United States Coast Guard
In the United States Coast Guard and United States Coast Guard Auxiliary the coxswain has the authority to direct all boat and crew activities during the mission and modify planned missions to provide for the safety of the boat and the crew. Before a person can be assigned to be a coxswain, they have to go through a qualification procedure, be certified and maintain the certification to be a coxswain. Upon certification, they are awarded the Coxswain Badge. This qualification procedure requires a significant amount of practice in boat handling as well as previous experience as a boat crew member. Any Coast Guard member (enlisted or officer) may become a coxswain upon proper qualification. An advancement to BM2 (Boatswain's Mate second class) requires that the individual qualify as and maintain certification as a coxswain. A commanding officer or officer in charge of a land based unit with boats has to be certified and stay certified as a coxswain on all boats in the unit or be relieved of command. A coxswain is assigned to a boat by the command authority and can only be relieved by the commanding officer, Executive officer, or senior officer present. The coxswain’s authority is independent of rank and/or seniority in relation to any other person on board the boat. Unlike the commanding officer (captain) of a cutter or ship, a coxswain does not automatically have command authority.
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