From time immemorial, man has sought to conquer the expanse of water. To do this, he learned how to build durable ships, studied the habits of the weather, and also curbed his fear of the water surface. But this is not all, over the years he comprehended the main thing - cartography, thanks to it he began to draw up accurate routes for his ships. Also, the man learned what the fairway is, this allowed him to master almost all water bodies suitable for shipping. How? The answer to this question lies in what a fairway is.
Finding suitable routes
A fairway is a stretch of water that is of sufficient depth and size so that a ship passes quietly there. If in the open sea there is no particular need for calculating such sections, then in smaller reservoirs and in coastal zones they are vital.
Simply put, the fairway is a kind of track, only on the water. But such routes are rarely direct, so all turns and dangerous depths are indicated by buoys or beacons. In addition, all the fairways are indicated in sea charts, but in order to learn to read them, you need to master a special science - the locus.
Important shipping lanes are marked with metal buoys equipped with beacons. This is necessary so that at night the captain could see the end of the fairway and not run aground, especially if he had not been in this body of water before.
How the fairways are laid
It should be noted right away that the fairway is a vital element in shipping. Therefore, there are people who are engaged in the study of reservoirs in order to further draw up the necessary routes. Moreover, if the natural depth is not enough, it is increased artificially.
The fairway is always tied to the direction of flow both on the river and on the sea. Based on this, the right and left sides are determined. To make life easier for sailors, an international markup has been introduced that prescribes colors for each value. So, the right side is painted in red, and the left - in white.
The established fairways are entered into all sea charts and databases so that captains can easily find the information they need. In the future, the route laid is rarely changed, except that due to the drying up of the reservoir, its use becomes impossible.
The importance of fairways in military affairs
Since ancient times, fairways have been used for military purposes. First of all, this was necessary in order to deliver provisions and weapons to fighters on the water. True, any mistake - and the loaded ship could become aground or, even worse, get a hole, after which its further use would become impossible. Therefore, knowledge of the depths of the reservoir was worth its weight in gold.
It should also be noted that all data on such routes were classified so as not to fall into the hands of the enemy. Indeed, knowing about them, the enemy could put mines in the fairway, which would lead to numerous casualties.
In turn, our scouts have always been looking for an opportunity to steal such information from the enemy. A good example is the movie The Secret Fairway, shot in the USSR in 1986. He describes the events that occurred during the Second World War, about how our soldier tried to stop the Germans who wanted to use a secret underwater route.