Home / American Sailing
American Sailing Courses in Australia
American Sailing certifications are far less widespread in Australia than Australian Sailing or RYA courses. The full catalogue runs from ASA 101 to ASA 108 with a set of endorsements alongside — but the list of certifications that exist and the list you can actually sit at an Australian school are very different lengths.
Exists, versus available here
A scheme can publish a certificate without a single school in the country teaching it. Booking a flight to sit ASA 104 is a legitimate choice; discovering the gap after you have planned a pathway around it is not. Our research currently finds ASA 101, ASA 103, ASA 118 advertised in Australia, with further ASA training packages listed in school catalogues. Everything else in the table below exists as a certification but should be treated as unavailable locally until a school confirms otherwise.
| Certification | Covers | Australian availability |
|---|---|---|
| ASA 101 Keelboat 1 | Introductory keelboat sailing | Advertised here |
| ASA 102 Keelboat 2 | Building on ASA 101 | Not currently found |
| ASA 103 Coastal Cruising | Auxiliary-powered cruising boats | Advertised here |
| ASA 104 Bareboat Cruising | The charter-focused certificate | Not currently found |
| ASA 105 Coastal Navigation | Shorebased navigation | Not currently found |
| ASA 106 Advanced Coastal Cruising | Extended coastal passages | Not currently found |
| ASA 107 Celestial Navigation | Sights and sight reduction | Not currently found |
| ASA 108 Offshore Passagemaking | The offshore endpoint | Not currently found |
| ASA 110 Basic Small Boat Sailing | Dinghies and small craft | Not currently found |
| ASA 114 Cruising Catamaran | Multihull handling | Not currently found |
| ASA 116 Dinghy and Outboard Endorsement | Tender handling | Not currently found |
| ASA 117 Basic Celestial Endorsement | Endorsement | Not currently found |
| ASA 118 Docking Endorsement | Close-quarters handling | Advertised here |
| ASA 119 Marine Weather Endorsement | Endorsement | Not currently found |
| ASA 120 Radar Endorsement | Endorsement | Not currently found |
Availability is checked against school course lists and carries the date it was checked. Teaching an ASA course we have not found? Tell us →
Availability decides more than syllabus
ASA teaches beginner yacht training, a skipper pathway and bareboat cruising to a standard comparable with the other two schemes, and ASA 114 is a genuine catamaran certificate. On paper it is competitive. In Australia the deciding factor is that you may have to travel a long way to sit anything beyond the entry certificates.
ASA makes most sense for sailors who already hold ASA certificates, or who intend to charter in North America where the scheme is best recognised. For most Australian sailors, RYA has the school availability and IYT the multihull certificates.
Every American Sailing course, explained
ASA 101: Keelboat 1
American Sailing’s entry certification, on a small keelboat in moderate conditions.
ASA 102: Keelboat 2
The bridge between ASA 101 and cruising boats with an engine.
ASA 103: Coastal Cruising
The first cruising-boat certification: auxiliary power, day passages, moderate conditions.
ASA 104: Bareboat Cruising
The ASA charter certification, and the one charter companies recognise.
ASA 105: Coastal Navigation
The shorebased navigation certification: charts, plotting, tides, passage planning.
ASA 106: Advanced Coastal Cruising
Skippering coastal and offshore passages, day and night, in whatever arrives.
ASA 107: Celestial Navigation
Sextant work: sight taking, sight reduction, fixing a position without electronics.
ASA 108: Offshore Passagemaking
The top of the ASA cruising pathway: extended offshore passages and real self-sufficiency.
ASA 110: Basic Small Boat Sailing
The small-boat entry point, below the keelboat pathway.
ASA 114: Cruising Catamaran
The ASA multihull certification: twin engines, wide beam, no heeling to warn you.
Not sure a scheme matters as much as you think?
For most beginners the boat you train on and the school you train with matter more than which certificate ends up in your hand.