Look at Life - Pilot Aboard 1963

Many people wonder how ships made it across entire oceans without getting lost in the seventeenth century. Aaron introduces seventeenth century navigation to us today by beginning with piloting.

Look at Life - City of Sailors - Portsmouth - 1965
Portsmouth is no longer the sea-faring city it once was; this film from the Documentary Series "Look At Life" Volume 5 - Cultural Heritage in 1965 looks at its changing face.

Let us start a journey back in time. Back to the black and white films of history. The times have changed, but it is good to know what kind of things have changed and where are the roots of pilotage.

The Northwest Passage is the approximately 5780 km long sea route that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean north of the American continent. It crosses the Arctic Ocean and its marginal seas as well as the associated sea lanes through the Canadian-Arctic archipel ago.

Roald Amundsen made his first complete successfully crossing in 1903-1906 via the route discovered by John Rae through the James Ross Strait, Rae Strait and Simpson Strait on the small ship Gjøa.

Awesome video by Herman Broers, "The Rotterdam Pilot".

Without a shadow of doubt, shipping is a key enabler of our current way of life and the globalized world we live in today. The irony is that the average person is unaware of the significance or contribution of the shipping industry and how much we rely on ships working without disruption

Gabon, Baie du Prince, 2012.
Getting that nice fat lady alongside

The pilot station of the ports of Casablanca and Jorf-Lasfar operates in accordance with the 1937 Dahir on the reorganization of the pilot station of the port of Casablanca, which regulates all aspects of the organization and operation of the station, including the recruitment of pilots, as well as the pension and relief fund.
With the advent of Law 15/02 in 2005 on port reform, the station spontaneously adhered to it by creating a commercial company in application of article 13 of the said...

In the last couple of years several paid as well as free tools have made it easier than ever to access vessels on a map. Although vessels shown on a map have their place, authorities and industry are understanding the greater potential and value of the underlying AIS data.

This safety video examines the safe set-up of pilot ladders and details the safety checks that should be carried out before using a plot ladder to ensure a safe boat transfer.