NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: Lights etc.
From: Keith Williams
Date: 2003 Oct 10, 19:14 +0530
From: Keith Williams
Date: 2003 Oct 10, 19:14 +0530
This white light practice needs to be sorted out asap. It's stupid of us yachties to think we can wander around with lights which confuse the professionals, let alone each other. Why one earth would a sailor use solely an all-round white when underway? WE NEED THE COLOURED SECTORS - they tell other mariners who has right of way and, often even more importantly, they indicate whether we are standing on or taking action. Surely we are all taught that you MUST let the other guy see your lights change when appropriate (which might mean you are sensibly backing off even tho you have a legal right to stand on), so he can relax a bit? An all-round white is legally permitted for POWER DRIVEN vessels under 12ms when combined with lower sidelights - otherwise it means you're at anchor unless you are less than 7ms, in which case when at sea the other guy ought to come over to rescue you. End of story. Also, it's worth remembering that the marvellous tricolour (combined sidelights and sternlight) is permitted under Rule 25 section b) for vessels up to 25 metres in length. Strobe lights do seem an unnecessary invention in crowded waters - a look-at-me-and keep-out-of-my-affluent-way bellow, maybe. I've not used one, but I can well imagine that, out at sea, such a light would feel very much safer than my static tricolour when watching a ship or boat (esp those scary fishermen) get closer and closer... Sharp eyes, gents.
