Le Havre France Pilot Boarding on Merchant Ship NYK Orion

MOST BEAUTIFUL MOMENTS It was an early morning arrival in the port of Le Havre FRANCE 🇫🇷 with the sun just about to rise !! The moment & lighting was so spectacular that the GoPro struggled to capture everything & do justice . I managed to capture - in my opinion the best TIME LAPSE till date . Also not to miss out the catch of the video - HELICOPTER OPERATION 🚁 Stay tuned and don't forget to subscribe to my youtube channel 📹 #MerchantNavy #LifeAtSea #Refueling MY SOCIAL MEDIA...

Aviator Group's H135: marine pilot transfer

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.

Time for shift change. Captain Henry transferring from Pilot boat Texas City to Pilot boat Texas. Turn the sound up towards the end and hear those twin V12 Cummins sing.

There are many things in both our everyday and professional lives which we take for granted and never question the origins of, an example of this might be the IMPA recommended ‘pilot mark or pilot line’, which is sometimes seen on the side of vessels indicating where a vessels freeboard exceeds 9 metres.

Video showing marine pilot navigating a cargo ship from Plan du Port

Issues like the Covid 19 crisis and the moves towards increased autonomy appear to be driving a renewed interest in Shore Based Pilotage (SBP), nowadays often called Remote Pilotage.

“The current plight many seafarers are facing, unable to crew change or return home, is being described by many voices within the maritime community as the next humanitarian crisis.”

The transfer of pilots to and from seagoing vessels should not rely solely on mutual trust and good intentions.