Marine Safety

Being able to see and be seen is an integral part of safety on the water. During conditions of limited visibility (including night), RADAR is the prime method of "seeing" and the radar echo from your boat is how you are "seen". The importance of using a radar reflector is often stressed in boating courses, but how often do you see reflectors in use? Skippers often feel that they won't be heading out in limited visibility conditions and if necessary there is always time to put the reflector up. Anyway their 30 foot boat with its command bridge or 35 foot mast can easily be "seen" over a few miles which is more than far enough for the other guy to take appropriate action. This overconfident attitude has often resulted in vessels being placed in " near miss " situations with resultant stress on both skippers and crew.

So just how well can you be seen? Radar principles are commonly understood and therefore we won't go into the details, but basically your boat must reflect the radar signal directly back to the transmitting radar unit, and herein lies a problem.

In today's modern warfare it is very important to "hide" from the opposition and their missiles and many of the techniques designed to reduce radar reflectance are incorporated into current pleasure boat design. Smoothing of all sharp edges and intersections of panels diffuses a radar signal. Where there are large vertical flat expanses of metal,    " tumble home "* is incorporated thus reflecting the signal up and away from the radar transmitter. Likewise the natural curves of the hull reflect the signal into the sea. The overall idea is to have no surface perpendicular to the oceans surface. Unlike naval ships, most pleasure boats are made of fibreglass, a poor radio-reflector, and this when combined with today's Italian styling (soft curves, raked lines etc.), results in perfect examples of "stealth technology" making radar reflectors virtually mandatory to ensure a good radar echo.

* ( the sections "lean" (or tumble) towards the wheel "house" (home) )

Where should radar reflectors be mounted? Ideally as high up as possible which for sailboats means up in the rigging and for power boats up on a mast. Note, always refer to manufacturers instructions for proper orientation and mounting requirements. Command bridge vessels have a reasonable alternative for reflector placement. Two reflectors, one for each side, mounted under the bridge (often where the propane locker is located) will usually work well. Other advantages are that they are hidden and not subject to damage. Some skippers have lined the command bridge with aluminium foil to form a large reflecting area. While this may work, it usually suffers from the "tumble-home" effect. Small power boats have the problem of mounting anything anywhere. Suggestions are to hang a reflector from an antenna, convertible top hoop or even an upright fishing rod whenever the need arises.

On your next Club, Squadron, or group cruise, why not arrange a radar echo test for all boats involved? With a radar equipped boat in a fixed location, and a novice operator at the radar controls (a good operator can tune up and "read" marginal signals at a far greater distance), have each boat sail away until its echo is lost. You may be surprised at how short a distance that is without a proper reflector !

Remember, your life may depend not solely on how well you can "see", but on how well you can be "seen".