Chittagong, July 29, 2011: Pilot vessels are essential for port service. Chittagong Port has several pilot boats for carrying maritime pilots from shore to the outer anchorage, who guides incoming vessels to the port safely using the port connecting channel.
This is necessary as pilotage techniques vary in each harbor which master of a ship is not familiar with. To bring an incoming vessel to the port from the outer anchorage pilots rely on nearby visual reference points and local knowledge of tides, swells, currents, depths and shoals that might not be readily identify able on nautical charts. In this same way a pilot escorts a ship out of his port & returns with a pilot boat. These boats must be able to withstand heavy seas and bumping against 100,000 ton ships, they are high powered and hence very quick and durable, purpose built boats.
History of pilot goes back to ancient Greece and Roman times, when locally experienced harbour captains, mainly local fishermen, were employed by incoming ships captain to safely bring into port their trading vessel. These people were generally self-employed, meaning that they had to have quick transport to get them from the incoming ships. As pilots were often dual-employed, hence they used their own fishing boats to reach the incoming vessel. But fishing boats were heavy working boats, and fPV Rakkhi is the first & only pilot cum service vessel which will be added in the fleet of Chittagong Port Authority from today. This boat will not only carry pilots but it will be equipped to provide emergency service to incoming & outgoing vessels. She can carry 12 passengers & 10crews with emergency equipment for use in vessels. Designed to operate round the year within the coastal & sea region of Bangladesh during monsoon rough sea condition (BF-7) with minimum 3M swell height. Class approved by GL she is made with highly strengthened steel to withstand heavy bumping with LCCs & VLCCs.
