4.2 Power boat installations
Normally, you should install the scanner horizontally, to produce an equal sweep around the power boat:
However, when the power boat is traveling at high speed, the bow rises up out of the water and if the elevation angle (trim) of the bow is raised up so that it equals, or exceeds, 50% of the vertical beam width of the radar, this can cause two problems:
•ahead of the power boat, the beam is projected too high to sweep the water surface effectively. Targets can be missed completely or appear at a very poor resolution on the display screen.
•astern of the power boat, the beam is projected too low and is concentrated over a small area of water so that sea clutter becomes a problem on the display screen.
In this case, you're recommended to install the scanner so that is tilted down at the front, at an angle that will produce an almost horizontal sweep when the power boat is running at speed.