NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: USCG approves use of electronic charts
From: Lu Abel
Date: 2016 Feb 11, 22:55 +0000
From: Lu Abel
Date: 2016 Feb 11, 22:55 +0000
"What are they going to do when ECDIS fails?" begs the question of what the failure modes would be.
Gross loss of a unit? A backup unit.
Internal failures? Does the unit have TMR or other ways to tolerate internal failures?
Remember, most of today's aircraft use totally electronic "glass cockpits." Should we be asking the same question "what are you going to do when the electronics fails" question about them?
I also note that every single spaceflight casualty -- both on the American Space Shuttle and various Russian flights -- have been due to mechanical failure, not failure of their incredibly complex electronic systems.
Let us not forget that paper charts have "failure modes" also -- eg, swamping of a navigation desk and destruction of the charts. Why are these not of concern?
And what of blatant human errors (eg, Vestas Wind's)?
My point is simply this: I disagree with simply saying "paper good, electronics bad" without knowing more of failure modes -- especially actual failures.
From: Manuel Cruz <NoReply_ManuelCruz@fer3.com>
To: luabel@ymail.com
Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2016 12:23 PM
Subject: [NavList] Re: USCG approves use of electronic charts
The question is ,when the ECDIS fails on the ship, what are they going to do? Meaning the electronic chart display fails, what is the mariner going to do if he/she only has the electronic display?You always need a backup.Semper ParatusManuel J. Cruz
USCG Auxiliary - Flotilla 1-08
Cabo Rojo
FSO-MS & FSO-CM
CallSign : WP4OTZ
GMRS CallSign : WQWI888
Belize CallSign : V31MC
907.942.4528
{at}CaptCruz
