Offshore Pilot station out of San Francisco

Mississippi River Pilot transfer off of south bound ship in the Mississippi River below New Orleans to a Pilot Boat. Pilots climb down rope ladder onto the top of the Pilot Boat while both boats are underway.

This lady came into port in an excellent day, however when I inspected the pilot ladder prior to board I saw that it was rigged using D-Shackles fastened between the side ropes, transferring all the weight and load of the ladder to the clamps and chokes. Truly an unsuitable method of securing the ladder. Retrieval line was also not above the first spreader
After pulling out the pilot boat, the ship was contacted by VHF and the captain was asked to instruct the crew in the usage of ropes and...

Boarding a tanker as a Deep Sea Pilot in Cherbourg, France. ⚓🚢
Pilot transfer and the start of another voyage at sea.
#DeepSeaPilot #Tanker #Cherbourg #Maritime #ShipLife

On 30 March 2023, a fatal accident occurred in the North Sea near IJmuiden during a pilot transfer from the pilot boat to a seagoing vessel.

The video was recorded by Marine Pilot J. von Krahn (Elbe Pilot, Germany) on 08.10.2018 and is the original video with his permission.
The video is taken from the bulk carrier SEA MOON.

Register your pilot or embarkation ladder today and receive a free 30 months mandatory load test, when the ladders been delivered to one of our factories in Rotterdam, Singapore, New Castle UK or Houston Texas.

There are many things in both our everyday and professional lives which we take for granted and never question the origins of, an example of this might be the IMPA recommended ‘pilot mark or pilot line’, which is sometimes seen on the side of vessels indicating where a vessels freeboard exceeds 9 metres.

Launching pilotvessel for Port of Milford Haven