Marine Pilot

Adding map and speedometer widgets to your GoPro video clips. Tips by Capt. Kris de Decker

According to media reports from Taiwan, a collision between an OOCL vessel and a Gantry Crane occurred today (03.06.2021).

Brief footage of a maritime pilot disembarking the Disney Magic and boarding his pilot boat as we left Nassau in January 2022.

It takes all sorts of roles to ensure safe and successful operations at Aberdeen Harbour. Meet Finn, a Marine Pilot, and find out why he enjoys working at the port...

This publication (2024) details the rules, regulations and procedures that should be followed when preparing for pilot embarkation and disembarkation. It includes relevant excerpts from SOLAS regulations and IMO resolutions.

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.

Opening the building to unveil the Pilotboat "Columbia". Preparing for launchday.

Watch Orion, one of the two new boats of Jacobsen Pilot Service in Long Beach, Calif. in action. Designed by Tim Nolan Marine Design of Port Townsend, Wash., these boats with waterjet propulsion were built from composite materials at Nordlund Boat Company in Tacoma, Wash. Video courtesy of John Harris.

I am not a computer savvy. My knowledge in programming and robotics and those sort of things is nil. I get lost in the sea of social media and easily entangle myself in the web. All I have done for the last 25 years or so is to pilot ships through the Panama Canal. However, during the last couple of years I have done my best to catch up with technology, since it has enhanced our possibilities and improved safety in our field. But still, I have to admit that I am way behind the new guys in this important issue.