Fig. 18. Bridge of the tugboat. An open compass platform, which still has the traditional binnacle, now also houses a radar antenna and sits above the enclosed wheel house.

The bridge of a ship is an area or room from which the ship can be commanded. When a ship is underway, the ship's captain or a senior officer is on the bridge at all times to maintain command and control.

Traditionally, in sailing ships, the ship would be commanded from the poop deck, right aft. With the arrival of paddle steamers, engineers required a platform from which they could inspect the paddle wheels and the captain required a position where his view would not be obstructed by the paddle houses. A raised walkway, literally a bridge, connecting the paddle houses was therefore provided. When the screw propeller superseded the paddle wheel, the bridge was retained.

Traditionally, commands would be passed from the senior officer on the bridge to stations dispersed throughout the ship, where physical control of the ship was exercised, as technology did not exist for the remote control of e.g. steering or machinery. Helm orders would be passed to an enclosed wheel house, where the coxswain or helmsman operated the ship's wheel. Engine commands would be relayed to the engineer in the engine room by an engine order telegraph, which displayed the captain's orders on a dial. The engineer would ensure that the correct combinations of steam pressure and engine revolutions were applied to enact his orders. The bridge was often open to the elements, therefore a weatherproof pilot house could be provided, from where a pilot (traditionally, the pilot was the ship's navigating officer) could issue commands from shelter.

Iron, and later steel, ships also required a compass platform. This was usually a tower, where a magnetic compass could be sited as far away from the ferrous interference from the hulk the ship. Depending upon the design and layout of a ship, all of these terms can be variously interchangeable.

Larger ships, particularly warships, often had a number of different bridges. A navigation bridge would be used for the actual conning of the ship. A separate Admiral's bridge could be provided in flagships, where the Admiral could exercise strategic control over his fleet without interfering with the Captain's tactical command of the vessel.

III. Answer the following questions:

1. What does a bridge have?

2. What did the captain require?

3. Where would commands from senior officer be passed?

4. Who operates the ship’s wheel?

5. What is a compass platform?

6. Iron and steel ships also required a compass platform, didn’t they?

IV. Translate the following text: “Balanced rudder.”

The balanced rudder was an innovation in warship construction.

In ships whether military or civilian and whether driven by power or by sail, the rudder was a simple flat piece of wood or metal, situated at the after end of the hull and hinged at the forward end, which could be angled to one side or the other to deflect the water passing it and hence provide an impulse to turn the ship. This required the exertion of significant force, as the passage of the water past the rudder tended to force it into a straight line in conformity with the flow.

The concept of a balanced rudder involved the shifting of the centre of rotation of the rudder to point approximately one-third of the way from the forward end to the after end. This meant that when the rudder was turned, the flow of water past the ship actively worked on the forward third to increase the angle of deflection, whereas the same flow acted on the after two thirds to reduce the angle. The mechanics of fluid dynamics produced a solution in which the turning force applied in one direction on the rudder by the passing water was balanced by the turning force applied in the other direction, allowing the rudder to be moved with only limited mechanical resistance.

V. Insert the missing word

1. The bridge of a ship is an … or … from which the ship can be ….

2. Traditionally, in … …, the ship would be commanded from the … ….

3. Commands would be passed from … … on the bridge to stations dispersed throughout the ….

4. … … would be passed to an enclosed … …, where the coxswain or helmsman operated the ship’s wheel.

5. Iron and later steel, ships also required … ….

6. Larger ships particularly …, often had a number of different ….

7. A separate … … could be provided in flagships.