Not using your AIS

The thing I find most useful about AIS is the 'point of closest approach' graphic. The screen shows heading vectors for my boat and others, and indicates the position when the boats will be closest together, and shows how far apart that is. If I see someone without AIS that is heading my way than I acquire the target on the radar screen and shortly afterwards AIS-type info pops up on the nav screen - speed, heading and point of closest approach graphic. Not necessary, but convenient. If I figure that I would rather be a bit further away from them then tweaking the autopilot a few degrees to achieve that is simple to do. At times I will slow down or speed up to effect separation.

If you are seldom in areas where convergent traffic occurs then this feature of AIS is something you wouldn't use. For me, entering the Brisbane River from Moreton Bay, entering channels around the bay or heading for some anchorages within the bay it is something I use a lot even if there is good visibility.

A bit of nitpicking, only one E. EPIRB = Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon

I have the prescribed EPIRB for the boat, and also for the tender as it is mandatory for the tender as well if it is more than 3nm from the boat and I'm beyond smooth waters. But I also have a personal one for my own life-vest, with GPS. The latter functionality costs a little extra but takes 'search' out of search and rescue. If I ever need the thing I want rescue fast! As soon as personal sized AIS transmitters are cheaper I'll add them to a few other life-vests as well. And if I plan a cruise with much in the way of overnight legs then I'll get at least one so whoever is on watch has it. It can only be a matter of time before the offshore sailing racers make them standard equipment, and I'm hoping an expanded market will see prices tumble.
AIS MOB Devices

In the cold waters of the PNW and BC coasts, if people are going to be wearing life jackets for safety anyway then having an AIS MOB device attached to it makes a lot of sense to me. You have to get the MOB out of the water fast, and even in daylight if visibility is poor or there are whitecaps etc then finding the MOB really quickly is vital and may not be as simple as during your practice sessions. And yes, you probably also hit the MOB button on your chartplotter immediately, so an AIS MOB device isn't necessary... Each to their own.

Brian,

Agree with all your comments, particularly the point about personal Epirb attached to your jacket. Earlier this year when we did our Bass Strait crossings, which involve a full night at sea , usually in rough conditions , every crew member was required to wear their inflatable life jacket with Epirb attached , even when off watch and having a sleep. If things are going to go wrong , they usually happen quickly and last thing you want to be doing is finding jackets etc in the dark. As soon as daylight came and conditions were suitable off they came. We also have the ditch bag and torches, and life ring with drouge at hand ready to go also. I know it is a bit off topic but in mind it is critical to be prepared.

Cheers Chris D Liberty

markpierce said:

I've noted that some boaters don't always use their AIS when underway. So, why have it and not use it? Is it perceived as an invasion of privacy?

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Good Question.
I presume you're referring to AIS transmitters.
Why would anyone buy a AIS tranamitter if you're concerned with privacy.
If money were no object I would have one. I have a receiver. The safety of others displaying my position far out weighs privacy concerns in my opinion.

ksanders said:

Some AIS units cannot be turned off.

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Yep. Our AIS can only be turned off at a breaker (and that happens to be the same breaker for our plotter) which requires a slight bit of furniture movement.

No hard switch on the AIS unit (and it's buried somewhere under our helm anyway) and no soft switch on the plotter. So when we're at the dock, sometimes I remember, sometimes not...

-Chris

I have an AIS receiver only and use it whenever I use my nav PC. One reason for not getting a transponder was definitely a concern about privacy. My wife and I usually boat together. Our kids are no longer at home. When we are boating our house is more vulnerable to burglary. Broadcasting that we are away via AIS locally and on the web is too great of a risk for me. For these same reasons, we do not post our activities that take us away from home on social media in real time. Some criminals are quite resourceful.

Marin said:

If the boat had one we'd use it simply because it would be another cool electronics toy to play with.

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Like this 27 footer?
Any more toys and he'll need a bigger boat.

Some interesting points of view. I bought and installed an AIS transponder before bringing Stillwater down from Ketchikan to San Francisco. Despite only being the Inside Passage we ran into some very rough conditions in Chatham Sound coming from Ketchikan to Prince Rupert Island. Winds were 50kt gusting to 56kt (per the coastguard) and waves 18'. We called the coastguard to find out if condx were going to change. They told me they could see us on AIS. That made me feel a lot better - knowing they were tracking us. Shortly after a tug hailed us, he had heard the conversation and could also see us on AIS. He recommended a quicker route into Prince Rupert Island that he was about to take. He could see where we were and offered to guide us in. This saved us about 2-3 hours out in the rough weather.

Here in SF bay it is often very busy. I find AIS and the closest approach feature very handy when there are multiple large vessels involved. For the price I think it's a great tool.

I'm not worried about privacy since I'm choosing to share the data. Also, since Stillwater is my home I don't have to worry about being burgled while I'm out - unless they're pirates of course!

Richard

Britannia said:

Despite only being the Inside Passage we ran into some very rough conditions in Chatham Sound coming from Ketchikan to Prince Rupert Island. Winds were 50kt gusting to 56kt (per the coastguard) and waves 18'. We called the coastguard to find out if condx were going to change. They told me they could see us on AIS. That made me feel a lot better - knowing they were tracking us. Shortly after a tug hailed us, he had heard the conversation and could also see us on AIS. He recommended a quicker route into Prince Rupert Island that he was about to take. He could see where we were and offered to guide us in. This saved us about 2-3 hours out in the rough weather.

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Richard, you have just presented the best argument for AIS and anyone who has been in a traffic management centre, like CCG or Vancouver traffic would agree, I think.

You only need to sit there for an hour to see how much time is wasted watching unidentifiable idiots putting themselves and others in harms way. I can see AIS being mandatory in the near future as a means of ID.

jleonard said:

My AIS is still in the store. I haven't seen the need of it yet.

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So is mine, I updated the navigation soft ware, new charts that include Canada and west coast and bought a new pc that accepts AIS. As our old is 20 years old, and I still prefer and use as primary. Spent to much money on upgrading that I didn't have the money for AIS.

However I am still debating if AIS is necesary. Being old school I use the radar and the only boats I am interested is knowing and seeing are boats bigger than we are. I think all commercial boats ships are required, and they tend to follow be in the shipping line. There is also a web sight on line that shows world wide AIS, so you do not have to have AIS capablity.

When we install AIS it will be able to receive and send. Besides we are dock queens and only leave the dock in the daytime and nice clear, calm days.

Hawgwash said:

I can see AIS being mandatory in the near future as a means of ID.

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Nobody can predict the future, but if AIS becomes mandatory I would not be surprised if this is enacted in the same manner as transponders in aircraft. Transponders are mandatory for certain types of airspace. I can see AIS being used the same way. If one is going to operate in areas of high commercial traffic--- harbors, shipping lanes---I can see AIS becoming mandatory for use while in those waters.

But for operations outside those waters, I can see AIS not being mandatory.

And how will they deal with AIS in small boats? Will every RIB, 9-foot Livingston, 14 foot Lund skiff, etc. be required to have an AIS? How about paddleboarders? All these watercraft are certainly capable of operating in shipping lanes and busy harbors. Will VTS centers want their screens cluttered with dozens if not hundreds of targets?

When I lived in Hawaii I got to know a number of the air traffic controllers who worked in the tower at HNL and also at the ATC in Diamond Head. I don't know if they still do this, but they had their radar equipment adjusted to eliminate all targets moving less than 50 mph. If they hadn't done this, their screens would have been cluttered with cars on the freeways and nearby roads and boats in the waters off the south side of Oahu.

During the few years that SeaFlight operated a trio of Boeing hydrofoils between Oahu, Maui and Kauai the controllers hated it because when the boats accelerated past 50 mph leaving Oahu they suddenly appeared on the radar screens right in the middle of busy air traffic patterns in and out of HNL.

I can see the same thing happening with AIS. If every craft on the water has to have it, it's going to look like it's snowing on the VTS screens in some of the busier waterways and harbors.

It will be interesting to see how this technology evolves in its use.

A few more anecdotes...

We've been called a couple of times by overtaking vessels to alert us to their intentions. A lot easier than figuring out if "vessel northbound off blah-blah point" is you.

And I've never been boarded since I installed an AIS transmitter. Not even approached. I wasn't exactly a LEO magnet previously, but...

And there was the time a couple of summers back when I responded to a distress call right at Boundary Pass (between US and Canada). I was at the vessel, we were smack dab in the boundary, and I wanted to know what my legal options for towing were. Victoria CG knew exactly where I was, and though it didn't come up - they would also know what I looked like.

But hey, if you want to go all stealth have at it.


Keith

Marin said:

... If every craft on the water has to have it, it's going to look like it's snowing on the VTS screens in some of the busier waterways and harbors...

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In Februrary I visited the SF VTS on a trip organized by Al for the SF TF folks. They had only Class A targets showing on their main screens. They did have a separate Rosepoint application that also showed Class B targets. I suspect that Class A vs B would be part of the solution for keeping large commercial vessel traffic from becoming masked by smaller, pleasure boats.

Richard

I see AIS as not being necessary in certain areas and being very helpful in others.

Here's a mixed one. You're in an area which is subject to some amount of piracy. AIS tells the pirates exactly what kind of boat is heading through and whether it's by itself. Great information for pirates. However, AIS also can assist authorities in locating the boat afterwards if the pirates don't disable it. Even if they do, at least you have a last known area.

We used AIS as we approached a shipping port like Golfito. We did not use it as we cruised off the coast of Central America for hours without another boat anywhere in sight. When a boat did enter our area then we'd identify it and either turn our AIS on or identify ourselves to them. But we cruised one night for 12 hours with no other boat on our radar or in the range of our AIS and we did not feel identifying ourselves wise in those conditions.

AIS is one of many reasons that our boat is not tied to us personally in a way to disclose who is on the boat.

I suppose if I was transitting Haro Strait on a regular basis, or goofing around in the Fraser, I would have one. But as it is, I don't see the need. I get a pretty good picture of the traffic as I fly in and out of Vancouver a couple of times a week. It can be busy, but manageable with radar, visual and VHF.

I like that many recreational boat and yachts have them, as it is fun to see who is transitting up and down the Strait of Georgia past my house on Marine Traffic. So yeah, I can see the privacy issue for some.

Traffic in North America is nothing compared to the South China Sea or the Strait of Malacca. You can be in the middle of the South China Sea, and it looks like a city lit up at night. Wonder if AIS changes anything there...

Northern Spy said:

I suppose if I was goofing around in the Fraser...

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I'd rather have something to detect the stumps coming at me just under the muddy surface.

Really though, at this stage AIS is more about having another tool in the box. You can choose to have it and choose to use it.

I've been in Chatham Sound with only a paper chart, compass and deviation table. Never had Loran because it meant buying new charts and it was accurately lousy anyway.

AIS is a tool that if I deemed it to be economical, I would get it for day to day and would certainly appreciate the security blanket effect in places like Dixon Entrance etc.

For those of us who routinely cross between Canada and the US, AIS at the least nice and possibly imperative to have. As Refugio states, Homeland and both sides Customs and CGs are likely attuned to where and who we are. With continual watches for drug trafficking, terrorism and people trafficking the PNW is a busy watch place for us boarder crossers.

We renewed our NEXUS cards earlier this year in Blaine. Based upon what we were told and verified by others, AIS is part of the watch system and used as a Customs tool. Maybe BS but they for sure knew about AIS as a tracking aid.

sunchaser said:

For those of us who routinely cross between Canada and the US, AIS at the least nice and possibly imperative to have. As Refugio states, Homeland and both sides Customs and CGs are likely attuned to where and who we are. With continual watches for drug trafficking, terrorism and people trafficking the PNW is a busy watch place for us boarder crossers.

We renewed our NEXUS cards earlier this year in Blaine. Based upon what we were told and verified by others, AIS is part of the watch system and used as a Customs tool. Maybe BS but they for sure knew about AIS as a tracking aid.

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Most people forget just how much we are being routinely tracked. Otherwise they wouldn't do the stupid things they do.

I was in the N Van IGA recently and they have more cameras than the Bellagio. Unbelievable.

We keep ours off except when our Navigation dictates it should be on like running the river systems or at night or well off shore but for hanging out on the ICW it stays off.

Have a continual self-debate on AIS. Haven't seen the need. But if I operated during the night or in an area of frequent restricted visibility, that would push me "over the edge" and get it.

Saw this approaching directly a mile ahead. We each turned starboard a couple of degrees and had a perfect pass. No communication needed. A typical "engagement."



My usual "heads up" on commercial shipping in the San Francisco estuary, is to listen to USCG traffic control on channel 14.

I was not planning on jumping into this discussion because each captain chooses how he wants to equip and operate his boat.


For ME, I like having AIS aboard and use it ALL of the time. CPA is helpful. Most of our trip this summer in NY and Canada, we found many tugs would not respond unless you called them by name - with AIS, I had that information. Radar is harder to tune and operate for me. Today, cruising down the Chesapeake, there were many sailboats who did not even appear on my radar. In the Hampton Roads channels with 40-50 boats moving, including a navy ship, a CG cutter, several tugs, tows, etc the AIS made it very helpful. A lot of triangles and dashed lines but more helpful than not. I very much like the feature that shows vessels coming up from astern show on the plotter as dotted lines coming up behind me (I cannot see astern from the helm).


When traveling with 1-3 other boats, I can touch on the triangle and see the distance, speed and course of the other boats at a glance.


I do have a switch to turn off the broadcast when docked but if my boat is underway, I am broadcasting and receiving.


Just my opinion and practice.

HenryD said:

Radar is harder to tune and operate for me.

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For anyone interested in getting the most out of their on-board radar, there is a good book on the subject, The Radar Book, by Kevin Monahan. There are undoubtedly others but I found Kevin's very informative and useful.

My favorite radar book simply by virtue of being pretty cool is a copy of a radar operations book I came across shortly after acquiring our boat that was published and used by the Royal Navy in the UK. It is certainly interesting reading and extremely detailed but---- it was written in the days of green screen CRT hooded displays and big knobs to turn. Some of the information on using a radar has some relevance but the technology and display capabilities are totally out of date.

Marin - Thank you

HenryD said:

I was not planning on jumping into this discussion because each captain chooses how he wants to equip and operate his boat.


For ME, I like having AIS aboard and use it ALL of the time. CPA is helpful. Most of our trip this summer in NY and Canada, we found many tugs would not respond unless you called them by name - with AIS, I had that information. Radar is harder to tune and operate for me. Today, cruising down the Chesapeake, there were many sailboats who did not even appear on my radar. In the Hampton Roads channels with 40-50 boats moving, including a navy ship, a CG cutter, several tugs, tows, etc the AIS made it very helpful. A lot of triangles and dashed lines but more helpful than not. I very much like the feature that shows vessels coming up from astern show on the plotter as dotted lines coming up behind me (I cannot see astern from the helm).


When traveling with 1-3 other boats, I can touch on the triangle and see the distance, speed and course of the other boats at a glance.


I do have a switch to turn off the broadcast when docked but if my boat is underway, I am broadcasting and receiving.


Just my opinion and practice.

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One of the side benefits is spotting someone you recognize and getting together for dinner.

Ted

I have it on my boat and a sportfisher I capt have only turned it of in fishing tormment s it's safety gear that works and you may not know how it saved you problems but it works

gwkiwi said:

We keep ours off except when our Navigation dictates it should be on like running the river systems or at night or well off shore but for hanging out on the ICW it stays off.

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If I had a transmitter it would always be on even at anchor.

Last year in N.C. in a portion of the ICW that had many curves that restricted visibility to a few hundred yards, my AIS receiver alerted me to a commercial tug around the bend. I slowed so I would pass him in a portion of the river that had more visibility.
Just my experience.

I well remember the furor that existed when car safety belts first came out. then motorcycle helmets, then airbags etc. Resistance to change is alive and well.

I needed to replace an older VHF at the helm that was a back-up to my Icom M604. I looked at Icoms as I really liked their performance and noticed that the M506, for a bit more then $100 had a NMEA-2000 hook-up for a built in AIS receiver, as I already had a Garmin network with a 6212, 4210 and 3505 plotters hooked to the network it was an easy one cable hook up to add and AIS to the setup and only cost a tiny bit.

M506 VHF Marine Transceiver - Features - Icom America

Forward 4 weeks later we were cruising back from south Fl. and on the ICW the unit alarmed with a notice of collision in 6 min as I was being overtaken by a 47' boat doing 35knts. With the name of the boat right there it was easy to call him and ask for a slow pass using the boat name and mentioning his overtake speed and letting him know just how far I was ahead of him i was, he responded immediately and gave a nice, well coordinated slow pass.


Worth every bit of the less then $150 I had into the receiver. Information is a good thing.


If you are in the market for a radio look into one with a built-in AIS receiver they are very reasonable and require no extra antenna or splitter and have a built-in display but can interface with most any plotter easily.

SCOTTEDAVIS said:

...we were cruising back from south Fl. and on the ICW the unit alarmed with a notice of collision in 6 min as I was being overtaken by a 47' boat doing 35knts. With the name of the boat right there it was easy to call him and ask for a slow pass using the boat name and mentioning his overtake speed and letting him know just how far I was ahead of him i was, he responded immediately and gave a nice, well coordinated slow pass.

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As well, human behavior being what it is, contact and identifying by name tends to be more effective in tempering the big wake, fast passers and rodeo clowns; if they have AIS.

As Marin (I think it was him) said, more effective than "the white whatever."

sunchaser said:

I well remember the furor that existed when car safety belts first came out. then motorcycle helmets, then airbags etc. Resistance to change is alive and well.

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The furor was never over their existence or availability. The furor was over their being made mandatory. It was a resistance to nanny-state mentality, not the seatbelts, helmets, etc. themselves.

I agree we have enough regulations and requirements as it is, let us decide what makes sense as to the needs of our particular boating areas.

I don't want to be required to have an EPIRB as I don't operate out of the sight of land, it would bug the crap out of me if .gov made them mandatory. Others, and I would agree find them to be a must given the boating they do.

In Fl. the same year that seat-belts became mandatory the infinite stupidity changed the motorcycle helmet law making them optional both went into effect on the same day. Go figure.

As Jimmy Buffet says "I don't need that much organization in my life"