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.

During the transit time on the pilot launch between the shore and the vessel, marine pilots will spend at least a portion of that time carrying out (either consciously or subconsciously) a risk assessment of the forthcoming operation.

Over the past few years a number of pilot transfer accidents have occurred resulting from total failure of the side ropes, one school of thought is that the methods of securing a pilot ladder is a factor in such occurrences.

This lady came into port in an excellent day, however when I inspected the pilot ladder prior to board I saw that it was rigged using D-Shackles fastened between the side ropes, transferring all the weight and load of the ladder to the clamps and chokes. Truly an unsuitable method of securing the ladder. Retrieval line was also not above the first spreader
After pulling out the pilot boat, the ship was contacted by VHF and the captain was asked to instruct the crew in the usage of ropes and...

Editors Note: Unfortunately this YouTube video - although publicly available - was not authorised by the responsible official bodies. Out of respect for the local organisation, we have decided to stop showing the video link to YouTube here. We ask for your understanding!
Join us as we take a pilot 5 miles out to sea to meet a huge 80,000 ton oil tanker arriving outside Port Phillip Bay in Melbourne, Australia!

Pilot going onboard, using pilot ladder port side, 1,5 meters above the water.

Receiving Harbour Pilot before going alongside- Fujairah UAE

For the safety of maritime pilots

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