Senior Marine Pilot - Saudi Arabia

Qualified pilots are usually employed by the local port or maritime administration, and provide their services to ships for a fee, calculated in relation to the ship’s tonnage, draught or other criteria.

The PIA project of German pilots is a great maritime success story and ensures greater safety and efficiency on German shipping routes. Thus, with no exceptions, all of the approx. 890 German maritime and port traffic controllers could be gathered for use of the PIA system and its PPU.

Maneuvering Ship

Like many seafarers I have long been a keen follower of The Nautical Institute’s MARS programme, and along with many other members I listened to the recent webinar on that topic. One theme which was repeated more than once was that it is better to learn from someone else’s misfortune rather than have it happen to you. Having personally been involved in two near misses resulting from unsafe pilot transfer arrangements in a relatively short space of time, I asked how experiences and knowledge specifically about pilot ladder safety could best be promulgated to avoid repeating common accidents or near misses.

A beautiful day, climbing up the (not-so-well-rigged) pilot ladder and then the stairs of the accommodation towards the bridge.

On August 10, 2026, Port Everglades celebrated the arrival of the largest cargo ship to ever visit the port. However, the water depth restrictions mean that the MSC Vandya was lightly loaded, negating the efficiency and environmental benefits of the industry's modern larger cargo vessels.

In this video we can see how a pilot boat (probably Barcelona) approached the vessel to disembark the pilot.

These are various views of the pilot vessels coming and going from the pilot dock in Vlissingen prior to 2020.

Boarding a vessel at sea can be dangerous. By following simple rules, it can be done safely. This safety video shows you how to leave the launch boat and climb the ladder when boarding vessels at sea safely as well as boarding preparations, safety precautions and boarding under special conditions. The 3 types of boarding arrangements for pilot are also explained. Watch with sound on. Transfers are normally safe when everyone takes all the precautions. If you think it is unsafe, remember to...