The maritime pilots lead the ships to the entrance of the ports. Night and day, they join the cargo ships that arrive several kilometers off the coast of the port, by means of fast boats called pilotines. While the ship is still underway, the pilot boat docks alongside the ship so that the pilot can climb aboard via a rope ladder to reach the ship's command post and drive it to its berth.
Launched in Sète in 2021 after sea trials in the harbor of Marseille, the e-Maguelonne pilot boat is now operational among the pilot boats of the commercial port of Sète-Frontignan and is the first 100% electric pilot boat in the world.