Conning Tower

A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer can conn the vessel, i.e., give directions to the helmsman. It is usually located as high on the ship as practical, to give the conning team good visibility of the entirety of their ship itself and of ocean conditions and other vessels.

The verb “conn” probably stems from the verb “conduct” rather from another plausible precedent, the verb “control”.