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 […]
Post-Voyage Review & Lessons Learned
Why experience only matters if it is captured, questioned, and reused Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What a Post-Voyage Review Really Is A post-voyage review is not paperwork.It is risk harvesting. It exists to extract information from a completed voyage that can: If a review only confirms that the […]
Common Passage Planning Failures
Why ships with “approved plans” still run aground Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. Why Studying Failures Matters Accidents rarely introduce new lessons. They repeat old ones — often word for word. Investigations consistently show that the tools existed, the plans existed, and the information existed. What failed was how […]
Contingency & Abort Points
Deciding to stop before stopping becomes impossible Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What Contingency Planning Really Means Contingency planning is not pessimism.It is respect for uncertainty. It accepts that: A contingency is not an emergency.It is a foreseen loss of assumptions. Planning for contingencies is planning for reality. 2. […]
Execution & Monitoring of the Passage Plan
Why most accidents happen after the plan was “completed” Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. Why Execution Is the Most Dangerous Phase Most passage plans are approved before departure. Most accidents occur after departure, often hours or days later. This is not coincidence. Execution is where reality begins to diverge […]
Under-Keel Clearance (UKC) Planning
Why “we had enough water” is one of the most dangerous sentences on a bridge Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What UKC Really Represents Under-Keel Clearance is the vertical space between the lowest point of the ship and the seabed. Operationally, it answers only one question: “How much room […]
XTE Limits – Alarms vs Reality
Why Cross Track Error is a warning tool, not a safety margin Contents Use the links below to jump to any section: 1. What XTE Actually Represents Cross Track Error (XTE) is simply the lateral distance between the ship’s actual position and the planned track line. That is all it is. It does not represent: […]