Azipod in SP: Click here
I really like ship propulsion. However, many high-quality SP ships don't even have realistic propulsion, which drives me crazy. Because of the vast size of ships you just can't drive it like a car, which apparently is really hard to understand. So here is a rundown of the propulsion aboard maritime vessels. I won't go into the really obscure and unconventional methods though. And I won't have a separate section about the rudder (c'mon, you should probably know).
a. What you would think of
Just your average propeller(s). Most medium-sized ships have two of them. For steering, a rudder is mounted at the stern as well. Sometimes, one rudder is mounted directly behind each propeller for better maneuverability.
b. Azimuth thrusters (aka Azipods)
These are pods with a propeller (there are sometimes two of them) containing electric motors or transmission that connects to an engine farther up. The pods can swing 360° horizontally to provide thrust at any angle (hence azimuth). Most modern cruise ships use this kind of propulsion with limited exceptions (what are you still doing, princess cruises?) as it provides precise control and good maneuverability. The pods are mounted under the stern, and completely eliminates the need for (a) rudder(s) and a stern thruster, which will be mentioned below. Here are some pictures of the azimuth thruster:
But my ship still doesn't turn on a dime!
First of all, it must be made clear that some vessels are more maneuverable than others.
Introducing maneuvering thrusters!
Maneuvering thrusters are mounted either at the bow or the stern of a vessel. These push either the bow or the stern sideways and are commonly used for docking, when a ship needs to slide sideways into a berth. The bow and stern thrusters are often mounted inside the hull (tunnel thrusters), but can be mounted outside it (externally mounted thrusters) if space is not available. These are used for steering in tight spaces (bow and stern thrusters thrusting in different directions) or for moving sideways (thrusting in the same direction). As azimuth thrusters can be horizontally angled at any angle, they entirely replace the functionality of the stern thruster.
Yeah, makes it simple for my tiny brain @tsampoy
@ACEPILOT109 He’s awesome
i just learn from some YouTube videos i find randomly, like "Casual navigator" i think his name was. cool stuff!
@tsampoy it'll be fun!
@PapaKernels lol. But azimuths provide a lot of thrust, too much thrust to be used as a rudder, which would make it spin around
i'm no expert on this, but still good job on the post.
here, have a yellowish-orange button in the shape of a rectangle with smoothened edges and with white text inside of the rectangle saying "Upvote".
Cool didn’t know this until now
It would be cool and funny, we dont care about price @tsampoy @FeiWu
@asteroidbook345 my boat has one lol
@PapaKernels I've never seen azipods on any lifeboats
@asteroidbook345 I've seen one on the port
@FeiWu But I'm pretty sure most don't, so I tried to make it realistic lol
@asteroidbook345 lol thats what they're for
A guy I know has a yacht with a bow thruster. He can tokyo drift it into port and it's pretty satisfying to watch
@tsampoy good for you
and pretty sure cargo ships sometimes also have azipods
@PapaKernels Lifeboats dont have azipods. They have to be cheap lol
@tsampoy you should put azipods on my lifeboat
My cargo ship has bow and stern thrusters. But no azipods because it's a cargo ship
@FeiWu wow
@tsampoy They are usually so big that people can crawl in for maintenance
That's a huge azimuth
@PapaKernels lol
@FeiWu I am speed
@PapaKernels i made this because at this point I refuse to download SP ships lol
Very informative! Definitely will keep that in mind when @tsampoy gives me my ship back.