In order to obtain an optimal performance of a ship controlled by a helmsman, the dynamics of the ship as well as those of the helmsman must be known. This paper deals with the description of a simulated ship-helmsman system. In particular the simulation of the helmsman by a nonlinear mathematical model will be discussed. During hybrid simulation the model's ability to describe the helmsman's dynamic behaviour controlling a ship sailing in smooth water was verified. The results were also used to study further improvements of the model. The values of the parameters in the ultimate helmsman model were determined by applying hybrid optimization techniques. The results showed that a reasonable description of the helmsman's dynamic behaviour could be obtained. The parameter values could be related to the handling qualities of the ship.
