Wheelover position

The wheelover position is the point at which the helm is put over to begin a turn, placed ahead of the actual course-alteration position so that the ship’s advance and transfer bring it onto the new track without overshooting. Because a ship continues to advance along the old heading while the turn develops, ordering the rudder at the geometric corner would carry the ship wide; the wheelover is offset back along the track by an amount derived from the turning circle, the speed, and the rate of turn. The navigator marks it on the chart or ECDIS route, often with a clearing bearing or a parallel-index range to trigger it. Track control systems compute the wheelover automatically.