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Coming to this a bit late, as I juggle paperwork and preparing my little
boat for launching:

Last Tuesday, George Istok wrote:

> I have always thought that navigation and piloting were separate concepts.

This is one of the classic cases of two (or more) nations being divided
by a common language. Having been raised on English nautical terminology
and now re-trained on the Canadian interpretation of U.S. nautical
language, I'll try to explain to both sides:

What English mariners know as "piloting" is called "conning" on this
side of The Pond -- both refer to the process of guiding a vessel around
without formal plotting of positions, courses and so forth on a chart.

American "piloting", at least in the recreational community, is
broad-ranging, encompassing much of what both versions of English would
regard as "seamanship", but "piloting" certainly includes and arguably
is centred on "plotting" and the collection of data to plot on the
chart, which together would be called "coastal navigation" in the Old
Country.

I think the two forms of terminology draw closer once they move to the
third level: What was "astro navigation" in England when I was much
younger is "celestial navigation" in American technical English today.


Trevor Kenchington


--
Trevor J. Kenchington PhD                         Gadus@iStar.ca
Gadus Associates,                                 Office(902) 889-9250
R.R.#1, Musquodoboit Harbour,                     Fax   (902) 889-9251
Nova Scotia  B0J 2L0, CANADA                      Home  (902) 889-3555

                     Science Serving the Fisheries
                      http://home.istar.ca/~gadus

   

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