Crossing a narrow channel in Haldia, India ft. Reshma Nilhofer

Comment and photos by Reshma Nilofer Naha
India's first female Marine Pilot (Kalkata Port Trust)

Welcome to the 154th episode of the Shipping Podcast with Reshma Nilofer, the first female maritime Pilot in India and one of few in the world. Reshma takes us on a journey on how to reach your dream goals. She is a powerful woman and a role model to many.
Reshma Nilofer was the first female maritime river pilot, and the current Indian President awarded her with the "Woman Power Award" in 2018. The Woman Power Award is an annual award given by the Ministry of Women and Child Development...

Marine Pilot, Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi MNI broke the bias and started her career as a trainee pilot in 2011 and she has never looked back.

Ahmed is an ideas man. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he came up with a way to protect pilots from infection by driving incoming ships remotely, allowing his team to virtually board foreign ships rather than encounter new people in person, which would have put his colleagues at risk.

Footage showing the ARCADIA leaving Tilbury Landing Stage and PLA pilot boarding sugar ship bound for Thames Refinery. footage taken from the documentary short film ' Till I End My Song'

Gabon, Baie du Prince, 2012.
Getting that nice fat lady alongside

How do marine pilots work? Example: Bringing a bulkcarrier alongside to „Hansaport“ in Hamburg. Here the tugboats „Prompt“, „Resolute“ and „Bulldog“ are involved. The master has to rely on the pilot. One reason is, that he can‘t know how to deal with these tugs. A maneuver like this is only safe, when the pilot has a lot of practical experience. A master who is doing a maneuver like this only about once or twice a month and each time with tugs he doesn’t know in areas he hasn’t been to...

A video of a fellow captain at my work giving me my very first ride in the companies jet pilot boat. Im impressed.

The Damen Stan Pilot 1605 FRP is optimised for operations in harbours and coastal waters. It offers excellent manoeuvrability and low resistance, whilst its composite construction ensures minimal maintenance and robust durability.

MAN Engines is equipping nine pilot boats from the shipyard Goodchild Marine Services Ltd. in Norfolk, Great Britain, with in-line six-cylinder engines. This is the engine manufacturer's first entry into the British pilot boat segment.