Video How A Pilot Boards A Ship
published on 27 September 2020
Video Riding with the Savannah Pilots
published on 25 October 2020
Over the course of 4 days this August, I was afforded the opportunity and privilege of riding with the Savannah Bar Pilots for an article I was writing for a major maritime magazine. The pilots are given the responsibility of boarding a vessel in the Atlantic Ocean and safely navigating the vessel up the Tybee Road 9 (a name for the shipping lane that leads into the Savannah River), into the Savannah River, and into the Port of Savannah. The same is done in reverse when a ship is outbound...
Video Flying into the Graveyard of the Pacific: Ports Unknown with Columbia River Bar Pilot Michael Tolley
published on 15 June 2026
At the mouth of the Columbia River lies "The Graveyard of the Pacific"—the deadliest river bar crossing on earth. To get a massive cargo ship safely through these crushing waves, an elite Bar Pilot has to board a moving ship by climbing a rope ladder and get's hoisted off the ship by helicopter 10 miles off shore in the Pacific Ocean. In this episode of What do you Wanna Cook?: PORTS UNKNOWN, we get you as close to the action as humanly possible. We take you inside the cockpit for an...
Article Blackcomb Helicopters doing precision work
published on 12 November 2020
Video Winch pilot' training - Coast Guard Video
published on 29 November 2022
Article #dangerousladders - Using social media to improve pilot transfer safety.
by Kevin Vallance deep sea pilot and author - published on 12 December 2019
It remains a sad fact that accidents and near misses continue to occur during pilot transfers with frightening regularity. Most of these fortunately do not result in injury, and a surprisingly high number of them are not even recognised for what they are.
Surveys into pilot ladder safety consistently reveal that unacceptably high numbers of pilot transfer arrangements are not compliant with the regulations.
Video Marine pilotage - a pilot's boat trip in Helsinki (Finland)
published on 28 September 2021
This video is filmed in 2015, edited 2021.
A maritime pilot, marine pilot, harbor pilot, port pilot, ship pilot, or simply pilot, is a mariner who maneuvers ships through dangerous or congested waters, such as harbors or river mouths. They are navigational experts possessing knowledge of the particular waterway such as its depth, currents, and hazards, as well as being experts in handling ships of all types and size. A Maritime pilot is an expert ship handler who is licensed or authorised...
Video Time Lapse: Pilotage of an inbound LNG Carrier, Port of Rotterdam
published on 6 July 2019
Time Lapse Video: An inbound LNG carrier arrives at the Port of Rotterdam. At sea, in the Eurogeul channel, two maritime pilots have joined the vessel. Between the breakwaters four harbour tugs (Smit Harbour Towage) make fast to assist her manoeuvre. In the Beerkanaal channel the LNG carrier is stopped and swung before entering the Nijlhaven harbour. While approaching LNG Jetty 1 the ship's mooring lines are taken ashore by mooringboats (Koninklijke Roeiers Vereeniging Eendracht).
Pilot...