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Seaplane Skiplane Flying Menu > Rules, Regulations, and Aids for Navigation > Seaplane
Regulations>United
States Aids for Marine Navigation >Buoys And Daybeacons
Buoys are floating markers held in place with
cables or chains to the bottom. Daybeacons are used for similar
purposes in shallower waters, and usually consist of a marker
placed on top of a piling or pole driven into the bottom. Locations
of buoys within U.S. waters are
Figure 1-2. Seaplane
landing areas have distinctive symbols
to distinguish them from land airports.
shown on nautical charts prepared by the Office
of Coast Survey (OCS), an office within the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Light lists prepared
by the Coast Guard describe lightships, lighthouses, buoys,
and daybeacons maintained on all navigable waters of the United
States.
Buoys with a cylindrical shape are called can
buoys, while those with a conical shape are known as nun buoys.
The shape often has significance in interpreting the meaning
of the buoy. [Figure 1-3]
Since a buoy’s primary purpose is to
guide ships through preferred channels to and from the open
sea, the colors, shapes, lights, and placement become meaningful
in that context. Approaching from seaward, the left (port) side
of the channel is marked with black or green can buoys. These
buoys use odd numbers whose values increase as the vessel moves
toward the coast. They also mark obstructions that should be
kept to the vessel’s left when proceeding from seaward.
The right side of the channel, or obstructions
that should be kept to the vessel’s right when headed
toward shore, are marked with red nun buoys. These
Figure 1-3. Buoys typically
used along waterways.
buoys use even numbers whose values increase
from seaward. The mnemonic “red, right, returning”
helps mariners and seaplane pilots remember to keep the red
buoys to their right when proceeding toward the shore (“returning”
to their home port).
Black and white vertically striped buoys mark
the center of the channel or fairway (the nautical term for
the navigable part of a river, bay, or harbor), and may use
letters starting at A from seaward.
Naturally, not all waterways lead straight
from ocean to port, so there are also buoys to mark the junctions
of waterways. Buoys with red and black horizontal bands mark
junctions or places where the waterway forks. They also mark
wrecks and obstructions that can be passed on either side. The
color of the top band (red or black) and the shape of the buoy
(nun or can) indicate the side on which the buoy should be passed
by a vessel proceeding inbound along the primary channel. If
the topmost band is black, the buoy should be kept to the left
of an inbound vessel. If the topmost band is red, keep the buoy
to the right when inbound. Buoys with the black top band will
usually be cans, while those with the red top band will usually
be nuns.
For waterways that run more or less parallel
to the coast, there is no obvious inbound or outbound to give
direction to the waterway, so by convention the inbound direction
of such waterways is assumed to be “clockwise” around
the contiguous states. This means that for waterways running
parallel to the east coast, southbound is considered the inbound
direction; for waterways along the Gulf coast, inbound means
westbound; and for waterways along the west coast, northbound
is inbound.
Daybeacons and daymarks serve similar purposes
as buoys and use similar symbology. In the United States, green
is replacing black as the preferred color for portside daymarks.
[Figure 1-4]
These are just the most basic features of the
most common buoyage system in the United States. There are other
buoyage systems in use, both in the United States and in other
countries. Sometimes the markings are exactly the opposite of
those just described. Good pilots will obtain a thorough understanding
of the maritime aids to navigation used in the areas where they
intend to fly.
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