Pre-Arrival Preparation
Why good pilotage begins long before the pilot ladder is rigged Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Pre-Arrival Preparation Really Is Pre-arrival preparation is not paperwork. It is the last opportunity to stabilise the operation before margins collapse. Once the ship is committed to port entry: Preparation is where […]
MPX – Master–Pilot Exchange
Why good MPX prevents bad pilotage Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What MPX Really Is The Master–Pilot Exchange (MPX) is not a formality. It is a transfer of operational understanding, not authority. MPX exists to ensure that: If MPX fails, pilotage becomes assumption-based navigation. 2. Why MPX Exists (and […]
Tugs
Why tugs extend control margins — and why misunderstandings with tugs cause expensive damage Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Tugs Really Provide Tugs do not “move the ship”. They provide external force at strategic points on the hull to: A tug adds force where the ship is weakest, […]
Thrusters
Why thrusters are control amplifiers — not steering replacements Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Thrusters Actually Do Thrusters provide localized lateral force at the bow, stern, or midships. They do not steer the ship in the traditional sense.They bias the hull, buying time and space while other forces […]
Anchoring
Why anchoring is not stopping — it is controlled restraint Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Anchoring Really Is Anchoring is not “stopping the ship”. It is placing the ship on a flexible restraint system that must absorb: The ship is still moving — just within limits defined by […]
Berthing
How ships actually come alongside — and why most berthing failures happen slowly, not suddenly Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Berthing Really Is Berthing is not “parking a ship”. It is a progressive surrender of manoeuvring space while maintaining just enough control to stop safely at a fixed […]
Environmental Forces on the Hull
Why wind, current, and waves often matter more than helm Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. Why Environmental Forces Dominate at Low Speed Environmental forces act continuously.Propulsion and rudder forces act intermittently. As ship speed reduces, the forces generated by propulsion and rudder decay rapidly — but wind, current, and […]
Low-Speed Control & Loss of Rudder Effect
Why “dead slow” is often the least controllable speed Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. Why Low Speed Feels Safer — and Isn’t Reducing speed is instinctively associated with safety. In many situations, that instinct is correct — but at very low speed, the opposite can become true. As speed […]
Stopping, Turning & Crash Manoeuvres
Why ships do not respond when you need them to most Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. Why Stopping and Turning Are Often Misjudged Most people instinctively expect ships to behave like vehicles. They do not. A ship does not stop because you order it to.It stops when momentum has […]
Hydrodynamic Interaction
When water starts steering the ship — and the helm stops being in charge Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Hydrodynamic Interaction Really Is Hydrodynamic Interaction (HI) is not contact.It is force transmitted through moving water. When a ship moves, it drags water with it, accelerates it, and displaces […]