#DangerousLadders on Facebook

Before you, you see my third article on pilot boarding arrangements. After my two previous articles
(‘1000 ways to secure a pilot ladder’ and ‘1000 ladders around’, I have received a lot of feedback and
also questions to get deeper into the matter of combinations and embarkation platforms.

Jacobsen Pilot Service and Los Angeles Pilot Station published a notice to all ships to inspect pilot ladders before the pilot boards.

Reason is an incident happened at the port of long beach in July 2020. Pilot ladder rope broke while the pilot was on the ladder - luckily the pilot was able to hold on.

There are many things in both our everyday and professional lives which we take for granted and never question the origins of, an example of this might be the IMPA recommended ‘pilot mark or pilot line’, which is sometimes seen on the side of vessels indicating where a vessels freeboard exceeds 9 metres.

At the mouth of the Columbia River lies "The Graveyard of the Pacific"—the deadliest river bar crossing on earth. To get a massive cargo ship safely through these crushing waves, an elite Bar Pilot has to board a moving ship by climbing a rope ladder and get's hoisted off the ship by helicopter 10 miles off shore in the Pacific Ocean. In this episode of What do you Wanna Cook?: PORTS UNKNOWN, we get you as close to the action as humanly possible. We take you inside the cockpit for an...

Son los encargados de asegurar el dinamismo en el puerto, de que las embarcaciones fluyan sin generar ningún problema. Velan por la estabilidad tanto de los barcos como de la ciudad. 'En la piel' sube al barco para ponerse en la piel de los prácticos del puerto.

Created by Tim Cummins. This is an uncontrolled example of the latest passage plan used by the Pilot Service at Portsmouth International Port.

This lady came into port in an excellent day, however when I inspected the pilot ladder prior to board I saw that it was rigged using D-Shackles fastened between the side ropes, transferring all the weight and load of the ladder to the clamps and chokes. Truly an unsuitable method of securing the ladder. Retrieval line was also not above the first spreader
After pulling out the pilot boat, the ship was contacted by VHF and the captain was asked to instruct the crew in the usage of ropes and...

After a number of cruises in which I have watched with admiration and fascination as the harbor pilots do their magic. This is a short video showing the operation upon the departure of the Sapphire Princess from Kleipeda, Lithuania in the summer of 2026.
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