How are pilots graded?

Pilots are currently divided into four levels: high, first, second and third.

Pilots are also called "pilots" and "pilots." A person who guides ships to safely navigate, dock, or pass through locks and other restricted waters in a certain navigation area. The main rights are: the right to refuse pilotage when the correct decision cannot be implemented or when it is believed that natural conditions cannot guarantee the safety of pilotage; the right to decide to use tugboats to assist in maneuvering the ship; the right to require the ship to sail to the nearest port when diverting from the port due to force majeure. port.

First class pilot is the highest level: mainly responsible for piloting ultra-large ships and complex waterways, such as ultra-large container ships exceeding 5,000TEUS and large bulk cargo and oil tankers exceeding 100,000 tons in Shanghai, Tianjin, Yantian and other places. It is piloted by a first class pilot.

Level 2 Pilot: Mainly responsible for piloting medium-sized ships below 5,000 TEUS and below 100,000 tons.

Level 3 Pilot: Mainly responsible for piloting Panamax ships of less than 3,000 TEUS. Level 4 Pilot: Mainly responsible for piloting various types of small ships of about 1,000 TEUS and less than 20,000 gross tons. Promotion to pilots at different levels requires taking exams and accumulating qualifications.

Professional quality of pilots:

When recruiting pilots, crew members with excellent mental and physical qualities will be selected from crew schools or shipping companies for training. Then each assistant pilot must follow a master, and it takes about 4-5 years to become a full-fledged pilot.

But at this time he can only pilot small and medium-sized ships. It usually takes another 5 or 6 years before he can be gradually promoted to a first-level pilot and lead large ships. It takes at least more than ten years to be promoted from a trainee pilot to a senior pilot.

Piloting is a challenging profession. It requires pilots to constantly face new environments and meet new challenges. They have to board different ships every day, study the operating performance of different ships, and face people from different countries. , master the characteristics of different customs.