Pilot cutters are used to take pilots between the three pilot stations (at Gravesend, Harwich and Ramsgate) and ships entering or leaving the Port of London.
Three dedicated pilot cutters Patrol, Guide and our hybrid Leader are based at Gravesend. The six cutters used at Ramsgate are operated by a Estuary Services Limited, which is jointly owned by the PLA and Medway Ports Ltd.
They look like toy boats, but they serve a serious purpose. An outsider at this facility near Grenoble, France, may see grown men riding arounda lake in miniature ships. But these are pilots of the world's largest ships, and they're practicing navigation with meticulously engineered 1:25 scale models of real cruisers, tankers, and containerships. Port Revel Shiphandling Training Centre, in operation since 1967, has had more than 6,000 maritime pilots and merchant ship officers from all over...
Knot your average day job.
Video contributors: AAL shipping, WA Maritime museum, Fremantle Ports.
Fremantle Pilots respectfully acknowledges the profound connection that exists between the land, waterways, and the traditional lands of the Whadjuk people. We pay our deepest respects to the Whadjuk people, the original custodians of the expansive Walyalup region, and recognize the enduring significance of their cultural heritage and beliefs in shaping the present and future of the Whadjuk...
