Seaplane Book

[Potential]

Anybody know of a good British book about seaplane flying? I've only been able to find American books.

[Pugilistic Animus]

Well the composition of the atmosphere is [was] the same as the US

so except for legal matters it wont matter which book,...for example the FAA's Seaplanes Skiplanes and Float and Ski Equipped Helicopter Operations Handbook

[Potential]

I would say the licensing and other legal matters are quite important plus America uses a different bouyage system so that is a significant part of the book that would be fairly useless. Plus the FAA may have different ideas from the CAA about other aspects of seaplane operation that I might not pick up on.

[whistling turtle]

With respect ''Pugilistic Animus'' gave you a helpful answer and you are nit picking. The fact is seaplane flying is far more prevalent in the USA and Canada than it is here in Europe with the result that more people there have the knowledge, experience and know how to put pen to paper and write informed books about it.

To get relevent licensing and legal information pertaining to seaplane operation in your country just contact your local CAA to find out where and what information to look for. Frequently legal info that is put in training text-books gets outdated anyway regardless of the regulating authority it pertains towards so this is something that you would need to keep an eye and up to date on anyway as I'm sure you already know.

The above approach would also equally apply to boyouage systems differences as well as clear up the differences between FAA and CAA approaches to these operations.

Flying is flying at the end of the day no matter where one does it and the rules aren't usually so very different when it comes down to it. Have fun with it!

[Pugilistic Animus]

That book says little about regulations and much more about operation,...should I not have read Handling the Big Jets because it's a British publication?

of course you make allowance for any legal or operational differences,...

[Potential]

Thank you both for your input. I think I can draw the conclusion that there is no British book that covers seaplane flying. I am aware that seaplanes are much more prevalent in North America, but I just wanted to know if there had been anything published in the UK since a book written from a British perspective would be of greater value to me.

I have been working with a seaplane company for a few weeks now and I'm slowly picking things up. Maybe I can write the first British book on seaplane flying in a few years time...

[greenfreddie]

Buoyage

The only major difference is with regard to "Lateral Marks", buoys marking the safe limits of navigation channels. Us europeans have the red ones on the left on the way in, whereas the yanks have the red ones on the left on the way out.

I can't imagine floatplanes have a great enough draught for that to matter much (more a question of not bumping into the darned things).

The rules of the road (rules for the prevention of collisions at sea) are standard internationally, and have specific applicibility to seaplanes when manoeuvring on the water (rule 3 "the term vessel means any form of water craft, including non-displacement craft and seaplanes, used for or capable of being used for transportation on water" if my memory serves me correctly).