No Pilot Boat!

[Karlie1]

I was just watching Key West Harbor Cam Live. The Majesty of Sea was coming into Harbor, to dock. There was No Pilot Boat anywhere to be seen. I thought every port had to have a Pilot Boat bring you in. Anyone?

[Aquahound]

I was just watching Key West Harbor Cam Live. The Majesty of Sea was coming into Harbor, to dock. There was No Pilot Boat anywhere to be seen. I thought every port had to have a Pilot Boat bring you in. Anyone?

 

The pilot boat has no purpose other than transporting the pilot to or from the ship. In Key West, once the pilot has been dropped off, the boat either waits for the next ship or just heads in.

 

Trust me, there was a pilot aboard MOS.

[John Bull]

As the Hound's post.

The pilot boat is just a taxi for the pilots ;)

 

JB :)

[leaveitallbehind]

Yes - as the others have said. The harbor pilot is on board the ship on the bridge with the captain assisting in navigation into the port. The pilot boat has nothing to do with bringing in the ship other than to get the pilot onto the ship while still a couple of miles out at sea. The pilot would likewise be on board as well when the ship is departing the port and then picked up at sea by the pilot boat.

[MasterNotCommander]

There are a few places in the world where cruise ships will be allowed to depart and occasionally arrive without a pilot, particularly on regular visits. However, this is not the case in Key West and a pilot WILL be onboard, and this is the same in all US ports.

 

The pilot may have boarded far out, the pilot boat may have remained outside for other ships with another pilot onboard.

[Karlie1]

Thanks, I was just wandering. :)

[Putterdude]

I would be inclined to think that the pilot boarded the ship some miles out and therefor the "pilot's" boat was not seen.

[sail7seas]

I would be inclined to think that the pilot boarded the ship some miles out and therefor the "pilot's" boat was not seen.

 

 

Yes. ^^ That.

 

The pilot was brought out to the ship and once he was safely aboard, the pilot boat left the ship and either met another incoming ship or returned to port. The pilot remains on the bridge until the ship has safely arrived.

 

In some U.S. ports, you see police boats escorting cruise ships into/out of port.

 

 

[sparky-elpaso]

If you're out on deck as you come in to port you may see the pilot come on board.

 

 

And sometimes you have to be up REALLY early like when we entered the fjords in New Zealand.

 

[sail7seas]

Have you seen the rope ladder they have to climb in order to board? :eek:

 

Looks pretty dangerous to me!

[TheOldBear]

Have you seen the rope ladder they have to climb in order to board? :eek:

 

Looks pretty dangerous to me!

 

Wy wife says it is a treasured memory [sailing back into NY Harbor on the pilot boat].

 

That was back in the days [early 1960s] when some guests at the sail away party arranged [in advance] a ride the pilot boat. Her aunt frequently crossed on the Queen Mary or Queen Elizabeth, and often had hosted a sail away party for friends and family.

 

My FIL spend WWII as a ship's engineer, and at the time still knew many officers in merchant service.

[Taxguy77]

A friend of mine was on the Port Authority Board, and the speaker was a pilot one meeting. He invited them to come with him as a freghter came in. They all accepted, and he said it was quite an experience. Small ships (Pilot boat) move more than bigger ships.

[Putterdude]

I have two friends that are pilots on the west coast of British Columbia....they are very well paid but it is nothing that I would care to do....thanks.:)

[snaebyllej]

If you're unsure you can check to see if there's a red and white pilot flag flying on the mast.

[Jimnbigd]

[MasterNotCommander]

A fairly good profile of a Maritime Pilot, reasonably accurate: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maritime_pilot

[sail7seas]

A fairly good profile of a Maritime Pilot, reasonably accurate: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maritime_pilot

 

Great reading.

Thanks. :)

 

The photo of the pilot, not wearing a life vest, climbing the rope ladder made me nervous. :eek: Though he did surely look hale and hearty.

 

[sparky-elpaso]

Great reading.

Thanks. :)

 

The photo of the pilot, not wearing a life vest, climbing the rope ladder made me nervous. :eek: Though he did surely look hale and hearty.

 

 

His vest might be under his jacket. If you notice on the daylight picture I posted the vests they wear aren't very bulky. Not like the ones for the passengers on the ships. It's still interesting to watch them come aboard - not something I'd want to try.

[Hlitner]

On one of our cruises from Europe to NYC our tablemate was a retired New York Harbor Pilot whose son just happened to be an apprentice New York Harbor Pilot. His son was able to arrange to come onboard and help bring the ship into New York Harbor (the ship was the Queen Mary 2) and his Dad (our tablemate) was able to get a special invitation to join the Captain (and his own son) on the bridge. Listening to Pilot stories every night at dinner was really interesting and we gained a lot of respect for this high paying job. To put it simply, for these pilots, cruise ships are the top of the food chain and often fun. The bad stuff is having to board a large tanker or freighter at night in an ice storm where they have to climb a lot of icy steps up to the deck.

 

The most interesting pilot job we have ever seen was when the Prinsendam cruised up the the Bordeaux River into Bordeaux, France. The French river/harbor pilot was actually flown out to our ship in a helicopter and dropped onto the deck via cable. When we later departed they reversed the process.

 

Hank

[WAPilot]

Great reading.

Thanks. :)

 

The photo of the pilot, not wearing a life vest, climbing the rope ladder made me nervous. :eek: Though he did surely look hale and hearty.

 

 

Unfortunately, the image in the Wikipedia link is not a particularly good example of how most pilots dress & board ships worldwide.

 

In this instant, the pilot has a somewhat 'casual' & 'relaxed' attitude towards personal protection equipment, as I doubt if he is wearing a life jacket under his bluejacket (which would be oxymoronic anyway).

Also, it would appear he is only wearing 'boatshoes' without socks - whereas most pilots wear safety boots/shoes - with socks!

 

Regarding lifejackets, many pilotage services now have foul weather jackets incorporating an auto inflatable life vest built into the jacket.

Two of the best known brands are 'Sea Safe' & 'Stormy Seas.'

 

A Youtube video link is attached if any one is interested.

 

 

 

Lightweight 'stand alone' life jackets are still used especially in warmer climates as the built in jackets can get quite hot. An example is shown under

 

 

[boogs]

The pilot was brought out to the ship and once he was safely aboard, the pilot boat left the ship and either met another incoming ship or returned to port.

 

They can also wait to pick up a pilot from a departing ship, to bring him back to port or to another incoming ship.

[sail7seas]

Wow..... that's quite a photo.

My stomach is queasy just looking at him holding those two ropes and toeing that ladder in what appears to be fine weather. I can't imagine that in winds/rain/sleet. :eek:

 

Thanks so much for this really interesting info.

Great thread IMO

 

 

They can also wait to pick up a pilot from a departing ship, to bring him back to port or to another incoming ship.

 

Right. :)

 

[SusieCruisie]

Ok, I'm going to ask at the risk of feeling a little dumb... I have been on 6 cruises (7 th will be July!) I have seen the pilot boats and thought it was just to help guide the ship out of the port. I had no idea that an actual "pilot" climbed up onto the ship! Can someone please explain this whole process to me? I'm very interested! Thank you.

[John Bull]

Ok, I'm going to ask at the risk of feeling a little dumb... I have been on 6 cruises (7 th will be July!) I have seen the pilot boats and thought it was just to help guide the ship out of the port. I had no idea that an actual "pilot" climbed up onto the ship! Can someone please explain this whole process to me? I'm very interested! Thank you.

 

In simplest terms the pilot has expert specific knowledge of local waters, currents, tides, winds, depths etc.

 

He's taken out by pilot boat to the ship (sometimes direct from another ship he's just guided out of the port, sometimes several pilots are dropped off by the same pilot boat to different incoming ships - cuts down on the taxi fares ;)). Have you not seen him climb from boat to ship? He goes to the bridge & effectively directs the captain on course & speed etc, through to tying up at the quayside.

Same thing in reverse for leaving port.

 

Strictly-speaking, the captain is still in charge, the captain is still responsible, the captain can over-rule the pilot (I think the only exception is the Panama canal) but in essence it's a team effort between the guy who knows his waters & the guy who knows his ship.

 

Sometimes it doesn't involve a port - just difficult waters such as the Dardanelles Strait, between the Mediterranean Sea & the Sea of Marmaris (for Istanbul), or the Strait of Messina, between Italy & Sicily.

 

Sometimes pilots are ferried by helicopter rather than boat, though I've not witnessed that.

 

Usually local regulations determine whether a pilot is required, depending on the ship. Nearly always cruise ships are required to take on a pilot, but often very large local ferries are permitted to operate without a pilot because one or more of the senior crew is a qualified pilot for that ferry & that port.

 

Next time you see a pilot boat approaching the ship, get to a vantage point looking over the ship's rail to watch the pilot transfer.

If you lean too far, the pilot boat may even fish you out of the water :D

 

JB :)

Doh. Apologies for the gender-specifics ;)

[sparky-elpaso]

In simplest terms the pilot has expert specific knowledge of local waters, currents, tides, winds, depths etc.

 

He's taken out by pilot boat to the ship (sometimes direct from another ship he's just guided out of the port, sometimes several pilots are dropped off by the same pilot boat to different incoming ships - cuts down on the taxi fares ;)). Have you not seen him climb from boat to ship? He goes to the bridge & effectively directs the captain on course & speed etc, through to tying up at the quayside.

Same thing in reverse for leaving port.

 

Strictly-speaking, the captain is still in charge, the captain is still responsible, the captain can over-rule the pilot (I think the only exception is the Panama canal) but in essence it's a team effort between the guy who knows his waters & the guy who knows his ship.

 

Sometimes it doesn't involve a port - just difficult waters such as the Dardanelles Strait, between the Mediterranean Sea & the Sea of Marmaris (for Istanbul), or the Strait of Messina, between Italy & Sicily.

 

Sometimes pilots are ferried by helicopter rather than boat, though I've not witnessed that.

 

Usually local regulations determine whether a pilot is required, depending on the ship. Nearly always cruise ships are required to take on a pilot, but often very large local ferries are permitted to operate without a pilot because one or more of the senior crew is a qualified pilot for that ferry & that port.

 

Next time you see a pilot boat approaching the ship, get to a vantage point looking over the ship's rail to watch the pilot transfer.

If you lean too far, the pilot boat may even fish you out of the water :D

 

JB :)

Doh. Apologies for the gender-specifics ;)

 

 

The pilot may stay on for a longer time in some places. We spent most of a day going in and out of the fjords in New Zealand and the pilot stayed on the ship the whole time. He even did some commentary from the bridge on what we were seeing, our location, etc.