Fred Dyson – Dyson's Starboard View – Messing About in Boats
It appears, from the press, that Exxon may feel that the grounding of the Exxon Valdez on Bligh Reef was related to a faulty autopilot.
A week after the spill, I was swapping lies (the preferred off-duty activity for all sailors) with a seaman with an any-vessel/any-ocean skipper's ticket. He said he had heard, from the inquiry board, that the second officer of the Exxon Valdez had unknowingly been trying to turn the vessel to starboard (right) while the autopilot was still trying to maintain the course that ultimately made hundreds of Alaskans rich and thousands of seabirds dead.
Most autopilot systems have a status light that indicates when the vessel is being controlled by the autopilot and a quick disarm (dodge) switch to allow the helmsman to assume manual control quickly.
If the status light wasn't operating or the system disarm switch failed, the helmsman would be fighting a massive hydraulic system as he tried to turn the vessel. Large crude oil carriers have massive amounts of inertia and it takes several miles for them to make a turn. By the time the crew realizes the vessel isn't responding to the helm, it can be too late.
Being inherently lazy and often operating vessels alone, I over-use my autopilot and get in trouble. Most often this happens when I leave the wheelhouse to steer from the flying bridge and forget to turn the autopilot off.
Then I try to make a landing while the autopilot tries to keep its preset course. This activity has resulted in lots of aerobic activity for me, a huge adrenalin deficit, and a deserved reputation as a lousy boat handler.
I was doing a small consulting job for a West Coast shipping firm a few years ago and I noticed a picture of one of the firm's vessels up on the rocks. I asked the operations manager how it happened and he said, "You want the official story or the truth?"
"The truth," I said.
"Well," he said, "the first officer came on board from shore leave and brought his new wife with him. On his first watch the first night, the new bride visited the bridge and brought a jug. They passed the jug around with the helmsman and within an hour all three were feeling very cheerful. The new bride was, in fact, feeling so cheerful and so impressed with the romance of the sea and the handsome uniform that her husband wore that she insisted that they reconsummate the marriage on the day bunk at the back of the wheelhouse. The first officer was not able to deny this respectful request from his charming bride, and the distracted helmsman drove the vessel up on the rocks at high water."
My informant was on the black gang (engine room crew) when they hit. When he heard the screech of steel on rock and felt the boat heel (lean) over, he ran up four decks and looked over the side to see TREES! Now that strikes terror into the heart of any seaman.
The lessons are obvious. Know the status of your autopilot, don't drink at the helm, and don't get distracted by the "Romance of the Sea."
