On Thu, Mar 23, 2017 at 10:28 AM, Timothy Collinson <xxxxxx@port.ac.uk> wrote:

- just how do you start a megayacht - can you do it from the bridge alone? do you need someone in the engine room as well?

Is it based on a Ship, Motorboat or Sail?

Depends on the size and age of said yacht, as well as number of hands needed to operate it. A lot of 50 to 60 foot boats have an ignition button/key. Larger may still have a starter, but might require a genset running to turnover the main...

- presumably the electrics on board are separate generators (pretty certain about this!) - can you start *them* from the bridge?
- am I right in thinking all this would be pretty much impossible for someone totally non-skilled? Or could you work out with reasonable intelligence and some time (and maybe a manual kicking around in a locker...)

It really depends on the the number of Operational staff, There are Large Yachts that only take two or three people to operate, the fewer the crew the more likelihood that major operations all happen from the bridge.

- would it be typical that such a ship would run most economically in terms of fuel usage going at, say, 1/2 speed? [3]

Under Hull speed, It all depends on length and hull form and wetted surface. often 10 to 15 knots is around the most efficient speed at least on the number of boasts I have crewed on. With this it is a matter of design one set of motor boats had two efficance zones, one while it in the water and one when it was on plane.

[1] Would a body (i.e. human) be 'dragged' by current/tide faster or slower than a megayacht? One's lighter obviously but the other has a lot more surface area once it's going.

Pretty much the same, it is the water not the thing in the water that is moving.

[2] Completely useless in terms of skills they were too - although one had a mother who was a midwife... I told you there was a weird amount of detail in this dream!

It is always good to have someone who knows their way around a medical emergency.

[3] I ask this because evidently my subconscious was remembering the (very very old) ship I spent two years on (which I'm pretty sure could NOT be started from the bridge!), got best fuel economy at something like 12 knots instead of the 20(?) I think it was capable of.

Most of the Boats I have crewed could be started from the bridge if they had power, either Deep Cell Stack or Genset. Most of the Ships needed to be lit-off from the Main engineering consol, with one needing to have the boiler lite with a long match.

Evyn