It is an important basis for ensuring navigation and operation safety of the Three Gorges project to study the navigation conditions in extreme weather.Based on the observation of the ship navigation prototype under gale weather,the navigable performance of the waterway near the dam under gale above grade 6 is summarized,that is,the distribution of wind field,wind speed,wind direction and shelter area in different sections.Through numerical simulation of the key indexes of seakeeping,that is,the comparison value of the ship’s wind pressure tilting moment and wind pressure restoring moment,the differences of seaworthiness and wind resistance ability of different types of ships are summarized.The calculation results show that when the upper approach channel of the Three Gorges ship lock has gale wind above grade 6 in the waters of its connecting section,the wind power in lock and approach channel waters may be less than grade 6.Because the angle between the wind direction and the axis of the approach channel is small,ships entering and leaving the lock are also less affected by the gale wind.When other waters near the dam are closed to navigation due to gale,closed and controlled navigation of lock and approach channel is feasible.The research results provide a basis for the navigation agencies of the Three Gorges to actively solve the emergency navigation problems under the gale weather.