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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 November 2009
The commercial viability of wind propulsion is of itself not strictly a navigational problem. However, the implications for navigation of a return to commercial sail in some form are clearly considerable. Mr Bradbury's summary of the various proposals put forward in the last few years and the extensive bibliography will interest many navigators.
In 1980 The Times printed an article on its front page under the headline ‘Oil prices put sails back on the horizon’ (Baily, 1980). This article must have surprised many people. It reflected a growing awareness and interest in the idea of wind propulsion for commercial ships. A better indication of this interest may be the number of related symposia held since the oil crisis. The symposia have been held by The Royal Institution of Naval Architects (1975 and 1980), Liverpool Polytechnic (1976), this Institute (1977), and the Department of Industry (1979). Some interesting papers by Mudie (1977a, b and 1980) have particularly brought the subject to the attention of this Institute.