On July 3rd, 2023 The Port of New South Wales Harbour Authority issued Harbour Master Instruction HMI 23-03E, named ” Safe Marine Pilot Transfer (MPT) Arrangement – Pilot Ladder “. This Instruction sets regulations for ship’s masters and operators, which supersede IMO and ISO requirements. In short the maximum age of the […]
Good Practice
Blunt edge technology
It is no secret that sharp deck edge of a ship will cause damage to the pilotladder and that is a dangerous and costly thing. Recently Capt. Arie Palmers came across a ship where the sharp deck edge had been covered by a rounded plate. A very simple, cost effective […]
Pilbara Ports make ladder testing as per ISO 799 mandatory
In a recent Local Marine Notice 12/22, the port of Port Hedland has made the industry standard ISO 799-1 mandatory for all ships calling the port from may first 2023. This means that ship are only allowed to use pilot ladders over 30 months old after they have been tested […]
Netherlands Navy to build ladders as per SOLAS / ISO standards
The Royal Netherlands Navy has announced that it will start to build and test pilot ladders in accordance with SOLAS chV reg 23 and ISO799-1:2019. This is a huge step forward in respect to Maritime Pilots safety and hopefully this example will be followed by navies around the world. Update […]
Hamburg pilots issue pilotladder safety leaflet
Port of Hamburg have issued a very useful pilot ladder safety leaflet for ships visiting the port of Hamburg. In this leaflet, a very clear set of instructions is given to ship’s crews .The leaflet can be downloaded here.
1000 Ways trilogy has been updated
In preparation for the IMPA safety campaign, the Scheldt pilot Arie Palmers has updated his much acclaimed “1000 ways trilogy” to the september 2021 version. In these documents, a comprehensive collection of good and bad practices in PTA procedures has been collected. The complete trilogy can be downloaded on this […]
Backpack or not? It’s all about the lifejacket.
When publishing articles or pictures about pilots and their pilotladders, very often we see the use of backpacks. The use of backpacks is controversial, since its weight, or buoyancy, can influence the functioning of the lifejacket used. With a lot being said about the issue, the only way to find […]
The American P and I club issues Pilot Ladder Good Catch Alerts
Good Catch takes into account that although every company’s safety management system is different, there is a common theme that all seafarers’ situational awareness and personal responsibility is tantamount to their own safety, that of their shipmates, the marine environment, cargo and the ship alike. This initiative is a combination […]
V Ships takes action against dangerous pilot ladder winch arrangement
Recently, V-ships encountered some vessels with a dangerous pilot ladder winch setup. The safety management of the company approached pilotladdersafety.com for advice, and together we came up with a solution. As can be seen from the pictures, there was no possibility to secure the ladder at intermediate length before the […]