🔍 Key Concepts

• Transverse thrust (prop walk) of a right-hand propeller when going astern • Effect of hard left rudder while the vessel still has good headway vs after headway is lost • Difference between vessel behavior while still moving ahead vs once starting to move astern

💭 Think About

• Think about what the rudder actually does when water is flowing past it from ahead to astern: when do you still have effective steering? • For a right-hand propeller, when the engine is put astern, which way does the stern tend to move because of transverse thrust alone, regardless of rudder? • How will the vessel’s behavior change at the moment that headway is lost and sternway starts to develop?

✅ Before You Answer

• Be clear on the initial effect: vessel has good headway when engines are first put astern and rudder is hard left. • Recall the prop walk direction for a right-hand propeller when backing: which side does the stern tend to move toward? • Separate the motion into two phases: while still moving ahead with a hard-over rudder, and after losing headway when propeller transverse thrust dominates.