The Williamson Turn, sometimes referred to as button hook turn, is a time-honored rescue technique used for vessels under power when the location of the overboard person in the water is uncertain.
When a person falls overboard immediate action is crucial. The priority is to position the vessel near the overboard victim as soon as possible. To do this, the vessel must quickly reverse course by running a reciprocal course. A reciprocal course is putting and holding the vessel on a course that is exactly the reciprocal of the original course. The five step instructions for this maneuver are easy to follow with the use of the compass dial on one side of the Man Overboard wheel.