Departure pier#44 June 2020 Constanta Port, Romania

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.

After crossing the Atlantic Ocean and entered in the Mediterranean sea it is time to call the pilots at Chioggia/Venice, Italy.

The pilot plays a crucial role in the safe navigation of the vessel to her destination. Expert in the local waters, a Pilot is imperative to the Bridge Team. Berthing/un-berthing, anchoring, transiting narrow channels etc. are very specialized operations and require expertise of a very objective manner that results in efficient planning, monitoring and execution of safe passage. When a ship needs to enter or leave a harbor, marine pilots are sent aboard via a small pilot boat to safely...

On a windy morning, the incoming bulker HEIDE OLDENDORFF transited the Eurochannel underway to the EECV jetty west side, at 18 meters draft. With the assistance of FairPlay Towage, KRVE linesmen, and the excellent crew of the ship, we had. Very pleasant voyage.

The fascinating tale told by Roger Francis about his life at sea and ultimately as a Deep Sea Pilot. The explanation in detail of the terrific responsibilities comes with tales of daring-do, near misses and other peoples' disasters. Roger's personal tale takes him from kiddy to cadet and from 3rd Mate to Master before he became a Deep Sea Pilot guiding shipping on the busiest shipping thoroughfare in the world - the Dover Straits. On top of this, there is love interest and action in war...

Google Maps and ECDIS (Electronic Chart Display and Information System) can be considered to essentially serve the same purpose. While Google Maps is used for finding our way on land, the ECDIS facilitates navigation at sea.

In this eye-opening episode of Sea Views, host Julia Gosling speaks with Captain Andrew Moll (Chief Inspector, UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch), Ari Palmers (Senior Maritime Pilot, Netherlands), and Adam Parnell (Director, CHIRP Maritime) to confront the serious dangers faced by maritime pilots — especially during pilot transfers, where fatality rates remain alarmingly high.

The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System is a 2,340 mile “marine highway” that extends from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. This integrated navigation system serves mariners, farmers, factory workers, and commercial interests from the western prairies to the eastern seaboard. Today, the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System serves as a Key Supply Chain for the world’s 3rd largest economy. Visit greatlakesseaway.org/our-system/ to learn more!

The following article appeared in AIMPA magazine number 2 about the strength and testing of pilot ladders : There is much more information about pilot ladders in the AIMPA magazine, second issue, if you wish to read more you can download a copy at the bottom of this post.

pilot boat handoff from the carnival breeze September 17th 2019