I used to work on a cargo barge on the inside passage and thought we were pretty big until one day when we came around a corner and I was looking up at the bow of the Haida Warrior. That tug made us look like a row boat. Her sister ship is the Haida Chief.

That Voith drive is interesting... it's like they took the helicopter swash plate concept and applied it to aquatic propulsion.

I am a Tug Engineer in Australia, and I have often thought about this issue but struggled to get straight answers. This video is amazing and explains it perfectly. Thank you.

It doesn't seem like it would be that difficult to automate the quick-release system to trigger in critical situations.

I feel working on a tugboat might be more dangerous than it seems at first glance. Capsizing, lines snapping, bad weather...

Additionally. They make semi-truck pulling contests, tractor pulling contests, why do we not have tugboat pulling contests? Get 3-4 tugs who have to race pulling heavy barges across a 2 mile stretch of water!

I think that "Plan ahead" part should be the takeaway for those who care but don't want to make a hobby of it.

Fun Fact: On old conventional harbor tugs, I know of, the length of Gog-line was adjusted by a seperate winch. Therefore at slow speeds the tug could use its full turning ability, while at moderate speed the Gog line could be tightened which made it possible to be towed behind the ship safely. Conventional tugs otherwise really dont like to be towed astern, as mentioned in the video.

The release button problem reminds me of something that happened to my partner. She had a data center fire -- power shorted out through a data line and caused a modem to explode and catch fire. Just inside the machine room door, there's a Big Red Switch that cuts all power to the entire room, for just such an emergency. She ran into the room, saw the fire, and hit the Big Red Switch. Unfortunately, the contractors who'd built the room never actually hooked the Big Red Switch up to anything, absolutely nothing happened. She had to spend the next 15 minutes in a smoke-filled room shutting down all the server racks one by one.

If there's anything I've learned from watching your videos, it's that the marine industry employs a lot of physics every day to run safety and efficiently. I assume most captains, for example, don't need to know all the explicit physics like you show in these videos, but the fact that they do clearly have a general understanding of it, and shipbuilders clearly need to have a pretty in-depth understanding of the forces at play, is something I had never really though of before. I used to think "make boat a boat shape and slap engine in to make boat go".

I work on a towboat and can confirm nothing good happens when a boat is held pinned or drug sideways through water or in current. Generally if you find yourself there alot of stuff has gone wrong and closed sealed water tight doors are about all that is going to save you, and it is still going to be a wild ride.

On my home river, the River Clyde, there's been several tugs lost when towing after capsizing. The primary reason for the loss of the vessels was that they weren't watertight at the point of capsize. Crews were lost because they didn't follow the rules. A very interesting explanation of the forces at work.

1:29 That is the coolest thruster design I’ve ever seen and it’s so simple. I love it and I wonder how nobody ever thought of it before. Absolute genius.

The quality of the content and the animations of this channel never cease to amaze me. Thank you so much!

Dangerous work. You always want to hire a pro for your tug jobs.

I'm a landlubber who always learns a lot from your episodes - thanks. Sounds like ALL tugs should be mandated to have a Quick Release system and a 'Standard' is required for documentation and signage.

One thing you didn't mention - there have been issues with the emergency release taking several seconds to activate (by which time it is too late). Usually because the emergency release was tested normally and worked fine, but when under load the system was underpowered to quickly release the line.

SO INTERESTING! I've wondered about this for years. Thank you for posting!

Awesome! So many of your videos taught me things I never even realized I'd want to know. Great stuff!

love to switch to the home page to see you uploaded 1 minute ago

Your animations are outstanding! You do a really good job of simplifying things to make them understandable

What another goofy topic. I love it. Your content is unique and lovely

Tugging too hard is definitely dangerous for many reasons!

Concise and clear explanation - well done. Years ago I had the chance to tour the Master, the last steam tug in BC which was preserved as a working museum vessel and did a stop over in my city. The look around the engine riim was fascinating in particular. Whether harbour tugs or long distance tow boats these workhorses have always interested me.

gives insight to a lot more respect for reputable tug services and danger of their duties.

A few years ago I was rowing up the Tyne river and we watched a tug going astern all the way past us and carried on out of sight. I don't remember much details about the tug but I'd assume it's probably still at work now. I found it amusing that they didn't bother turning round

Another great, informative and well presented video. Thank you

Fantastic episode, thanks for posting!

Hi Casnav! These animations are the best!

That is called "tripping the tug". It is as dangerous as it seems.

Are there any automated quick release systems? It seems like an obvious solution, so I wonder if it is in use, or why not? You could put sensors on the ship that keep track of its angle and angular velocity and automatically release the rope if a critical threshold is crossed.

This video *tugged* at my heartstrings. Thank you

"If there are multiple tugs available, consider which is best in each position" These are wise words. Grip strength usually plays a part in it. Of course if one tug simply can't do it in that position, two tugs in the same position will almost certainly launch the seamen.

0:27 There are really two things a tugboat needs to be able to do well: 1. Tug 2. Boat

Thank you UKposts recommendations, one day I shall get to use this knowledge about tug boats.

Our 40ft line boat only had a single Kort nozzle and no bow thruster. I learned a lot about ship handling on the little boat.

DISASTERS AT SEA: S3E6 - Towed Under

Very informative!

"Excuse me. Did you say blades?" "Yes. Rotating ones."

I actually had a ring side seat to see a very similar situation develop back in 1977 as a US Navy Tug assisted a Spanish carrier get underway in Rota Spain. The carrier (helicopter carrier) so not like the Nimitz in size, was pulled away from the pier and kicked it into overdrive before releasing the tow line. The Tug Boat was dragged backwards and the captain tried to run in reverse fast enough to be able to unhook from his end but was not able. He quickly did a hard right rudder turning the tug sideways and the tow line parted. They almost turned over but didn't. The tug crew was running for cover and slamming hatches. I stood right there and watched the whole thing start to finish.

Perhaps you could make a video sometime about harbour pilots? What they do, why they're improtant to even experienced captains, why they're still used despite modern communication and navigation technologies etc. etc.

Great video - thankyou!

How about having a very strong samurai with a katana next to the line to cut it when you need to release it fast? As we all know from countless films and animes, a protagonist could cut metal with one swing no matter the strength of the cable, so it could be an instant release (minus the time it takes him to scream the name of the attack)

great video I'll be glad if you can do more videos on tug handling

I'm all agog at your excellent work. 👍🏽

Important topic. Offshore supply boats usually have some sort of framework that keeps any towline towing from the stern. It always seemed pretty obvious why they did this. I didn't realise tugs didn't have this same protection but you've explained the reason why quite well.

Very clear animations!

Sounds to me like having a live feed between the two ship bridges is a requirement. Any control change on one ship should be immediately communicated to the other ship. To go along with that would be clear unambiguous code phrases that, when used correctly, speed up the communication process and reduce misunderstandings.

Ergonomics and crew knowledge are probably the two most important factors in any accident. The two Boeing 737 Max crashes that grounded the entire fleet are a great example. The angle of attack sensor on those two aircraft malfunctioned, causing the automated system to pitch the planes wildly as it was being fed incorrect data. All the pilots had to do was flip a switch that would take the automatic system offline and allow them to take manual control. This switch was in an out of the way spot where crews wouldn't notice it and, critically, the Boeing retraining documentation for pilots transitioning from the standard 737 to the Max never made mention of this override switch. Had the pilots know about it, either from it being placed in a prominent position in the console, it being mentioned in their training documentation, or preferably both, they would have easily been able to take control of the aircraft and no one would have died.

I learned this the hard way even with an RC model tug... I tow myself in a 17-foot kayak (total weight 300lbs) with my 3½ft, 30-pound model tug. I learned right quick to position my tow bollard well back on the aft deck after very nearly sinking my $1500 model. Now I can get well into indirect towing, but if it gets away from me, all I have to do is let off the throttles and it will come back up and flop alongside.

Always thought Tugs were more complicated than I knew. I was right, very interesting.

my man why are you making a video about tugs capsizing and not on those voith drives, super neat

There is actually a good solution that would make it almost impossible to capsize a tug by pulling at the tug line. When I was active in the fail flight club we used a safety connector on the tow line that had a pre-calculated limit where it would break at. You could quite easily order one for the tug and the tug line would disconnect with the safety of you run the risk of capsizing the tug with one minor issue being wind or currents that might change the load on the tug line.

Hey! Casual Navigation, I suggest you to tell us all about Voith Schneider Propellers, it would be interesting to see

Here in Australia we’re experts in gerting…. it’s even in our national anthem “our home is girt by sea” 😊

Fun stuff. It makes me miss my kinematics and dynamics courses.

Red jasmine in Glasgow Clyde comes to mind. Engine room door was open. I drove a tug for 10 mins and did a few circles etc and docking manoeuvres on a floating pontoon thing. crazy the directions it can go.

It seems like the quick release could be tied into the gogs where the line cuts if the gogs are pulled too hard. You would still have the manual option, but it would trigger the release when it happens too fast for the crew to react. Ideally it would also need a mechanism to avoid the line wrapping around anything when released, but I don't know if that's a solved problem or not.

All of the rugs I know have the connection at about a third from the rear. This gives plenty of manoeuvrability but helps a lot to prevent any danger. It’s still possible though, just a lot less likely. I own a now recreational tug build in 1887 and it to has the connection at about a third from the rear. Apparently they already knew back then.

Very interesting !!!!

Seems like the obvious solution is an automated tow-cutting system that uses a gyro or two to automatically cut the line whenever the tug tilts/lists by more than X degrees.

An interesting solution to this problem is the carousel tug. The towing connection sits on a ring around the superstructure of the tug meaning it can rotate around the tug giving it super manoeuvrability yet since the towing connection sits off-center when the tow line starts pulling the tug sideways it actually pulls it more upright increasing stability. Nova tug has been building the latest innovations in these type of tugs with the carrousel rave tug. Their website had some really nice video’s and articles about how the forces work to completely eliminate the risk of capsize

Pretty negligent to not have a quick release system. Seen them used in some incredibly heavy and dynamic loads, so I know it's not an engineering issue.

The USS Houston SSN-713 accidentally caught the cable between a barge and tug, pulled the tug under. about 1988

Cool you mentioned the George H. Ledcor incident. It happened near where I am from!

I am currently working on a tugboat right now.

As someone who works on a tug, correction at 2:23 Almost all tugs have what are called “backing rudders” these are, albeit smaller, rudders that sit in front of the wheels (not propellers, those are for planes and tiny personal crafts) and provide steering when backing up. Most people use both the backing and steering rudders to use one engine in forward and reverse to turn on a dime or provide extra force to turn something being towed.

At last, a video where I understood everything

Seems rather sily that there isn't an automatic release when the tilt of the ship is detect beyond a set degree.

So it's essentially possible to jack knife a tugboat

The problem is not tugging the tug too hard. The problem is the line of force with respect to the heading and line of movement of the tug through the water. Voiths are the best protection against girding.

It would be interesting to learn about carousel tugs.

I'm a retired pilot on the river Schelde to and from the port of Antwerp. I have 2 comments: 1. It is good seamanship to prevent the tug when you want to start te engine off course. But even without warning : the tugboat captain can see the wash coming from under the stern when the engine has been started, and it takes a while till the ship actually will take some speed. 2. The manoever leaving the berth with current from the bow: it is wrong to try and leave stern first ! You should take the bow out first, and let the current do its job. The tug only has to take care that the stern will not hit the quay again. Or take the tug foreward, keep sternspring, put rudder hard over towards the quay and when the bow is coming off give a kick ahead if the current + rudder is not enough to keep the stern free from the quay.

Quick release system for a line under a few hundred tons of tensions sounds like a safe and reasonable thing to have. Not a line handling hazard waiting to happen. Well, better than capsizing I guess, lol.

You know, I've been thinking about tug boats lately. Tug boats are like the unsung heroes of the maritime world. They're out there, just tugging away, pulling these massive ships around like it's no big deal. I mean, think about it. It's like the ultimate power move on the water. But you know what's really bugging me? How do tug boats even get into the business? Did they have some sort of tugging internship? Did they graduate from tug boat school with honors? I can picture it now: "Congratulations, you've earned your degree in Advanced Tugology!" And what's their career progression like? Do they start with tiny toys in the bathtub, and then work their way up to bigger rubber duckies? Maybe they have tug boat idols they look up to. You know, posters of legendary tuggers on their bedroom walls - "Tugboat Legends: Pulling through the Ages!" But let's talk about the name, "tug boat." Isn't it a little too on the nose? Like, why not call it a "strong boat" or a "mighty boat"? I feel like tug boats should have their own PR agent to give them a catchier name. Imagine introducing them like, "Ladies and gentlemen, the incredible, the invincible, the unstoppable... SUPER TUG!" I'd be way more excited to see a "Super Tug" in action. And you know what's even crazier? They have these little tug boats that tow gigantic cargo ships across oceans. It's like watching a chihuahua pulling a semi-truck. It defies all logic. But hey, they get the job done, so kudos to them. In the end, I guess tug boats are like the Clark Kents of the water - humble, unassuming, but incredibly powerful when duty calls. So here's to all the tug boat operators out there - keep tugging away and reminding us that even the smallest boats can make the biggest waves!

In the past tugs used to have a hook for towing, that had a quick release function. Nowadays firtually all tugs tow with their towing line on the winch. Which cannot be quick released. Additianolly; As i've watched many tugboats, from the deck of a merchant. I've never seen a tug with all hatches closed and secured....

always wanted to see a pogo foss named for me, sadly not a foss, but there was a Sea Chicken

All this gog line business sounds a lot like the way the mainsheet traveler works on some boomless rigs, fine-tuning the sheet angles.

Why would attaching the towline to a vertical mast, so that if the tug heels it will be dragged off the mast and release with no action nor any active mechanism, not work?

I would have never thought that someone could be tugged too hard but, I guess here we are. 🤷‍♂️😅

What you call girding, I've seen called tripping in US tug operations.

Such excellent, informative videos!

Thumbnail making me act up 😆

There is a new tug design in the Netherlands that avoids all these dangers. Look at Novatug carousel rave tug.

The Title on the Thumbnail is very relatable 🗿

Needs an international standards body like for aviation so that cockpit / bridge signs and controls follow a well-designed universal pattern.

I didnt see any mention of the winchs and the "quick release" system on these winches called the winch breaks. The majority of tugs in this type of industry aren't typically made fast to the object they are towing\tugging.....they will pass a small line up to the ship and have the crew on the ship haul the main line up to the anchor point where the tug will be attached to the ship. Where the other end of the main line or "towline" would be attached to the tug via a mechanical winch. Winch's that are typically fitted with 3000 to 4000 foot towline. The winch is equipped with a breaking system. These breaks can be released instantly. These breaks are tested to the bolard pull of the tug that these said winch's are installed on so not to slip while being used durring bursts of maximum power. The breaking system is not designed to be used while on a long haul. By long haul.... i am referimg to trips for days at sea under maximum power to get from point A to point B. Once you are set out for a trip. All safety measures and avoidance of all questionable areas the tug would be in. You would then lock down the break and set the "dog" on said winch. At this point there is no "quick release".

It was giving her all she’s got

Love the video. But that title is perfect..all I could think was ‘Is that what the cool kids call it now?’

You didn’t get the draft right in the picture the props are usually 16/24 feet down deeper water higher water pressure gives the boat more thrust

Captain could wear a boat flip over button on a lanyard like a life alert and release all load

Tugs can be set up so that way if the boat finds insleft in danger is can release the rope thing automatically

put an emergency gogging device, between tugline and board

Communication is key.

The video mentions that the gog has to be well measured, but does it have to be a fixed length? I'm imagining a setup with the line attached to a high-powered winch fixed at the stern, under normal conditions it could be fairly long connecting cable allowing plenty of movement, but as soon as instability was detected the winch could rapidly reel in the cable, pinning the main tow line directly astern and imparting a torque to rotate the ship and restore some stability. Easily resettable too, just allow the winch to wind out some more cable. Potentially a computer could constantly monitor it and constantly change the length depending on sensor input.

What do you Use for your videos?

Remote quick releases are better anyway A remote transmitter that the crew can carry Just pop open the cover and press the release like a trigger

Wouldn't another solution be to have the attachment point be slightly towards the stern from the middle of the tug? That way, if the tug gets tugged, it turns like a weathervane instead of capsizing.

So, the classic, quintessential, turn of the century tugboat had one screw, one rudder, and the towline was attached 3/4 of the way down the hull length. How is it that they managed as well as they did with this arrangement? Was there just a completely different tow & handlining theory?

I wonder if they build tugs to be completely watertight from the top and bottom, effectively making them submarines? If they don't do this, I'm frankly surprised. I've seen small boats that can capsize and re-right themselves without assistance, and it would make a ton of sense to do it with a tug.