Climb aboard YP 700, a US Naval Academy training vessel where midshipmen take a maritime version of driver's ed

USNA midshipmen learn shiphandling in special boats called YP 700. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider Midshipmen at the US Naval Academy learn seamanship on training vessels called yard patrol craft. After classroom instruction, midshipmen take trips where they manage every aspect of the journey. Yard patrol craft YP 700 features a pilothouse, racks, a galley, and a common area. At the United States Naval Academy, every midshipman learns to drive. Their driver's ed curriculum doesn't involve slow circles in empty parking lots or parallel parking tests. Instead, the future naval leaders learn how to drive, steer, and navigate a ship by going out on the water and doing just that. After midshipmen learn the basics of navigation, boat handling, man-overboard maneuvers, and standard commands in the classroom, they put their knowledge into practice on training vessels known as yard patrol craft. During my visit to the Naval Academy in August, I got to climb aboard the yard patrol craft YP 700 to see how midshipmen learn shiphandling and navigation on the job. Take a look. Midshipmen at the US Naval Academy practice their seamanship skills on yard patrol boats. ANNAPOLIS, Maryland (March 21, 2024) - Italian Navy Navy Cmdr. Marco Bilardi, left, instructs U.S. Naval Academy midshipmen in a basic navigation course aboard a yard patrol boat in Annapolis Md. As the undergraduate college of our country's naval service, the Naval Academy prepares young men and women to become professional officers of competence, character, and compassion in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. Naval Academy students are midshipmen on active duty in the U.S. Navy. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Maurice Brown Training is held both in the classroom and aboard yard patrol craft during the school year. In the summertime, midshipmen embark on longer trips where they manage every aspect of the journey, from navigation to cooking. While underway, midshipmen are supervised by experienced craftmasters, who are responsible for the safe operation of the vessels but largely take a hands-off approach to the training. I got an exclusive look inside one of these training vessels. YP 700. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider YP 700 measures 108 feet long and can hold around 30 people. With two diesel engines, it can reach a maximum speed of about 12 knots (about 14 mph). It has a range of 1,800 nautical miles and can remain underway for up to five days without refueling. In July, midshipmen sailed four yard patrol craft to Baltimore and New York City as part of the International Naval Review for America's 250th anniversary. Aside from special events such as Fleet Weeks, yard patrol craft aren't usually open for public tours. My tour started at the bow, where the wildcat, a toothed wheel that grips and moves the anchor chain, helps raise and lower the anchor. A wildcat used for anchoring. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider The wildcat is the one piece of machinery that midshipmen don't operate themselves since doing so incorrectly can, as one craftmaster told me, result in losing a finger. However, midshipmen do practice other aspects of anchoring, such as positioning the boat correctly. The pilothouse functions as the control center of the ship, housing the main helm, or steering wheel, and navigational equipment. Inside the pilothouse. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider The main helm controls the ship's rudder. Midshipmen also learn to steer the ship using just its port and starboard engines, which are controlled by separate levers. These levers are used by the lead helmsman to control the port and starboard engines. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider Midshipmen learn how to maneuver the vessel using the engines if normal rudder steering is lost. The navigation table houses the Voyage Management System, or VMS, which midshipmen learn how to use during their youngster, or sophomore, year. The navigation table with the Voyage Management System. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider The table itself is a holdover from an era when paper charts were central to maritime navigation. Midshipmen today train extensively on electronic navigation systems, though they also learn traditional chart plotting. The VMS shows a live feed of other vessels in the area using data from the Automatic Identification System, or AIS. The Voyage Management System. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider Through AIS, vessels broadcast their name, call sign, speed, course, and other key information that can help other ships contact and navigate around them. AIS complements radar by providing identification information on vessels transmitting a signal. The VMS displays that data, as well as useful chart information, including shallow or shoal water that could pose a grounding risk. The boat's sound tube is a relic from the days before handheld radios, but it still serves an amusing purpose as midshipmen learn the ropes. A sound tube. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider The craftmaster serving as my tour guide said he offers the sound tube to midshipmen as a place where they can scream out their frustration and relieve some stress before returning to their duties. He said it works very well. Below deck, the ship's craftmaster and other crew sleep in dedicated berths during trips. The craftmasters' stateroom. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider Midshipmen stay in bunks, known as racks, on another level further below deck, with six to 12 people to a room. Midshipmen are in charge of planning and preparing meals in the ship's galley. The galley. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider A midshipman designated as the supply officer creates the meal plan and assigns cooking duties. The galley features all of the basics, including a stove, oven, toaster, and microwave. Sometimes, crews will also bring an air fryer or a grill. Meals are eaten in seating booths near the galley or out on the deck in cooperative weather. Seating below deck. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider The galley is the coldest space on the ship in the summertime, so midshipmen often eat their meals downstairs. A multipurpose common space occasionally serves as a classroom, briefing room, and lounge, but most of the instruction happens on the job. A multipurpose common space on board YP 700. Talia Lakritz/Business Insider When the boat is underway, midshipmen learn to expect the unexpected. Craftmasters will throw a life ring overboard and see how long it takes them to notice, or suddenly declare "Man overboard!" to test their reaction time and knowledge of the correct procedures. The classroom space on board, it turns out, is barely used at all. Read the original article on Business Insider

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