Notes on Handling the U. S. S. “Leviathan”
By Captain William W. Phelps, U. S. Navy
The power to drive the Leviathan is distributed into turbines driving the four propellers. In the open sea the steam is distributed in what we call the high pressure cruising combination, whereby the turbines operate at their highest economy. But in this combination the engines cannot be thrown back instantly, so that in the open ocean in considering her safety and manœuvering, the rudder effect only can be relied upon. She must be considered as having no backing effect. For leaving port, entering port and manœuvering about the dock or about the anchorage, there is thrown in what is called the manœuvering combination. In this combination the highest speed the ship is capable of is sixteen knots ahead, and the combination permits steam to be thrown into the backing turbines. When there is little or no wind the ship steers very well. When it blows strong on the beam or on the quarter, the enormous area of the ship’s freeboard makes her act like a catboat, she wants to fly up into the wind. She requires a weather helm or to put it in modern language, a lee rudder. She will turn very quickly into the wind, but she will turn away from the wind only slowly and reluctantly. Consequently we always dislike going into New York or out of New York in a gale of wind, where the restricted channel requires prompt and accurate turning of the ship. Under normal conditions the manœuvering of the ship with her propellers, in spite of her great length of 954 feet, is all that can be desired.