyant smoke signals
- D. Red flags and matches
30. When a rescue vessel approaches a lifeboat in heavy seas, the person in charge of the lifeboat should:
- A. Wait for calmer weather or specific instructions before transferring personnel
- B. Immediately order everyone to jump into the sea
- C. Tie the lifeboat directly to the rescue ship's propeller
- D. Turn off the lifeboat engine and abandon helm controls
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