NavList:

Byron, you wrote:
" It appears that the people at the Navlist are not interest gyro error."

No, don't worry. That's not true. I was thinking about your post from two days ago with the subject "Let Us Do It". This might be something where we could set up an entire area of the NavList message boards for this topic, basically a special web page devoted to the topic, both generally ans specific to the Franklin Piloting Technique. Would you like that? This would be part of a general "members pages" arrangement that I have been mulling over.

You also wrote:
"I have had the experience of the effects of small gyro error and what it can do to a ship. The Intrepid the mighty air craft carrier coming in to Newport Narragansett Bay ran aground, in fog. The Intrepid had a 1.5 W gyro error after the gyro was set in the yards"

Yes, and just remember, you HAVE TOLD this story before more than once. There's nothing wrong with re-telling it. It's an interesting story. But it's a historical matter, first of all, and second, since you've told the story before, you shouldn't be too surprised if there are few replies this time around. But please feel free to share other "sea stories" regarding your broad navigation experience. Tell us more!

You wrote:
"How many miles could be saved if the gyro was on the money with zero or near a decimal error?" and "An accurate ship course could save a lot of steering correcting course time and money."

When I drive down the highway with my smartphone displaying my favorite GPS, it displays the EXACT course over the ground at any instant, as long as I am in motion. Naturally vessels at sea have much more sophisticated GPS-based data. The gyros still matter, yes, but to what extent? I'm just asking. Is there really any time and money to be saved? It is my understanding that most merchant ships today seeking economic courses get into detailed ocean current and live weather analyses. The economy comes, not from steering a perfect course, but from avoiding bad weather, heavy seas, and those huge counter-current eddies from the Gulf Stream (for example). The details are up to the autopilot. You enter a waypoint, and let her go. The ship is a robot.

-FER

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