Early morning in the North Sea, three-metre swells, freezing winds, and a burst of hail hammering the deck - perfect conditions for another day with the Port of Tyne pilotage.
In this video we take two pilots out to the Aquamarine Ace onboard the pilot boat Collingwood, pushing through seriously choppy water on a bitter, stormy morning. You’ll see the full run out to sea, the swell hitting the bow, the hailstorm rolling in, and the precision teamwork that gets the pilots safely across in...
On march 24th, 2022, the bulkcarrier BERGE BIMBERI entered Port of Rotterdam via the Eurochannel. The ship had a draft of 17,6 meters and two pilots were flown in by helicopter for this job. Assisted by Faiplay tugs and KRVE linesmen she eventually berthed at EECV bulk terminal in Europoort, Rotterdam.
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.
