Men rescued from pilot boat wreck at Point Lonsdale

Construction of the world’s first shipping tunnel will soon get underway in western Norway following government approval of startup funds. The Norwegian Coastal Administration (Kystverket) has proposed a plan to complete a tender process in 2021.

The massive container ship that ran aground in the Suez Canal, halting traffic in one of the world's busiest waterways, is still stuck. The ship, called the Ever Given, became horizontally wedged in the waterway following heavy winds. Nearly 19,000 ships passed through the canal during 2020, for an average of 51.5 per day, according to the Suez Canal Authority.

On 6 November 2017, the fully laden, mini cape-size dry bulk carrier Orient Centaur was transiting the South Channel, Weipa, Queensland, outbound under the conduct of harbour pilots as part of a trial introduction of this size of ship to the port. While in the South Channel, the ship’s main engine shut down due to a loss of water from a cracked engine cooling component, and propulsion was lost. Shortly after, the ship grounded on the northern batter of the channel. The stern then slowly...

Pilot ladder broke when pilot was boarding general cargo ship CREST CRANE at night Nov 5 at Keelung Port, Taiwan, to take the ship out.

長崎県に入港するクルーズ船「ダイヤモンド・プリンセス」を誘導していた水先人の男性が海に転落し、男性はその後、死亡が確認された。 死亡したのは、水先人の大須賀祥浩さん(69)。 長崎海上保安部によると、5日午前5時半ごろ、パイロットボートから無線で「客船に移乗させる際にパイロットが海中に転落した」と通報があった。 大須賀さんは長崎港の入り口付近で海に転落し、クルーズ船の救命艇に救助されたが、およそ2時間後に死亡が確認された。 男性は5日に長崎に入港したクルーズ船「ダイヤモンド・プリンセス」を誘導する業務にあたっていた。

Despite clear regulations and regular maintenance requirements, safety often falls by the wayside, as the current example of a bulk carrier vividly demonstrates.

On 30 March 2023, a fatal accident occurred in the North Sea near IJmuiden during a pilot transfer from the pilot boat to a seagoing vessel.

A more unique angle regarding freighter departures; I was able to film the routine disembarking of one of our local ship captains and officers after piloting Solina out of the harbor. This is a required procedure, as per US Maritime Laws, all international freighters must be piloted in and out of a US harbor by a US Captain. Here we have out local pilot vessel Sea Bear running up alongside the Solina to allow the two officers to depart the freighter before she heads out across Lake Superior

Among the few marine professions that purse a man's technical skills and value very high, maritime piloting perhaps is in a class of its own. In this career, the pilot is entrusted to maneuver vessels through some of the most challenging and congested waterways while ensuring seamless integration between shipboard operations and port infrastructure.