NAVIGATIONAL DUTIES

1. NAVIGATIONAL DUTIES Duties of the Navigator

2. Duties of the Navigator – Background - duties of navigator when out of sight of land will vary depending on size of vessel and crew- in small vessels with small crews, captain may perform all navigation tasks as well as other duties; on larger vessels, duties of captain and navigator will be separated

3. Duties of the Navigator – Background - on large vessel with radio operator, navigator will not have responsibility in this area, but will still require use of any radio navigation equipment

4. Duties of the Navigator – Background - as most vessels nowadays do not carry a radio officer, navigator will probably be responsible for everything associated with navigation as well as radio

5. Duties of the Navigator – Background   Navigator has 4 duties: - planning voyage - taking departure - work at sea - making landfall

6. Planning the Voyage - Navigating a ship is a profession where planning is of prime importance- once vessel is at sea: - no source of supply for forgotten items - little time for work not done ashore- navigator must always “keep ahead of the ship”, anticipating its needs

7. Planning the Voyage - 1st task in planning sea voyage is to decide course or courses to destination- start with Pilot Chart(s) for correct month(s) of voyage- then use Great Circle Chart(s) and Mercator Chart(s)

8. Planning the Voyage - other charts that must be referenced: - general sailing charts - coastal & approach charts - harbour charts- any other information pertaining to destination or intended course- takes time to assemble this information, particularly obtaining foreign charts, so plan ahead

9. Planning the Voyage - lay out proposed course- route must be carefully checked for obstructions - re-route where necessary or to benefit from favourable currents- if power vessel, verify distance is within vessel’s cruising range plus fuel reserve

10. Planning the Voyage - next check all navigator’s equipment is aboard vessel, including preferably 2 sextants, compasses with deviation cards & all electronic navigation equipment incl.:-Depth Sounder -Radio Direction Finders -RADAR -Gyro-compass -GPS -Communication radios -LORAN? (low frequency & VHF) - manual & spare parts for equipment

11. Planning the Voyage - check for up to date and appropriate: - Sight Reduction tables - Bowditch - Tide & Current tables - Light List - Coastal Pilot and Sailing Directions - current Nautical Almanac - Star Finder - may be useful in an unfamiliar hemisphere

12. Planning the Voyage - check chronometer against time signal and track its rate of change over a period of time - replace if erratic- at least 2 hack watches also necessary to use during sights and as back-ups to chronometer

13. Planning the Voyage - availability of plotting instruments: - protractors - pencils  - rulers - pens  - dividers - paper - do not forget to include adequate number of sight reduction forms unlike one famous ocean mariner

14. Planning the Voyage - commercial vessels are required to keep a log, desirable for pleasure vessels to also keep log for safely and reference purposes- log to record course steered, weather conditions and other items affecting ship’s operation

15. Taking Departure - navigator’s duties start before open sea – journey through harbour still requires piloting skills learnt in previous courses- navigator responsible for knowing boat’s position at all times- simple DR plot with FIXes on buoys or through 2 or 3 bearing FIXes on shore object will suffice

16. Taking Departure - if departure at night, RADAR positioning may provide only FIX- best to keep to known channels to avoid possibility of recent obstructions and to check accuracy of compass- cruising piloted waters allows final check of electronic gear, cross checking against visual position of fixed objects, buoys, etc.

17. Taking Departure - when sea buoy (last buoy visible) is passed or last position taken from bearings on fixed objects, celestial positioning of navigator’s work begins- course transferred to chart that will be used for plotting in open waters- this can be plotting sheet of right Latitude or Mercator Chart

18. Taking Departure last known position of vessel when leaving land is noted as FIX at appropriate time and DR plot started

19. Work at Sea - navigator’s most important task is to check position and all navigation tools frequently AND planning and using daytime sights for FIXes- even planets can give good FIXes during day if one knows where to look for them; to find planets, use Star Finder (2102-D), computer program or other means

20. Work at Sea - if inclement weather prevails for a day or more, eliminating possibility of celestial FIXes, and vessel does not have electronic equipment, knowing vessel’s position becomes critical- navigator may wish to keep estimated position (EP) plot in addition to DR plot

21. Work at Sea - needless to say, when approaching hazardous waters without benefit of a FIX within last 24 hours, slow down or stop until accurate position can be determined celestially, visually or electronically 

22. Work at Sea - navigator should keep DR plot advanced several hours ahead to check for hazards- current should be checked for effect on vessel and decision made on whether to make compensation- time of course changes to follow Great Circle or to track around obstructions should be noted in log

23. Work at Sea - distance to sail to next landfall should be determined daily - all book-keeping items like filling out log books, filing old charts, getting new charts ready and storing work sheets should be performed regularly to keep navigator’s work area clear

24. Work at Sea - navigator is responsible for: - advising captain when crossing time zone boundaries - ensuring boat’s clocks will be changed on next whole hour after crossing boundary- in so doing, Zone Description “ZD” of ship’s time will always be a whole number of hours from Greenwich

25. Making Landfall - navigator’s duty to determine estimated time of arrival (ETA) at first land object, usually light house, sea buoy or light ship- ETA should be planned about 2 to 3 days in advance so adjustments to ship’s speed can also be made in advance

26. Making Landfall - reasons for slowing ship’s speed may include adverse tide or current or desirability to enter strange harbours during daylight hours- other reasons could be Customs and Immigration office hours or when Quarantine Officer is available- take care in calculating local time; adjust ship’s clocks

27. Making Landfall - on approaching shore, determining vessel’s position becomes even more critical than in open sea- expected lights may not be working, lighthouses may be out of service because of power failures, strikes or routine maintenance- buoys may be missing or off station

28. Making Landfall - light ship with visible range of 10 miles may have been replaced by buoy with only 3 mile range- if expected landfall is not reached at expected time, vessel should be slowed down, proceeding only at speed that will eliminate potential danger of position error

29. Making Landfall - preliminary preparations must be completed before approaching strange coast, including studying: - Coast Pilot - Sailing Directions - Light List - Harbour & Coastal Charts (look for obstructions, aids, best routes) - Tide and Current tables

30. The bottom line is: - planning and keeping ahead of ship- knowing ahead at all times where ship will be or should be- checking in advance what work will be necessary is best and surest approach to safe navigation

31. Check List Responsibility As the captain has the ultimate responsibility for the vessel and crew, the division of tasks in the following check lists for all stages of the voyage should be clearly defined by the captain to the crew in general and specifically to the navigator

32. Check List - Pre-Voyage Planning Select all necessary:  - Sailing Directions - Light List - Radio Navigation Aids - Coast Pilot - all pertinent Marine Weather Services charts - Tide & Current Tables

33. Check List - Pre-Voyage Planning ; check:   - all hands know their duties when on watch and how to keep a look-out - night watches can read and adjust RADAR - at least one person knows proper use of marine radio and where information on last position filed

34. Check List - Pre-Voyage Planning ; check:  - run all hands through fire and abandon ship drills - train all persons on location, care and donning of survival equipment

35. Check List - Pre-Voyage Planning - make certain anyone assisting navigator knows accurate method of keeping and recording time and sextant angles- fit sextants and binoculars with lanyards

36. Check List - Charts - obtain all charts including Chart 1 and its equivalent for foreign waters, plotting sheets and sight reduction forms- plot routes and number charts as they will be needed and store them in order- obtain complete deck and rough log- have available operating and repair manuals for all navigation equipment

37. Check List - Charts - draw in limits of time zone and magnetic variation changes- note all major lights along with their means of identification

38. Check List - Charts - review Pilot Charts for: - climatological considerations - winds and currents- adjust routes as plotted on chart; determine all courses, true and compass

39. Check List - Charts - determine alternate and emergency routes; ascertain charts on board for these routes together with harbour charts for adjacent areas- review all nautical chart symbols and abbreviations

40. Check List – 1st Phase of Voyage - establish course plan to determine when, where and how vessel will pass aids to navigation and your point of departure (POD)- establish POD, record L & Lo, time, date and set log to 00.00 miles- pass POD, close aboard if possible and put it dead astern

41. Check List – During Voyage each day weather conditions permit, take following sights: - early morning 3-body FIX - mid-morning sun sight for advancing to noon for RFIX - noon sight on sun - another 3-body FIX during evening twilight

42. Check List – During Voyage- reduce all sights, plot them and maintain a log- report 0800 DR, 1200 DR and 2000 DR positions- verify and compare position with readings from electronic equipment- at same time each day, determine and log distance run in past 24 hours

43. Check List – During Voyage- alter course as required; log all readings and course changes and maintain DR plot- check RADAR and post night orders for helmsperson- select available bodies for next day’s early morning FIX

44. Check List – Final Phase of Passage - prior to landfall (last day), obtain 2 or 3 body FIX- schedule landfall for daylight, even if must reduce speed(if making a new port)- work up probable 1st sighting of land and what one expects to see on RADAR

45. Check List – Final Phase of Cruise  - alert helmsperson and lookouts- turn on depth sounder- in foreign waters, raise courtesy flag and read sailing directions for further information- take anchor bearings if applicable

46. Any Questions