Monday, October 29, 2007

Types of boats

Airboat

Airboats are needlly flat-bottomed vessels propelled in a forward direction by an aircraft type propeller and powered by either an aircraft or automotive engine. The engine and propeller are covered in a protective metal cage that prevents objects, i.e., tree limbs, branches, clothing, beverage containers, wildlife from coming in contact with the whirling propeller, which could cause devastating falt to the vessel and traumatic injury to the operator and passengers.

The propeller gives a rearward column of air that propels the airboat forward. Steering is accomplished by forced air passing across vertical rudders. There must be a forceful airflow in order to the vessel to be steered. Airboats not have brakes and are incapable of traveling in reverse. Stopping and reversing direction are dependent upon operator/pilot/driver skill.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Parts of a boat

The roughly horizontal, but cambered structures spanning the hull of the boats are reffer to as the "deck". In a ship there are often many, but a boat is unlikely to have more than one. The similar but generally lighter structure which spans a raised cabin is a coach-roof. The "floor" of a cabin is properly known as the sole but is more likely to be called the floor. (A floor is properly, a structural member which ties a frame to the keelson and keel.) The underside of a deck is called the deck head. The keel is a lengthwise structural member to which the frames are constant one (sometimes referred to as a backbone). The vertical surfaces splitting the internal space are known as bulkheads. The front of a boat is known as the bow or prow. The rear of the boat is known as the stern. The right side of the boat is called starboard and the left side of the boat is called port.

Monday, October 15, 2007

ship
Usually a ship has enough size to carry its own boats, such as lifeboats, dinghies, or runabouts. A rule of thumb is "a boat can fit on a ship, but a ship can't fit on a boat". Consequently submarines are referred to as "boats", because early submarines were little enough to be carried aboard a ship in transit to distant waters. Other types of big vessels which are traditionally called boats are the Great Lakes freighter, the riverboat, and the ferryboat. Though big enough to carry their own boats and/or heavy cargoes, these examples are designed for operation on inland or protected coastal waters. Often local law and regulation will define the correct size (or the number of masts) which a boat requires to become a ship. Nautical meaning is related to sailors, particularly customs and practices at sea. Naval is the adjective pertaining to ships, step by step in common usage it has come to be more particularly associated with the noun "navy".

Monday, October 08, 2007

Boat
A boat is a watercraft designed to plane on, and provide transport over, water. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In Naval terms, a boat is small enough to be carried aboard another vessel (a ship). Boats that are notable exceptions to this concept due to their large size are the riverboat, narrowboat and ferryboat. These examples do, however, generally operate on inland , protected coastal waters. Modern submarines may also be referred to as boats but this is possibly due to the fact that the first submarines could be carried by a ship and were certainly not capable of making offshore passages on their own. Boats are may have military, other government, research, or commercial usage.