Those Who Serve: Columbia River bar pilots risk their lives to guide cargo ships

In one of the busiest and most critical waterways in the United States, timing and safety are everything. Along the Sabine-Neches Waterway in Port Arthur, Texas, the Sabine Pilots are redefining maritime pilot transfer by taking to the air. This video follows the Sabine Pilots and HeliService USA as they use Leonardo AW169 helicopters to move pilots safely and efficiently between ships—reducing risk, improving responsiveness, and keeping America’s energy gateway moving. From offshore hoists...

From "Casual Navigation": In this video, we investigate the Pilot Ladder. It is a crucial piece of equipment, used for embarking and disembarking a harbor pilot at sea.(contains advertising)

Harbor Pilot POV BSG BAHAMAS Inbound Port Everglades.
Come with me as I board the BSG BAHAMAS 2 miles offshore and bring her safely to the dock in Port Everglades, FL. Ship is 850' long and 106' wide.
#harborpilot #ship #maritime #pilotboat #containership #job #porteverglades

It is not often that this blog is used to show bad practice, however in this case some pictures tell a whole story. Ship is compliant by design for rigging a combination. How about the operator(s)?

The hazards of Pilot boarding
Throughout 2016, the International Maritime Pilots’ Association (IMPA) held a safety campaign focused upon the standard of pilot ladders and associated equipment. CHIRP supported this campaign and received many reports on the subject.
This first report describes issues concerning pilot access near
the non-parallel ends of a ship, and use of a retractable platform.

Evergreen Shipping’s new 24,000 TEU container ship EVER ACE arrived at the Port of Taipei for the first time today, August 8, breaking a record for the largest ship by tonnage to dock at the port.

In this paper, a maritime pilots’ risky behaviour related factors questionnaire is designed to identify and quantify the factors of maritime pilots’ risky operational behaviour.

Some ship handlers today use electronic instruments from start to finish and these ships usually have powerful engines and thrusters and an almost unlimited number of personnel on the bridge.