Taxiing and Sailing

Idle (displacement) taxi: low RPM, nose-up, floats deep in the water — the normal mode for maneuvering, and the only sensible one near docks and traffic. Water rudders down.

Plow taxi: nose-high with substantial power, the hull pushing a big bow wave — poor visibility, poor cooling, heavy spray. It's a transition state, not a destination; I avoid staying in it except momentarily (e.g., turning downwind in strong wind where its nose-high attitude helps).

Step taxi: on the step at planing speed, water rudders up, steering with air rudder — used to cover distance quickly when the area ahead is confirmed clear. High energy, long stopping distance, and porpoise/skip risk if the pitch attitude is wrong (Seaplane Handbook FAA-H-8083-23 ch 4).

Down: displacement taxiing and most slow maneuvering.

Up: takeoff, landing, step taxi, and sailing (usually).

They're small and can be damaged or ineffective at speed, and during sailing you often want the tail free to weathervane. It's a flow item every transition: 'water rudders — position.'

Sailing is maneuvering with the engine at idle or shut down, using the wind (and current) to move — typically backward or backward-and-sideways, since a seaplane weathervanes nose into wind. To sail toward a spot behind me, I raise the water rudders and use the air controls and doors as sails:

• Ailerons and rudder deflect to swing the tail
• A door opened on one side adds drag/area to pull that side back
• Flaps down increase the surface area catching wind to drift back faster

The counterintuitive part: with the airplane drifting backward, I position controls opposite to my taxi instincts — I'm steering the tail, not the nose (FAA-H-8083-23 ch 4).

On the water I follow the nautical rules of the road (and 91.115 for water operations): the less maneuverable vessel has the right of way — and a seaplane on the water is usually more maneuverable-restricted than it looks but is still expected to keep clear of vessels it's overtaking.

• Crossing: the vessel to my right has right of way
• Approaching head-on: alter course to the right, pass port-to-port
• Overtaking: the overtaken vessel has right of way

Practical rule: seaplanes stay well clear of everything — swimmers, kayaks, wakes — regardless of who technically has the right of way.

Both are pitch-attitude problems.

Porpoising (rhythmic bow-up/bow-down oscillation) means the attitude is outside the sweet spot — correct by re-establishing the proper planing attitude with firm, smooth elevator; if it's diverging, close the throttle and let the airplane settle off the step.

Skipping (bouncing off wave tops) usually comes from excess speed or striking swells at the wrong attitude — again, fix the attitude or come off the step.

The wrong answer is chasing the oscillation with out-of-phase elevator inputs, which amplifies it.

The water tells me, if I read it:

• Wind streaks and ripples run with the wind; the glassy band on the lee shore means calm
• Waves build with fetch toward the downwind shore
• Moored boats and birds point into the wind
• My own airplane weathervanes nose-to-wind at idle — a constant live wind indicator

Current can differ from wind: flags and streaks show wind, drifting debris shows current — and near a dock I have to plan for both.

First I decide how the wind will move me the second the lines come off — a seaplane at idle drifts immediately.

Wind pushing me off the dock (ideal): cast off, let it drift clear, then start up.

Wind pinning me to the dock: I may need to hand-turn the airplane, walk it to the end of the dock, or sail off.

Either way I plan the whole path before untying: where I'll start the engine, my taxi route, hazards (buoys, swimmers, shallow water), and an escape option if the engine doesn't start while drifting (FAA-H-8083-23 ch 4, 6).

Same structure as land airports. Seaplane bases are listed in the Chart Supplement (with an anchor symbol on the sectional), and many share a CTAF for self-announcing taxi, takeoff, and landing intentions. At a towered field with a water landing area, I follow ATC instructions like any other operation, and an amphib complies with all the land taxi rules of Task II.D. Water lanes may be marked with buoys — know the local scheme before arriving.