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 Pilot boarding Auto Carrier Halifax Harbour
published on 12 October 2020
Pilot boarding the Auto Carrier Mediterranean Highway inbound to Halifax Harbour.
Editors note:
"The pilot's greatest enemy is often the pilot himself: Please do not carry a backpack together with your life jacket! The backpack can massively hinder the deployment and the effect of the lifejacket!"
#pilotboarding #pilotboat #pilotboats #halifax #marinepilot #maritimepilot #nautical #boat #boats #sailors #novascotia #ocean #canada #ship #ships #halifaxharbour #pilots
Video Pilot Embarkation - Gangway Access - Unsafe Practice at Sea CHIRP Maritime Safety
published on 4 July 2019
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.
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 ISPO code and Control Manual (latest edition 1/1/22)
by ISPO - International Standard for Maritime Pilot Organisations - published on 4 January 2022
Video In respect of the vessel: Stellar Banner Scuttled Off Brazil
published on 15 June 2020
Notice by the Editor of Marine-Pilots.com: "The sight of a sinking ship should always make us humble because it helps us to realize how small man is compared to the thousands of tons of steel a ship is made of - and how pale we are in comparison to the great power of the sea. Ships may have a soul, as they have names as well... Their end therefore should make us sad. There´s no fun or joy in watching this.” The vessel was refloated earlier this month following the removal of approximately...