Video

Port of Stockton: River Pilots

published on 17 December 2019 - 243 -

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The San Francisco Bar Pilots are one of the important cogs in our supply chain wheel. They are tasked with boarding the vessels eleven miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge via a rope ladder often in rough seas and taking control of the vessels en route to the Port of Stockton. Once on the bridge of the ship, the Pilot oversees navigation and ensures the safe passage of ships into the Bay and through the Delta until it is secured alongside its berth at the Port. Without these Pilots the Port could not perform its mission to provide jobs and economic stability for the region. Within the larger San Francisco Bar Pilots Association there is a smaller subdivision that is approved to take vessels all the way to the Port of Stockton. They are called the River Pilots and this is their story…

San Francisco, Port Stockton

San Francisco Bar Pilots

Experiences

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Video Maritime Pilot at work in the Port of Hamburg

published on 6 October 2022

This video seems to be slow and boring for non maritime people, but doing the job in a good way needs a lot of experience and knowledge. And it's the very the best job in the world.

Opinion A deliberately sabotaged Pilot Ladder

by Arie Palmers - published on 16 March 2022

A court sentenced a captain to a total of 30 months imprisonment: It had been proven beyond doubt that the side ropes had been manipulated to make a ship inspection more difficult or to prevent it.

Video Interview with Ältermann Jan-Helge Janssen, Bremerhaven, Germany - German language only

published on 15 September 2023

Ich bin zu Besuch beim Lotsbetriebsverein in Bremerhaven und unterhalte mich mit dem Ältermann Jan-Helge Jannsen über das Lotswesen in Deutschland. Wir fahren außerdem mit dem Lotsenboot raus und begleiten Lotsen und die Crew auf den Versetzern bei einem Einsatz.

Video A Day With Lough Foyle Pilots

published on 25 July 2022

July 21st 2022, a thrilling day for me when I met up with the Foyle Pilots and was given a tour and a trip out on pilot vessel Foyle Leader 2. I was in the company of Coxswain Tommy McDaid and several other pilots, I was taken out past tall ship Grace O'Malley then we collected the pilot from a cement carrier called Cemluna, then back to Greencastle, it was a fantastic experience. Many thanks to Tommy and the crew for making this happen. www.nightskyhunter.com

Video St Johns Bar Pilot Association

published on 17 January 2020

A collection of action from the St Johns Bar Pilot Association In the early 1800′s as the commercial ports along the St Johns River began to develop, a select group of brave and skilled seafarers would row to sea to meet arriving cargo sailing ships. These daring individuals would use their extensive local knowledge to safely guide the sailing ships across the treacherous sand bars that guarded the river entrance. This was the origin of the St. Johns Bar Pilots. Initially it was a bit of a...

Video LOTSE 1 - Elbe River, Hamburg - Germany

published on 22 April 2025

Video The Pilot Of Belfast Harbour - N Irish Coastal Scenery

published on 20 June 2022

What a great pleasure to meet these guys at the harbour - they could not have been more helpful and forthright about their work. At first glance, the glide of these orange powerboats up and down Belfast Lough seems an almost effortless task, but close up this is a very skilled trade and constant management of risk 24/7 in high and low seas, jumping from ship to boat to land taking safe control of the great volume of steel vessel coming in and out of this busy port. Though a hub of...