We lost our auto pilot on the way from Ft. Lauderdale to Charleston. It was a dark and scary night with no wind, no moon, no lights. It was so dark that with the tricolor on, the bow of the boat was just part of the blackness around us. The only thing for reference was our compass 3 feet in front of the wheel. Staring at a compass to keep a straight course was so demanding to our attention that we had 1 hour watches at night.

We gained a lot of respect for those that have redundant autopilots with a switch to choose the one that works.