Training on manned models

‘Because it’s still the best way of acquiring the reflexes that, when the time comes, will make the difference between the good guys and the best. Training on scale models provides experience that could never be acquired on real ships, for the simple reason that neither the shipowners nor the local authorities would allow so many risks to be taken. On scale models, error is allowed for the manoeuvrer. Scale models allow you to experiment with a boat’s reactions and explore unknown territory beyond the safety limits. Training on 1/25 scale models is complementary to training on electronic simulators (similar to those used in aviation) because it provides additional experience through the ‘déjà vu’ effect:

• On a scale model, Mother Nature is at work, with random effects similar to life-size situations: the unpredictable nature of gusts of wind, shoals, currents or swells requires an immediate reaction, without rehearsal or automatism. And when things go wrong on a scale model, trainees can actually feel their boat running aground or colliding with another vessel or mooring. Anyone who has experienced this situation knows how motivating and convincing it is to progress.
• For the same reason, hydrodynamic effects are correctly reproduced on scale models, so there is no need to transpose them in the form of complex equations. The result is a better simulation of hydrodynamic effects such as interactions between ships (e.g. in a canal), interactions between the ship and the berth, low under-keel clearance (e.g. 10% of the ship’s draught), anchor dragging in various manoeuvring situations.
• The effect of wind scale on scale models is well known, and it is also well known that this effect in no way affects the value of using scale models for serious and effective training in ship manoeuvring. Wind is an everyday factor in the lives of pilots the world over. The lake is designed to obtain a variation of wind conditions in its various parts. This allows the course to be structured in such a way as to use the wind when and where it is needed. Extreme wind conditions exist in the real world. If these conditions occur with scale models, they can be used, with caution, to show the limits of control of the vessel.
• For these reasons, the models behave exactly like real ships, only much faster. The real thing will therefore be much slower than the model, leaving more time to react. Scale models sharpen the senses of perception and anticipation, and enable the behaviour of the ship to be appreciated in its entirety. These qualities are of prime importance when manoeuvring a real ship.
• Finally, the time scale allows five times as many manoeuvres (everything happens five times faster on the model); in other words, in the course of a 35-hour course, you carry out as many manoeuvres as you would in 175 hours on a real ship.

(Source ARTELIA)