Maritime Pilot first duty at New Harbour

Up here in the north, we do things a little differently ...

Issues like the Covid 19 crisis and the moves towards increased autonomy appear to be driving a renewed interest in Shore Based Pilotage (SBP), nowadays often called Remote Pilotage.

Let us start a journey back in time. Back to the black and white films of history. The times have changed, but it is good to know what kind of things have changed and where are the roots of pilotage.

THE 15-metre-long ‘Port Láirge’, the Port of Waterford’s new Pilot Boat, was received by crew at the Dunmore East pontoon this (Friday) morning, two years after her commissioning.

Congratulations: Vicky Hérault becomes the first female maritime pilot in the port of Brest (France) in Oct 2021.

The LNG carrier ‘Genesis River’ collided with a 297-foot-long tank barge being pushed ahead by the 69-foot-long towing vessel ‘Voyager’, spilling petrochemical cargo into the waterway and capsizing a barge.

The video was found on some social media channels in June 2020. When so many elementary mistakes are made and so many risks are taken, this is exactly what can happen! It's a demonstrative example of an unprofessional action: 1) Where is the life jacket? 2) No backpack on the shoulders. Use a rope to have the backpack lifted by the deck crew. 3) Where is the rest of the crew (on vessel / on the small boat) for safe assistance? What other mistakes have you discovered? We do not put videos...

As a rule, every pilot has the right to refuse an unsafe ladder. Safety first! A brave pilot is not the one who uses an unsafe ladder, but the one who, in case of doubt, asks for a different ladder or a different setting.
Unfortunately, too many pilots climb a dubious ladder when in doubt.