A day in the life of a TasPorts' Marine Pilot

Shifting a vessel from one harbor to other. Easy and safe maneuver. Turn area D=150m. Mooring area 110m.

Day shift for duty pilot in Gibraltar on 15th October 2016

Without a shadow of doubt, shipping is a key enabler of our current way of life and the globalized world we live in today. The irony is that the average person is unaware of the significance or contribution of the shipping industry and how much we rely on ships working without disruption

In this episode, we are joined by Thijs Hoff, a maritime pilot with over 15 years of experience at sea and 4 years as Maritime pilot. Thijs will take us through the 'how' of becoming a maritime pilot, offering a detailed look at the educational pathways, skills, and work-life balance that come with the role.

"An old experienced pilot sometimes loses a ship by his assurance and over confidence of his knowledge, as effectually as a young pilot does by his ignorance and want of experience."
Let us remind ourselves every day of the principles of safe seamanship...

Pilot Boat working close to shore, but not the best of weather.

Jacobsen Pilot Service and Los Angeles Pilot Station published a notice to all ships to inspect pilot ladders before the pilot boards.

Reason is an incident happened at the port of long beach in July 2020. Pilot ladder rope broke while the pilot was on the ladder - luckily the pilot was able to hold on.

According to various reports, the motor vessel "Else" damaged the gate of the Kiel-Holtenau lock at 5:00 a.m. on 29 August when it entered the closed gate without a pilot.

The Swedish Maritime Administration is launching the world's first fully methanol-powered pilot boat today, It is one of the ministry's existing pilot boats, which has now been converted to test the new propellant. The work is part of the Swedish Maritime Administration's transition to a fossil-free fleet.