Pilot Boat Approaching in Tallin Estonia Pilot OnBoard

When it came time to replace their 50-year-old station vessel New York, the Sandy Hook Pilots Association thought long and hard, weighing their options to determine the best possible solution.

Many consider the Bristol Channel pilot cutter to be the finest sailing boat design ever. Fast, seaworthy and beautiful to behold, the pilot cutter is the perfect combination of form and function - a thoroughbred perfectly adapted to a life in one of the Britain's most treacherous stretches of water. Sailor and writer Tom Cunliffe explores the life of the pilots and sails a perfectly restored cutter to find out just what drove these men and their wonderful machines.

Here’s a nice video of the recent sea trials with ‘South Esk’, a new Interceptor 48 pilot boat for the Montrose Port Authority in Scotland. It was fairly rough during our sea trial days with a fair bit of wind, and although it was touch and go flying the drone, we managed to capture some wonderful video of her and Ederra 7 at the entrance to Cork Harbour in a gale.

This week, the International Maritime Organization Sub-Committee responsible for developing amendments to SOLAS regulation V/23 and associated instruments (NCSR 11) finalized a new performance standard for pilot transfer arrangements, which is expected to be made mandatory by SOLAS and apply to new and existing SOLAS and non-SOLAS ships from 1 January 2028.

My first movement as harbor pilot, once my training was completed: Unberthing, moving astern to the turning area, then going back astern to another location of the same berth
Nothing special: A very simple video

June 21, 2021

Bulk Carrier "CSSC He Mei" docking in Gladstone Lock Liverpool with the assistance of 3 Svitzer tugs