SH Cap. 1 — Arrival

1. Overview

Chapter 1 frames the arrival sequence as the moment when open-sea routine gives way to the demanding, low-speed discipline of port maneuvering. The master faces a transition from predictable sea-speed handling to an environment where shallow water, confined channels, other traffic, wind, and current all interact simultaneously. Conrad's epigraph captures the personal stakes: the shiphandler must feel what the vessel will do before being able to command it with confidence.

The chapter is organized around a logical progression: conduct the master's trial maneuvers in shallow water to understand the ship's behavior; use that knowledge to reduce speed safely; embark the pilot with professional care; and hand over the conn only after a complete information exchange. Running through every section is a single principle — the most effective maneuver accomplishes several tasks simultaneously, so the ship is always under control with the minimum of orders.

Key topics in edital Seção II covered here include: handling ships with one or two propellers and one or two rudders (item 1); modern-ship conning in port areas (item 20); low-speed maneuvering (item 20.2); pilot embarkation procedures and the pilot-master information exchange (items 18–19). Shallow-water effects, directional stability, squat, bow-thruster limits, and the posting of maneuvering characteristics are treated in depth.

2. Master's Trial and Maneuvering Data

The master's trial is a structured series of maneuvers conducted before the ship's first port arrival, preferably in water whose depth is less than 1.5 times the vessel's draft so that shallow-water effects are clearly apparent (fig. 1-1). Sufficient mates must be stationed on the bridge to collect data simultaneously. With planning, the trial need not delay the ship's schedule.

2.1 Prescribed Maneuver Sequence

The seven standard maneuvers are:

Data are recorded on a standard sheet (Fig. 1-2 — data table) capturing time, heading, speed, RPM, telegraph setting, rate of turn, rudder angle, and water depth. All observations should be compared against reference dimensions aboard the vessel for use when judging space in anchorages and harbors.

2.2 Non-Conventional and Twin-Screw Vessels

Ships equipped with twin screws, Azipod systems, or other non-conventional propulsion must repeat each maneuver simulating the loss of one engine, a steering failure, or other casualty. Steering on engines alone, or turning a twin-screw ship with one engine stopped, reveals capabilities unavailable to the pilot card. MacElrevey stresses: "if you are aboard for some period of time, you will lose an engine or there will be a steering failure."

2.3 Most Effective Maneuver Principle

The most effective maneuver accomplishes several tasks simultaneously. When a ship must alter course to starboard and reduce headway, the less-experienced handler makes the turn first, then backs. The accomplished handler puts the engine astern first: the resulting starboard swing (the ship's natural twist when backed) completes the turn while headway is simultaneously reduced. One action, two effects.

3. Turning Behaviour

3.1 Hard-Over Turn at 6 Knots

The tactical diameter measured at 6 knots represents the ship's maneuvering-speed turning circle — not the sea-speed circle most officers know. Depth under the keel is the dominant variable: in shallow water (depth ≤ 1.2 × draft) the turning diameter can reach twice the deep-water value. Because the rate of turn is nearly the same in shallow and deep water, the larger area required is not visually obvious and can catch the shiphandler off guard.

Smaller ships show a measurably smaller diameter and higher rate when turning to the left (port) versus the right. This asymmetry diminishes with ship size and is practically insignificant for VLCCs and ULCCs.

3.2 Accelerating Turn (Backing and Filling — Ahead Phase)

Starting from dead in the water with engine at half ahead and rudder hard right, the accelerating turn diameter is roughly half that of the steady 6-knot turn in the same depth.

3.3 Backing and Filling Maneuver

Once the ship has built up a good swing and some headway, the engine is put half (or full) astern for deeply laden or low-powered ships. As sternway develops, the rudder is moved from amidships to hard left, continuing the turn. If space is very restricted, the ship can be reversed in about one-and-a-half times her own length by limiting both the ahead and astern speed she develops.

During both the backing-and-filling and steady-state turns the rate of turn initially decreases before settling to a constant equilibrium value. This apparent loss of swing is often misread as the maneuver failing — be patient; the rate stabilizes rather than stopping entirely.

3.4 Round Turn — Speed Reduction and Emergency Stop

A hard-over round turn is one of the most powerful speed-reduction tools available, particularly for VLCCs. A rule of thumb supported by sea trials: a VLCC loses 25–30 % of its headway for every 90° of heading change. Starting at 12 knots, speed is reduced to 2–3 knots at round-turn completion, even with the engine turning ahead for steerageway.

The round turn is completed in approximately three times the ship's length in deep water and about six times its length in shallow water — far less than the "several miles" often claimed for large ships. Uses of the round turn include: collision avoidance at sea, speed reduction before the pilot station, sweeping a lee for pilot boarding, and stopping after engine loss.

4. Stopping and Speed Control

4.1 Half Astern to Dead in the Water

With the rudder amidships and engine at half astern from 6 knots, the ship will undergo a significant heading change — in shallow water as much as 80–90° — while not traveling far from its original track. Stopping distance itself changes little between shallow and deep water. The magnitude of this twist when backing directly governs the ship's usefulness for backing and filling in confined areas: a large twist helps in anchorages but complicates stopping in narrow channels.

4.2 Stopping While Maintaining Heading

The controlled deceleration technique: put the rudder left to start a port swing, then back the engine. As the bow starts to swing right (swing reversal), come ahead again with left rudder to check and reverse the swing. The cycle repeats until the desired low speed is reached. This technique is used to shape up for docking, allow a tug to make up, or enter a narrow channel.

Bank proximity complicates this maneuver. If the starboard quarter is close to a shoal or bank edge, the ship may back "the wrong way" and the port swing cannot be checked. Staying at or near mid-channel reduces this risk.

4.3 Handling a Ship with Sternway

When the ship is dead in the water and backed for a sustained period (trial recommends ten minutes), the key observation is how well she steers with the rudder at sternway. A ship with sternway wants to back into the eye of the wind; the shiphandler must account for this. Rudder effectiveness astern varies greatly between ships and must be established empirically.

4.4 Slewing to Reduce Headway

Alternating course changes to starboard and port of a base course dissipates speed with each swing while the ship continues making good its intended track. This slewing maneuver is often the most practical speed-reduction technique for VLCCs, where engine astern alone is inefficient (large turbine plants may develop only 25 % of ahead power astern). Other vessels nearby should be informed by VHF because the repeated heading changes can appear to be course alterations that affect meeting situations.

4.5 Estimating Speed by Propeller Wash

On a dark night without a Doppler log: when the engine is going astern, the propeller wash begins to move up the starboard side of the ship when speed is down to about 2 knots. As long as the wash trails aft the ship is making more than 2 knots; once the wash reaches midship the ship is dead in the water.

5. Bow Thruster — Capabilities and Limits

5.1 Advantages and Disadvantages

The bow thruster supplements the anchor and tug but does not replace them. It is most effective at 2 knots or less and should never be relied upon at higher speeds.

5.2 Speed Limit of Thruster Effectiveness

Manufacturer and class-approval graphs often show thruster effectiveness at 6 knots and above. MacElrevey flatly states these graphs are inaccurate — a thruster at 6 knots "probably will not even be felt by the helmsman." At 3 knots its effectiveness is already significantly reduced. The master should build his own graph of speed versus heading-rate-change from the trial maneuvers. A Delaware River collision resulted from a tanker attempting to use its bow thruster at 6 knots to assist a turn — the thruster had no meaningful effect.

Practical protocol: try the thruster right and left at 1 knot, then at 3 knots, then at 6 knots (to confirm the gap between theory and reality). Orient the ship so the bow passes through the wind in each trial, since wind interaction is part of normal thruster operations in anchorages and approaches.

6. Shallow-Water Effects

6.1 Depth Thresholds and Behavioral Changes

As the ship stands into shoaling water, the shiphandler should reduce speed and be alert for four simultaneous changes in how she handles:

1. Steering improves (directional stability increases) unless the ship squats so far forward that it goes by the head, which negates the stability benefit.
2. Turning radius increases up to double the deep-water value at depth ≤ 1.2 × draft.
3. The ship twists more when backed.
4. Trim changes — draft increases more at bow or stern depending on hull form (squat).

6.2 Directional Stability in Detail

Directional stability determines how easily a swing can be started, how much rudder is needed to maintain it, and how readily it can be checked. A ship with positive directional stability tends to steady up when the rudder is put amidships. A ship with neutral stability holds its present rate of swing (or current heading) when the rudder is centred, until external forces act. A ship with negative stability continues to increase its rate of swing with rudder amidships — requiring large rudder angles for long periods to check the swing, especially in confined waters.

Six factors govern directional stability:

1. Increases as underkeel clearance decreases.
2. Increases as ship length increases.
3. Increases as drag (trim by the stern) increases.
4. Decreases as block coefficient increases.
5. Decreases as the length-to-beam ratio decreases.
6. Decreases as the pivot point moves forward (forward sections dominate cross-sectional area).

A few feet of drag (stern trim) can transform an otherwise "cranky" ship with negative directional stability into a manageable vessel with positive stability by shifting the center of submerged cross-sectional area aft. Any ship significantly trimmed by the head will exhibit negative directional stability and require constant attention from the helmsman.

6.3 Effects of Bottom Contour and Bank Proximity

Three distinct hydrodynamic effects arise when the bottom contour changes or a bank is near:

1. Bank cushion: elevated pressure at the bow pushes the bow away from the shoal or bank. This effect is real but modest — books that describe ships "smelling" shallow water and steering away from it greatly exaggerate it.
2. Body-sway toward the bank: as the parallel midbody passes a shoal, increased water velocity in the restricted gap reduces pressure, drawing the ship bodily toward the bank.
3. Bank suction at the stern: reduced flow and propeller influence draws the stern toward the bank. Bank suction is stronger than bank cushion and can cause dangerous sheers in narrow channels.

6.4 VLCC Handling in Shallow Water — Esso Osaka Trials

A major study in July 1977 using the Esso Osaka confirmed that VLCCs remain highly maneuverable in shallow water and steer well with the engine turning ahead or even stopped — contradicting prevalent assumptions that these ships required excessive speed to maintain steerageway.

Large ships in shallow water with the engine stopped typically steer better than in deep water. There is no need to maintain excessive speed for steerageway. The data from both the Esso Osaka trials and El Paso Marine Company LNG carrier trials have been used to calibrate simulators and refine design standards.

7. Approaching the Pilot Station

7.1 Steering Gear Standby

Before entering restricted waters, an engineer must be stationed in the steering gear flat. Shifting to the trick wheel after loss of steering is too late. The assigned engineer must be trained in emergency-steering procedures and able to steer by compass course using the emergency system. Practice — at least a half-hour monthly at sea — is essential; the noise of steering-gear machinery makes it difficult to hear orders, and an untrained person under emergency conditions in a confined area is a serious hazard.

Communications between steering gear flat and bridge must be tested and reliable. A headset with a long cord, leaving both hands free and reducing background noise, is recommended.

7.2 Anchor Readiness

Anchors should be prepared with claws and pawls off, broken out of the hawsepipe to ensure they will run free. If the bow bulb prevents dropping from the hawsepipe, lower the anchor to the water's edge before entering the channel. Exception: do not break out anchors if the ship is rolling too heavily to allow it safely.

7.3 Making a Lee for the Pilot

Approach the pilot station at 5–6 knots unless the port specifies otherwise (high-powered boats or special boarding facilities may require higher speed — confirm by VHF two hours before arrival). At this speed the pilot boat can remain comfortably alongside during the transfer without the vessel making difficult the boarding.

A lee is created by positioning the ship so its hull shelters the boarding side from wind and swell. "Sweeping a lee" by putting a swing on the ship just before boarding causes the quarter to swing away from the pilot boat, knocking down a cross-chop. A complete round turn can be the best way to create a lee when shoal areas or traffic restrict maneuvering — it also removes a large amount of headway, compensating for the time taken by allowing the approach at higher initial speed.

The backing-and-filling maneuver can also assist: come ahead to start a rightward swing, then back the engine. The ship turns about its pivot point while headway is simultaneously reduced, using minimal searoom. Critical caution: do not back so long that wash from the propeller reaches the pilot ladder and sweeps the launch away.

8. Pilot Ladder and Boarding Arrangements

8.1 IMO and USCG Standards

A clean pilot ladder meeting current IMO and USCG standards must be rigged under the supervision of a licensed deck officer, who must physically inspect the ladder as it is rigged and remain in attendance during embarkation and disembarkation. Two seamen must also be present.

IMO/USCG requirements for pilot ladders: rungs of one-piece hardwood; bottom four rungs of reinforced hard rubber with nonskid surface; rungs at least 19 in long, 4 in deep, 1 in thick; ladder hung by single lengths of Manila or prestretched Dacron; 16–19 in clear space between lines across each rung; 12–15 in between rungs. Spreaders required if more than nine rungs, placed at intervals not exceeding nine rungs, at least 70 in long.

8.2 Accommodation Ladder Requirements

When the distance from water to deck exceeds 9 meters (30 feet), an accommodation ladder must be used in conjunction with the pilot ladder. The frapping line (line B) must be secured to hold the accommodation ladder tight against the hull — this prevents it from swinging outboard as the ship rolls and keeps the attached pilot ladder stable.

8.3 Safety Details

Have a heaving line ready for the pilot's bag; a life ring with waterlight; walkie-talkie communication between the ladder position and the bridge; good lighting that illuminates the ladder without blinding the pilot boat operator. Keep manropes rigged and free of the ladder. In icy weather, keep the ladder on deck and put it over the side only when the pilot boat is coming alongside. If a pilot hoist is used, a conventional ladder must still be rigged alongside as backup.

Deck access at the top of the ladder must be through a bulwark opening or over the rail using stanchions at least 40 inches high with sturdy steps. Too many pilots have been injured trying to climb over an unmodified gunwale.

9. Wind Effects on Steering

9.1 When Wind Takes Charge

As the ship reduces speed, freeboard (the sail area presented to the wind) becomes the dominant factor in how strongly the wind affects steering. The ratio of draft to freeboard also matters, and even ships of apparently similar type may respond differently based on house configuration, deck load, and trim. The critical threshold is:

• High-sided ships (passenger ships, containerships): wind takes charge at wind speed = 3 × ship's speed.
• Loaded tankers: wind takes charge at wind speed = 5 × ship's speed.

A loaded containership or passenger ship with 75 ft of freeboard presents 50,000–60,000 sq ft of side to the wind — comparable to the 45,000 sq ft of canvas carried by a full-rigged sailing ship. Modern classes of passenger ships with row upon row of closed balconies exhibit an "ice tray effect" — wind cannot pass smoothly along the hull and the lateral force is greater than equivalent-freeboard conventional hulls.

9.2 Ship Behavior as Speed is Reduced

Most ship configurations will head up into the wind at increasingly large angles as headway is lost. When finally dead in the water the ship usually lies beam to the wind. With sternway she backs into the eye of the wind. When the wind approaches the speed-ratio threshold, give a brief ahead kick — significantly increasing revolutions for just long enough to restore the swing to the desired heading — without materially increasing headway.

9.3 Using Wind as an Aid

A high-sided ship that cannot bring her bow through the wind for a turn (like a sailing ship "in irons") can often be turned the other way: back and fill with the stern going across the wind. As sternway develops, the ship turns as she backs into the wind, and when headway resumes the wind on the quarter assists the turn. Wind that appears to be a problem can be converted into a maneuvering advantage once the shiphandler understands the ship's behavior and plans accordingly.

10. VHF Communications and Modern Navigation Aids

10.1 VHF Radio Best Practices

VHF is a primary coordination tool during the arrival phase. Key practices:

• Give call letters only on initial and final transmissions; between them, only at ten-minute intervals. Avoid tiresome repetition.
• Contact the pilot station two hours before arrival: confirm ladder placement, update ETA, ask for special boarding requirements.
• Call the pilot service to obtain current traffic and weather conditions — often more accurate than a traffic control center.
• When discussing meeting arrangements with foreign ships, state the plan in two ways: "I will alter to starboard, for a port-to-port meeting" — some crews hear only the word "starboard" and interpret it as a course-change instruction under their national rules.

Supplement VHF with the ship's whistle to clarify planned meetings in the vicinity, even when not strictly required by the Rules of the Road. VHF can be heard over an area of at least 1,400 square miles at sea — never identify another vessel as "ship on my starboard bow."

10.2 AIS, DGPS, and Graphic Communications

The Automatic Identification System (AIS) and DGPS-based graphic systems (such as Panama Canal's CTAN) communicate more information in an instant than minutes of spoken radio exchange, especially in restricted waters. High-definition real-time graphic presentations allow experienced pilots to relate position, current, channel restrictions, and a developing situation to predict vessel behavior with precision. Graphic communication represents the next generation after flags, blinker light, whistle, and VHF voice — all modes remain useful and complement each other; none replaces the others entirely.

11. Pilot Aboard — Welcome and Conn Transfer

11.1 Professional Welcome

After the ship's officer brings the pilot to the bridge, the first priority is maneuvering — shaping up for the channel and meeting traffic — not having the pilot sign the bell book. Let the pilot catch his breath, get the ship steadied on course, offer coffee, and only then ask for his name. MacElrevey uses an anecdote common to pilots worldwide: too many ships hand the pilot the bell book before he has even recovered from climbing 30 feet of icy ladder in the middle of the night.

11.2 Pilot-Master Information Exchange

The exchange must be completed before the conn is formally transferred. It is a two-way professional briefing, not a formality. The master provides: engine condition and response, steering peculiarities, fuel type limitations, anchor and tug access constraints, and any items affecting the ship that a posted card does not capture. The pilot provides (minimum):

• Review of the pilot card with discussion of any peculiar handling characteristics.
• Current position fix and route from that point to berth or anchorage.
• Draft, trim, GM, and speed limits due to squat and underkeel clearance.
• Hazards en route (dredges, reduced visibility risk, recent shoaling).
• Traffic to be encountered; local regulations and required radio calls.
• Engine call-out timing, anchor watch needs, special engine maneuvers.
• Berth arrangement, line plan, docking problems anticipated.
• Weather and current expectations; timing of pilot changes en route.
• Tug locations and escort requirements.
• Special operating speeds, meeting restrictions, ladder readiness for docking pilot.
• Bridge equipment and radar monitoring requirements; any equipment tests.

The exchange can be completed in a few minutes. Once complete, the conn is transferred with a clear, unambiguous statement so all on the bridge know it has changed hands. The pilot then makes security calls and proceeds.

12. Posting of Maneuvering Characteristics

12.1 Required Displayed Information (CFR)

For ocean and coastwise tankships of 1,600 gross tons or over, US Code of Federal Regulations requires maneuvering information to be prominently displayed in the pilothouse. The minimum content is:

A mandatory WARNING statement must appear at the bottom of the fact sheet, noting that vessel response may differ if any of the baseline conditions (calm weather, no current, depth ≥ 2× draft, clean hull, normal trim) are varied.

12.2 Verification and Data Sources

The displayed data must be verified or modified six months after the vessel enters service (and verified within three months if modified at six months). Acceptable sources include trial trip observations, model tests, analytical calculations, simulations, or data from a vessel of similar hull form, power, rudder, and propeller.

12.3 Limitations and the Master's Own Data

MacElrevey is direct: posted information is for deep water and general conditions, and too often derives from calculations or model tests rather than actual sea trials. It is "of limited use at best" for the pilot handling the ship in shallow water at maneuvering speeds. The master must supplement the posted card with a pocket-size card containing: ship's length, beam, displacement, horsepower; bridge-to-bow and bridge-to-stern distances; restricted visibility range from the bridge; current draft; operating condition of engine, radar, navigational equipment, and bow thruster; and any voyage-specific items. Actual shallow-water trials, such as those conducted with Esso Osaka and El Paso LNG carriers, provide far more reliable data than any analytical derivation.

12.4 Turnover of the Conn

Once the pilot is fully briefed, the conn is transferred. MacElrevey criticizes the common practice of having the ship on full ahead at general channel heading before the pilot reaches the bridge, so the only briefing received is "she's on full and heading 330, pilot." A professional is never in a hurry aboard ship. It took two weeks to reach the port — five more minutes spent on a proper briefing costs nothing and protects everyone.