24/7 Live Webcam - Kiel Canal at Kiel Lock in Germany | Nord-Ostsee-Kanal Schleuse Kiel

In April, 25 percent fewer ships on the German Kiel Canal (NOK) - and things could get even worse. It seems that the exemplary situation at the NOK certainly affects many other channels in the world in a similar way.

According to various reports, the motor vessel "Else" damaged the gate of the Kiel-Holtenau lock at 5:00 a.m. on 29 August when it entered the closed gate without a pilot.

The vessel "ELSE" didn't stopped at the pilot station and tried to enter the closed lock without a pilot.
Following the crash on 29.08.2020, the official investigations into the accident are now beginning on site.

OPERATIONAL NOTES AND RECOMMENDATIONS by UKMPA, February 2017
The introduction of modern lightweight Portable Pilot Units (PPU) for use during pilotage has proved to be another major advance for pilotage operations worldwide.

Each pilot association and each country can get a good overview of how other colleagues approach safety.
Ship crews can see which rules apply in which country.
In any case, this list from IMPA is worth looking through and reading.

The IMPA Safety Campaign will take place from 16th to 30th May 2025. We encourage all maritime pilots to take part, as your contribution is essential to the success of the campaign!

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to the maritime supply chain and called for accelerated adoption of digital technologies in various aspects of maritime operations, including the area of maritime education and training (MET).

With approval from the Danish Emergency Management Agency, DanPilot and Danelec are now initiating a test program for remote pilotage – the first of its kind in the world.

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.