Pilot Boat "Pioneer" at Vlissingen Netherlands (2021)

Despite clear regulations and regular maintenance requirements, safety often falls by the wayside, as the current example of a bulk carrier vividly demonstrates.

pilot boat general cargo ship seaman captain marine

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.

Turkish Straits , Istanbul Strait , Maritime Pilot , www.turkishpilots.org.tr

Bellomo (Unione Piloti) on ShipMag.it: “Reunification impossibile”

Article with video found: Harbor pilots have one of the most unique jobs in the world, but it can also be one of the most dangerous. They help guide ships into Tampa Bay.

Fathom Safety now offers an online course on Pilot Ladder Training

The Tampa Bay pilot association has returned its first Chesapeake Class pilot boat to Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding. Tampa was built in 2003 when the shipyard introduced the class of mid-size, high-speed launches.