T&T: NAV Mode and Autopilots

[Milt Baker]

I'm with you guys: the modus operandi aboard Bluewater is to run our routes with the autopilot in NAV mode, with the autopilot being fed by Nobeltec.  On longer runs, we put the same waypoints into a separate GPS (i.e., not the one feeding Nobeltec) and continually compare XTE there with XTE shown by Nobeltec--usually very close to zero in both cases.  With about 15,000 NM (including an Atlantic crossing) in two years on this boat and a lot more over 15 years on our previous Grand Bankses, this has never once presented a problem.  Not having to make continual adjustments to keep the boat on course means the watchstander can keep his eye on the other important stuff: other vessels, aids to navigation, comparing actual depth with charted depth, weather, and making sure the yacht is where we think it is.    

If I were crew on Mike's boat, I'd do it his way--and probably learn a lot about why he uses a different approach. 
Different ships, different long splices!  

--Milt Baker, Nordhavn 4732 Bluewater


John on Seahorse wrote:
 
We do too - hell, that's what NAV is for - to keep you exactly on the route  
you have selected and avoid close encounters of the worst kind - with hazards  
and buoys and shallow water.