As you approach the pilot station after several days steaming at sea speed, a effort is required on the part of bridge crew to reorient themselves to the lower speeds necessary for maneuvering. When making a lee for the pilot be sure speed is reduced to 3 to 4 knots. There are ports with high powered boats and special boarding facilities where it is preferred that the ship proceed at higher speeds. You are usually aware of this requirement or the pilot will inform you of it via VHF when you call the station before arrival. Unless informed otherwise, the 3-to-4-knot speed is comfortable and yet not so slow that the boat has difficulty staying alongside while transferring the pilot to the ladder. Make your approach so as to give the pilot a good lee and remember that it is possible to knock down a short chop by putting a swing on your ship just before the pilot boards so the quarter is swinging away from the pilot boat. "Sweeping a lee" in this manner is especially helpful when there is a cross sea and swell since you can block the swell with the ship's hull and then knock down the contrary sea as the pilot boards.
Making a lee often requires some careful planning, especially when a shoal area or traffic restricts maneuvering. A complete round turn may be the best way to make a good lee, even if it appears at first to be very time consuming. Since the turn takes off a great deal of the ship's headway, you can make up for some of the time required to make this round turn by being able to approach the station at a greater speed than would have been possible had you proceeded directly and then slowed with the engine alone. More important, while it may not look rough from the bridge, it is rough down there in that small launch, and the transfer will be hazardous. Professionalism demands that you make the situation as safe as possible for the pilot, regardless of how late you are arriving at the terminal, or how many gangs might be waiting at the dock.
Come ahead to start the ship swinging to the right and then put the engine astern. The vessel turns about her pivot point while headway is simultaneously reduced so the maneuver does not require any great amount of sea room. Remember, though, that all the way must not be taken off the ship as this makes it difficult for the pilot boat to stay alongside. It is also important not to back so long that the wash reaches the pilot ladder and sweeps the pilot launch away from the ship's side.
engine astern. The vessel turns about her pivot point while headway is simultaneously reduced so the maneuver does not require any great amount of searoom. Remember, though, that all the way must not be taken off the ship as this makes it difficult for the pilot boat to stay alongside. It is also important not to back so long that the wash reaches the pilot ladder and sweeps the pilot launch away from the ship's side.
ESTIMATING SPEED THOUGH THE WATER BY SHIP'S PROPELLER WASH How, on a dark night without a Doppler log, do you tell what speed you are making? By watching the wash from the propeller. When the engine is going astern, the ship's speed is down to about 2 knots when the wash from the propeller begins to move up the starboard side of the ship. So long as that wash is being left behind the ship, you are making something in excess of 2 knots. Of course, as every seaman knows, once the wash reaches halfway up the ship's hull, the ship is dead in the water
