The Commanding Officer

[Title 32 CFR H]
[Code of Federal Regulations (annual edition) - July 1, 2002 Edition]
[Title 32 - NATIONAL DEFENSE]
[Subtitle A - Department of Defense (Continued)]
[Chapter Vi - DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY]
[Subchapter A - UNITED STATES NAVY REGULATIONS AND OFFICIAL RECORDS]
[Part 700 - UNITED STATES NAVY REGULATIONS AND OFFICIAL RECORDS]
[Subpart H - The Commanding Officer]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]

32NATIONAL DEFENSE52002-07-012002-07-01falseThe Commanding OfficerHSubpart HNATIONAL DEFENSEDepartment of Defense (Continued)DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVYUNITED STATES NAVY REGULATIONS AND OFFICIAL RECORDSUNITED STATES NAVY REGULATIONS AND OFFICIAL RECORDS
Subpart H--The Commanding Officer

Commanding Officers in General

Sec. 700.801 Applicability.

In addition to commanding officers, the provisions of this chapter
shall apply, where pertinent, to aircraft commanders, officers in charge
(including warrant officers and petty officers when so detailed) and
those persons standing the command duty.

Sec. 700.802 Responsibility.

(a) The responsibility of the commanding officer for his or her
command is absolute, except when, and to the extent, relieved therefrom
by competent authority, or as provided otherwise in these regulations.
The authority of the commanding officer is commensurate with his or her
responsibility. While the commanding officer may, at his or her
discretion, and when not contrary to law or regulations, delegate
authority to subordinates for the execution of details, such delegation
of authority shall in no way relieve the commanding officer of his or
her continued responsibility for the safety, well-being, and efficiency
of the entire command.

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(b) A commanding officer who departs from his or her orders or
instructions, or takes official action which is not in accordance with
such orders or instructions, does so upon his or her own responsibility
and shall report immediately the circumstances to the officer from whom
the prior orders or instructions were received. Of particular importance
is the commanding officer's duty to take all necessary and appropriate
action in self-defense of the command.
(c) The commanding officer shall be responsible for economy within
his or her command. To this end the commanding officer shall require
from his or her subordinates a rigid compliance with the regulations
governing the receipt, accounting, and expenditure of public money and
materials, and the implementation of improved management techniques and
procedures.
(d) The commanding officer and his or her subordinates shall
exercise leadership through personal example, moral responsibility, and
judicious attention to the welfare of persons under their control or
supervision. Such leadership shall be exercised in order to achieve a
positive, dominant influence on the performance of persons in the
Department of the Navy.

Sec. 700.804 Organization of commands.

All commands and other activities of the Department of the Navy
shall be organized and administered in accordance with law, United
States Navy Regulations, and the orders of competent authority. All
orders and instructions of the commanding officer shall be in accordance
therewith.

Sec. 700.809 Persons found under incriminating circumstances.

(a) The commanding officer shall keep under restraint or
surveillance, as necessary, any person not in the armed services of the
United States who is found under incriminating or irregular
circumstances within the command, and shall immediately initiate an
investigation.
(b) Should an investigation indicate that such person is not a
fugitive from justice or has not committed or attempted to commit an
offense, he shall be released at the earliest opportunity, except:
(1) If not a citizen of the United States, and the place of release
is under the jurisdiction of the United States, the nearest federal
immigration authorities shall be notified as to the time and place of
release sufficiently in advance to permit them to take such steps as
they deem appropriate.
(2) Such persons shall not be released in territory not under the
jurisdiction of the United States without first obtaining the consent of
the proper foreign authorities, except where the investigation shows
that he entered the command from territory of the foreign state, or that
he is a citizen or subject of that state.
(c) If the investigation indicates that such person has committed or
attempted to commit an offense punishable under the authority of the
commanding officer, the latter shall take such action as he deems
necessary.
(d) If the investigation indicates that such a person is a fugitive
from justice, or has committed or attempted to commit an offense which
requires actions beyond the authority of the commanding officer, the
latter shall, at the first opportunity, deliver such person, together
with a statement of the circumstances, to the proper civil authorities.
(e) In all cases under paragraph (d) of this section, a report shall
be made promptly to the Chief of Naval Operations or the Commandant of
the Marine Corps, as appropriate.

Sec. 700.810 Rules for visits.

(a) Commanding officers are responsible for the control of visitors
to their commands and shall comply with the relevant provisions of
Department of the Navy concerning classified information and physical
security.
(b) Commanding officers shall take such measures and impose such
restrictions on visitors as are necessary to safeguard the classified
material under their jurisdiction. Arrangements for general visiting
shall always be made with due regard for physical security and based on
the assumption that foreign agents will be among the visitors.

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(c) Commanding officers and others officially concerned shall
exercise reasonable care to safeguard the persons and property of
visitors to naval activities as well as taking those necessary
precautions to safeguard the persons and property within the command.

Sec. 700.811 Dealers, tradesmen, and agents.

(a) In general, dealers or tradesmen or their agents shall not be
admitted within a command, except as authorized by the commanding
officer:
(1) To conduct public business;
(2) To transact specific private business with individuals at the
request of the latter; or
(3) To furnish services and supplies which are necessary and are not
otherwise, or are insufficiently, available to the personnel of the
command.
(b) Personal commercial solicitation and the conduct of commercial
transactions are governed by policies of the Department of Defense.

Sec. 700.812 Postal matters.

Commanding officers shall ensure that mail and postal funds are
administered in accordance with instructions issued by the Postmaster
General and approved for the naval service by the Chief of Naval
Operations, and instructions issued by the Chief of Naval Operations,
the Chief of Naval Personnel, or the Commandant of the Marine Corps, as
appropriate; and that postal clerks or other persons authorized to
handle mail perform their duties strictly in accordance with those
instructions.

Sec. 700.815 Deaths.

The commanding officer, in the event of the death of any person
within his or her command, shall ensure that the cause of death and the
circumstances under which death occurred are established, that the
provisions of the Manual of the Judge Advocate General are adhered to in
documenting the cause and circumstances, and that the appropriate
casualty report is submitted.

Sec. 700.816 The American National Red Cross.

(a) Pursuant to the request of the Secretary of the Navy, and
subject to such instructions as the Secretary may issue, the American
National Red Cross is authorized to conduct a program of welfare,
including social, financial, medical and dental aid, for naval
personnel; to assist in matters pertaining to prisoners of war; and to
provide such other services as are appropriate functions for the Red
Cross. The American National Red Cross is the only volunteer society
authorized by the Government to render medical and dental aid to the
armed forces of the United States. Other organizations desiring to
render medical and dental aid may do so only through the Red Cross.
(b) Requests for Red Cross services shall be made to the Chief of
Naval Personnel or the Commandant of the Marine Corps or, in the case of
medical services, to the Commander, Naval Medical Command.
(c) Activities and personnel of the American National Red Cross in
areas subject to naval jurisdiction shall conform to such administrative
regulations as may be prescribed by appropriate naval authority.
(d) Red Cross personnel shall be considered to have the status of
commissioned officers, subject to such restrictions as may be imposed by
the Chief of Naval Personnel or the Commandant of the Marine Corps.

Sec. 700.819 Records.

The commanding officer shall require that records relative to
personnel, material and operations, as required by current instructions,
are maintained properly by those responsible therefor.

Sec. 700.822 Delivery of personnel to civil authorities and service of subpoena or other process.

(a) Commanding officers or other persons in authority shall not
deliver any person in the naval service to civil authorities except as
provided by the Manual of the Judge Advocate General.
(b) Commanding officers are authorized to permit the service of
subpoenas or other process as provided by the Manual of the Judge
Advocate General.

Sec. 700.826 Physical security.

(a) The commanding officer shall take appropriate action to
safeguard

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personnel, to prevent unauthorized access to installations, equipment,
materials and documents, and to safeguard them against acts of sabotage,
damage, theft, or terrorism.
(b) The commanding officer shall take action to protect and maintain
the security of the command against dangers from fire, windstorms, or
other acts of nature.

Sec. 700.827 Effectiveness for service.

The commanding officer shall:
(a) Exert every effort to maintain the command in a state of maximum
effectiveness for war or other service consistent with the degree of
readiness as may be prescribed by proper authority. Effectiveness for
service is directly related to the state of personnel and material
readiness; and
(b) Make him or herself aware of the progress of any repairs, the
status of spares, repair parts and other components, personnel readiness
and other factors or conditions that could lessen the effectiveness of
his or her command. When the effectiveness is lessened appreciably, that
fact shall be reported to appropriate superiors.

Sec. 700.828 Search by foreign authorities.

(a) The commanding officer shall not permit a ship under his or her
command to be searched on any pretense whatsoever by any person
representing a foreign state, nor permit any of the personnel within the
confines of his or her command to be removed from the command by such
person, so long as he has the capacity to repel such act. If force
should be exerted to compel submission, the commanding officer is to
resist that force to the utmost of his or her power.
(b) Except as may be provided by international agreement, the
commanding officer of a shore activity shall not permit his or her
command to be searched by any person representing a foreign state, nor
permit any of the personnel within the confines of his or her command to
be removed from the command by such person, so long as he or she has the
power to resist.

Sec. 700.832 Environmental pollution.

The commanding officer shall cooperate with Federal, state and local
governmental authorities in the prevention, control and abatement of
environmental pollution. If the requirements of any environmental law
cannot be achieved because of operational considerations, insufficient
resources or other reason, the commanding officer shall report to the
immediate superior in the chain of command. The commanding officer shall
be aware of existing policies regarding pollution control, and should
recommend remedial measures when appropriate.

Sec. 700.834 Care of ships, aircraft, vehicles and their equipment.

The commanding officer shall cause such inspections and tests to be
made and procedures carried out as are prescribed by competent
authority, together with such others as he or she deems necessary, to
ensure the proper preservation, repair, maintenance and operation of any
ship, aircraft, vehicle, and their equipment assigned to his or her
command.

Sec. 700.835 Work, facilities, supplies, or services for other Government departments, State or local governments, foreign governments, private parties and
morale, welfare, and recreational activities.

(a) Work may be done for or on facilities, supplies, or services
furnished to departments and agencies of the Federal and State
governments, local governments, foreign governments, private parties,
and morale, welfare, and recreational activities with the approval of a
commanding officer provided:
(1) The cost does not exceed limitations the Secretary of the Navy
may approve or specify; and
(2) In the case of private parties, it is in the interest of the
government to do so and there is no issue of competition with private
industry; and
(3) In the case of foreign governments, a disqualification of a
government has not been issued for the benefits of this article.
(b) Work shall not be started nor facilities, supplies, or services
furnished

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morale, welfare, and recreational activities not classified as
instrumentalities of the United States, or state or local governments or
private parties, until funds to cover the estimated cost have been
deposited with the commanding officer or unless otherwise provided by
law.
(c) Work shall not be started, nor facilities, supplies, or services
furnished other Federal Government departments and agencies, or expenses
charged to non-appropriated funds of morale, welfare and recreational
activities classified as instrumentalities of the United States, until
reimbursable funding arrangements have been made.
(d) Work, facilities, supplies, or services furnished non-
appropriated fund activities classified as instrumentalities of the
United States in the Navy Comptroller Manual shall be funded in
accordance with regulations of the Comptroller of the Navy.
(e) Supplies or services may be furnished to naval vessels and
military aircraft of friendly foreign governments (unless otherwise
provided by law or international treaty or agreement):
(1) On a reimbursable basis without an advancement of funds, when in
the best interest of the United States:
(i) Routine port services (including pilotage, tugs, garbage
removal, linehandling and utilities) in territorial waters or waters
under United States control.
(ii) Routine airport services (including air traffic control,
parking, servicing and use of runways).
(iii) Miscellaneous supplies (including fuel, provisions, spare
parts, and general stores) but not ammunition. Supplies are subject to
approval of the cognizant fleet or force commanders when provided
overseas.
(iv) With approval of Chief of Naval Operations in each instance,
overhauls, repairs, and alterations together with necessary equipment
and its installation required in connection therewith, to vessels and
military aircraft.
(2) Routine port and airport services may be furnished at no cost to
the foreign government concerned where such services are provided by
persons of the naval service without direct cost to the Department of
the Navy.
(f) In cases of emergency involving possible loss of life or
valuable property, work may be started or facilities furnished prior to
authorization, or provision for payment, but in all such cases a
detailed report of the facts and circumstances shall be made promptly to
the Secretary of the Navy or the appropriate authority.
(g) Charges and accounting for any work, supplies, or services shall
be as prescribed in the Navy Comptroller Manual.

Commanding Officers Afloat

Sec. 700.840 Unauthorized persons on board.

The commanding officer shall satisfy him or herself that there is no
unauthorized person on board before proceeding to sea or commencing a
flight.

Sec. 700.841 Control of passengers.

(a) Control of passage in and protracted visits to aircraft and
ships of the Navy by all persons, within or without the Department of
the Navy, shall be exercised by the Chief of Naval Operations.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as prohibiting the
senior officer present from authorizing the passage in ships and
aircraft of the Navy by such persons as he or she judges necessary in
the public interest or in the interest of humanity. The senior officer
present shall report the circumstances to the Chief of Naval Operations
when he or she gives such authorization.

Sec. 700.842 Authority over passengers.

Except as otherwise provided in these regulations or in orders from
competent authority, all passengers in a ship or aircraft of the naval
service are subject to the authority of the commanding officer and shall
conform to the internal regulations and routine of the ship or aircraft.
The commanding officer of such ship or aircraft shall take no
disciplinary action against a passenger not in the naval service, other
than that authorized by law. The commanding officer may, when he or

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she deems such an action to be necessary for the safety of the ship or
aircraft or of any persons embarked, subject a passenger not in the
naval service to such restraint as the circumstances require until such
time as delivery to the proper authorities is possible. A report of the
matter shall be made to an appropriate superior of the passenger.

Sec. 700.844 Marriages on board.

The commanding officer shall not perform a marriage ceremony on
board his or her ship or aircraft. He or she shall not permit a marriage
ceremony to be performed on board when the ship or aircraft is outside
the territory of the United States, except:
(a) In accordance with local laws and the laws of the state,
territory, or district in which the parties are domiciled, and
(b) In the presence of a diplomatic or consular official of the
United States, who has consented to issue the certificates and make the
returns required by the consular regulations.

Sec. 700.845 Maintenance of logs.

(a) A deck log and an engineering log shall be maintained by each
ship in commission, and by such other ships and craft as may be
designated by the Chief of Naval Operations.
(b) A compass record shall be maintained as an adjunct to the deck
log. An engineer's bell book shall be maintained as an adjunct to the
engineering log.
(c) The Chief of Naval Operations shall prescribe regulations
governing the contents and preparation of the deck and engineering logs
and adjunct records.
(d) In the case of a ship or craft equipped with automated data
logging equipment, the records generated by such equipment satisfy the
requirements of this section.

Sec. 700.846 Status of logs.

The deck log, the engineering log, the compass record, the bearing
hooks, the engineer's bell book, and any records generated by automated
data logging equipment shall each constitute an official record of the
command.

Sec. 700.847 Responsibility of a master of an in-service ship of the Military Sealift Command.

(a) In an in-service ship of the Military Sealift Command, the
master's responsibility is absolute, except when, and to the extent,
relieved therefrom by competent authority. The authority of the master
is commensurate with the master's responsibility. The master is
responsible for the safety of the ship and all persons on board. He or
she is responsible for the safe navigation and technical operation of
the ship and has paramount authority over all persons on board. He or
she is responsible for the preparation of the abandon ship bill and has
exclusive authority to order the ship abandoned. The master may, using
discretion, and when not contrary to law or regulation, delegate
authority for operation of shipboard functions to competent
subordinates. However, such delegation of authority shall in no way
relieve the master of continued responsibility for the safety, well-
being, and efficiency of the ship.
(b) All orders and instructions of the master shall be in accordance
with appropriate laws of the United States, and all applicable orders
and regulations of the Navy, Military Sealift Command, and the Office of
Personnel Management. A master who departs from the orders or
instructions of competent authority or takes official action contrary to
such orders or instructions, shall report immediately the circumstances
to the authority from whom the prior orders or instructions were
received.

Sec. 700.848 Relations with merchant seamen.

When in foreign waters, the commanding officer, with the approval of
the senior officer present, may receive on board as supernumeraries for
rations and passage:
(a) Distressed seamen of the United States for passage to the United
States, provided they bind themselves to be amenable in all respects to
Navy Regulations.
(b) As prisoners, seamen from merchant vessels of the United States,
provided that the witnesses necessary to substantiate the charges
against them

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are received, or adequate means adopted to ensure the presence of such
witnesses on arrival of the prisoners at the place where they are to be
delivered to the civil authorities.

Sec. 700.855 Status of boats.

(a) Boats shall be regarded in all matters concerning the rights,
privileges and comity of nations as part of the ship or aircraft to
which they belong.
(b) In ports where war, insurrection or armed conflict exists or
threatens, the commanding officer shall:
(1) Require that boats away from the ship or aircraft have some
appropriate and competent person in charge; and
(2) See that steps are taken to make their nationality evident at
all times.

Sec. 700.856 Pilotage.

(a) The commanding officer shall:
(1) Pilot the ship under all ordinary circumstances, but he may
employ pilots whenever, in his or her judgment such employment is
prudent;
(2) Not call a pilot on board until the ship is ready to proceed;
(3) Not retain a pilot on board after the ship has reached her
destination or a point where the pilot is no longer required;
(4) Give preference to licensed pilots; and
(5) Pay pilots no more than the local rates.
(b) A pilot is merely an adviser to the commanding officer. The
presence on board of a pilot shall not relieve the commanding officer or
any subordinate from his or her responsibility for the proper
performance of the duties with which he or she may be charged concerning
the navigation and handling of the ship. For an exception to the
provisions of this paragraph, see ``Rules and Regulations Covering
Navigation of the Panama Canal and Adjacent Waters,'' (35 CFR Chapter I,
subchapter C) which directs that the pilot assigned to a vessel in those
waters shall have control of the navigation and movement of the vessel.
Also see the provisions of these regulations concerning the navigation
of ships at a naval shipyard or station, or in entering or leaving
drydock.

Sec. 700.857 Safe navigation and regulations governing operation of ships and aircraft.

(a) The commanding officer is responsible for the safe navigation of
his or her ship or aircraft, except as prescribed otherwise in these
regulations for ships at a naval shipyard or station, in drydock, or in
the Panama Canal. During an armed conflict, an exercise simulating armed
conflict, or an authorized law enforcement activity, competent authority
may modify the use of lights or other safeguards against collision.
Except in time of actual armed conflict, such modifications will be
authorized only when ships or aircraft clearly will not be hazarded.
(b) Professional standards and regulations governing shiphandling,
safe navigation, safe anchoring and related operational matters shall be
promulgated by the Chief of Naval Operations.
(c) Professional standards and regulations governing the operation
of naval aircraft and related matters shall be promulgated by the Chief
of Naval Operations or the Commandant of the Marine Corps, as
appropriate.
(d) The Commanding Officer is responsible for ensuring that weather
and oceanic effects are considered in the effective and safe operation
of his or her ship or aircraft.

Sec. 700.859 Quarantine.

(a) The commanding officer or aircraft commander of a ship or
aircraft shall comply with all quarantine regulations and restrictions,
United States or foreign, for the port or area within which the ship or
aircraft is located.
(b) The commanding officer shall give all information required by
authorized foreign officials, insofar as permitted by military security,
and will meet the quarantine requirements promulgated by proper
authority for United States or foreign ports. However, nothing in this
section shall be interpreted as authorizing commanding officers to
permit on board inspections by foreign officials, or to modify in any
manner the provisions of Sec. 700.828 of these regulations.
(c) The commanding officer shall allow no intercourse with a port or
area or with other ships or aircraft

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until after consultation with local health authorities when:
(1) Doubt exists as to the sanitary regulations or health conditions
of the port or area;
(2) A quarantine condition exists aboard the ship or aircraft;
(3) Coming from a suspected port or area, or one actually under
quarantine.
(d) No concealment shall be made of any circumstance that may
subject a ship or aircraft of the Navy to quarantine.
(e) Should there appear at any time on board a ship or aircraft
conditions which present a hazard of introduction of a communicable
disease outside the ship or aircraft, the commanding officer or aircraft
commander shall at once report the fact to the senior officer present,
to other appropriate higher authorities and, if in port, to the health
authorities having quarantine jurisdiction. The commanding officer or
aircraft commander shall prevent all contracts likely to spread disease
until pratique is received. The commanding officer of a ship in port
shall hoist the appropriate signal.

Sec. 700.860 Customs and immigration inspections.

(a) The commanding officer or aircraft commander shall facilitate
any proper examination which it may be the duty of a customs officer or
immigration officer of the United States to make on board the ship or
aircraft. The commanding officer or air craft commander shall not permit
a foreign customs officer or an immigration officer to make any
examination whatsoever, except as hereinafter provided, on board the
ship, aircraft or boats under his or her command.
(b) When a ship or aircraft of the Navy or a public vessel manned by
naval personnel and operating under the direction of the Department of
the Navy is carrying cargo for private commercial account, such cargo
shall be subject to the local customs regulations of the port, domestic
or foreign, in which the ship or aircraft may be, and in all matters
relating to such cargo, the procedure prescribed for private merchant
vessels and aircraft shall be followed. Government-owned stores or cargo
in such ship or aircraft not landed nor intended to be landed nor in any
manner trafficked in, are, by the established precedent of international
courtesy, exempt from customs duties, but a declaration of such stores
or cargo, when required by local customs regulations, shall be made.
Commanding officers shall prevent, as far as possible, disputes with the
local authorities in such cases, but shall protect the ship or aircraft
and the Government-owned stores and cargo from any search or seizure.
(c) Upon arrival from a foreign country, at the first port of entry
in United States territory, the commanding officer, or the senior
officer of ships or aircraft in company, shall notify the collector of
the port. Each individual aboard shall, in accordance with customs
regulations, submit a list of articles purchased or otherwise acquired
by him abroad. Dutiable articles shall not be landed until the customs
officer has completed his inspection.
(d) Commanding officers of naval vessels and aircraft transporting
United States civilian and foreign military and civilian passengers
shall satisfy themselves that the passenger clearance requirements of
the Immigration and Naturalization Service are complied with upon
arrival at points within the jurisdiction of the United States.
Clearance for such passengers by an immigration officer is necessary
upon arrival from foreign ports and at the completion of movements
between any of the following: Continental United States (including
Alaska and Hawaii), the Canal Zone, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam,
American Samoa, or other outlying places subject to United States
jurisdiction. Commanding officers, prior to arriving, shall advise the
cognizant naval or civilian port authority of the aforementioned
passengers aboard and shall detain them for clearance as required by the
Immigration and Naturalization Service.
(e) The provisions of this section shall not be construed to require
delaying the movements of any ship or aircraft of the Navy in the
performance of her assigned duty.

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Special Circumstances/Ships in Naval Stations and Shipyards

Sec. 700.871 Responsibility for safety of ships and craft at a naval station or shipyard.

(a) The commanding officer of a naval station or shipyard shall be
responsible for the care and safety of all ships and craft at such
station or shipyard not under a commanding officer or assigned to
another authority, and for any damage that may be done by or to them. In
addition, the commanding officer of a naval station or shipyard shall be
responsible for the safe execution of work performed by that activity
upon any ship located at the activity.
(b) It shall be the responsibility of the commanding officer of a
ship in commission which is undergoing overhaul, or which is otherwise
immobilized at a naval station or shipyard, to request such services as
are necessary to ensure the safety of the ship. The commanding officer
of the naval station or shipyard shall be responsible for providing
requested services in a timely and adequate manner.
(c) When a ship or craft not under her own power is being moved by
direction of the commanding officer of a naval station or shipyard, that
officer shall be responsible for any damage that may result therefrom.
The pilot or other person designated for the purpose shall be in direct
charge of such movement, and all persons on board shall cooperate with
and assist the pilot as necessary. Responsibility for such actions in a
private shipyard will be assigned by contract to the contractor.
(d) When a ship operating under her own power is being drydocked,
the commanding officer shall be fully responsible for the safety of his
ship until the extremity of the ship first to enter the drydock reaches
the dock sill and the ship is pointed fair for entering the drydock. The
docking officer shall then take charge and complete the docking,
remaining in charge until the ship has been properly landed, bilge
blocks hauled, and the dock pumped down. In undocking, the docking
officer shall assume charge when flooding the dock preparatory to
undocking is started, and shall remain in charge until the extremity of
the ship last to leave the dock clears the sill, and the ship is pointed
fair for leaving the drydock, when the ship's commanding officer shall
assume responsibility for the safety and control of the ship.
(e) When a naval ship is to be drydocked in a private shipyard under
a contract being administered by a supervisor of shipbuilding, the
responsibilities of the commanding officer are the same as in the case
of drydocking in a naval shipyard. The responsibilities for the safety
of the actual drydocking, normally assigned to the commanding officer of
a naval shipyard through the docking officer, will be assigned by
contract to the contractor. The supervisor of shipbuilding is
responsible, however, for ensuring that the contractor facilities,
methods, operations, and qualifications meet the standards of efficiency
and safety prescribed by Navy directives.
(f) If the ship is elsewhere than at a naval station or shipyard,
the relationship between the commanding officer and the supervisor of
shipbuilding, or other appropriate official, shall be the same as that
between the commanding officer and the commanding officer of a naval
station or naval shipyard as specified in this article.

Sec. 700.872 Ships and craft in drydock.

(a) The commanding officer of a ship in drydock shall be responsible
for effecting adequate closure, during such periods as they will be
unattended, of all openings in the ship's bottom upon which no work is
being undertaken by the docking activity. The commanding officer of the
docking activity shall be responsible for the closing, at the end of
working hours, of all valves and other openings in the ship's bottom
upon which work is being undertaken by the docking activity, when such
closing is practicable.
(b) Prior to undocking, the commanding officer of a ship shall
report to the docking officer any material changes in the amount and
location of weights on board which have been made by the ship's force
while in dock, and shall ensure, and so report, that all sea valves and
other openings in the ship's bottom are properly closed. The level of
water in the dock shall not be

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permitted to rise above the keel blocks prior to receipt of this report.
The above valves and openings shall be tended during flooding of the
dock.
(c) When a ship or craft, not in commission, is in a naval drydock,
the provisions of this article shall apply, except that the commanding
officer of the docking activity or his representative shall act in the
capacity of the commanding officer of the ship or craft.
(d) When a naval ship or craft is in drydock in a private shipyard,
responsibility for actions normally assigned by the commanding officer
of the docking activity will be assigned by contract to the contractor.

Sec. 700.873 Inspection incident to commissioning of ships.

When a ship is to be commissioned, the authority designated to place
such ship in commission shall, just prior to commissioning, cause an
inspection to be made to determine the cleanliness and readiness of the
ship to receive its crew and outfit. In the case of the delivery of a
ship by a contractor, the above inspection shall precede acceptance of
the ship. A copy of the report of this inspection shall be furnished the
officer detailed to command the ship and to appropriate commands.

Special Circumstances/Prospective Commanding Officers

Sec. 700.880 Duties of the prospective commanding officer of a ship.

(a) Except as may be prescribed by the Chief of Naval Operations,
the prospective commanding officer of a ship not yet commissioned shall
have no independent authority over the preparation of the ship for
service by virtue of his assignment to such duty, until the ship is
commissioned and placed under his or her command. The prospective
commanding officer shall:
(1) Procure from the commander of the naval shipyard or the
supervisor of shipbuilding the general arrangement plans of the ship,
and all pertinent information relative to the general condition of the
ship and the work being undertaken on the hull, machinery and equipment,
upon reporting for duty;
(2) Inspect the ship as soon after reporting for duty as
practicable, and frequently thereafter, in order to keep him or herself
informed of the state of her preparation for service. If, during the
course of these inspections he or she notes an unsafe or potentially
unsafe condition, he or she shall report such fact to the commander of
the naval shipyard or the supervisor of shipbuilding and to his or her
superior for resolution;
(3) Keep him or herself informed as to the progress of the work
being done, including tests of equipment, and make such recommendations
to the commander of the naval shipyard or the supervisor of shipbuilding
as he or her she deems appropriate;
(4) Ensure that requisitions are submitted for articles to outfit
the ship which are not otherwise being provided;
(5) Prepare the organization of the ship;
(6) Train the nucleus crew to effectively and efficiently take
charge of and operate the ship upon commissioning; and
(7) Make such reports as may be required by higher authority, and
include therein a statement of any deficiency in material or personnel.
(b) If the prospective commanding officer does not consider the ship
in proper condition to be commissioned at the time the commander of the
naval shipyard or the supervisor of shipbuilding signifies his intention
of transferring the ship to the prospective commanding officer, he or
she shall report that conclusion with his reasons therefor, in writing,
to the commander of the naval shipyard or the supervisor of shipbuilding
and to the appropriate higher authority.
(c) If the ship is elsewhere than at a naval shipyard, the
relationship between the prospective commanding officer and the
supervisor of shipbuilding, or other appropriate official, shall be the
same as that between the prospective commanding officer and the
commander of a naval shipyard as specified in this article.
(d) The Chief of Naval Operations shall be responsible for providing
the commanding officer or prospective commanding officer of a naval
nuclear

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powered ship with the authority and direction necessary to carry out his
or her responsibilities.