Page 33 - Sun Rays March 2013

MARCH 2013 SUNRAYS | 33
ONLINE: SCTXCA.ORG
pilot 14 years ago, after completing an
intensive two-year pilot apprenticeship
program. He was one of four captains to
be selected for the pilot program out of
102 applicants.
“Just to be selected as a pilot, you have
to have a Captain’s License. It’s not an
entry-level position—at least not in
Texas. Once we’re selected, the Coast
Guard administers an examination, and
we’re given a map of the whole harbor
and bay area; we memorize it, and then
we draw it frommemory: all of the shal-
low water spots, the buoys, the markers,
where the docks are. Once you get your
[commission], you start riding with the
other pilots and they let you do the job
as an apprentice pilot,” he said.
Chris explained a pilot’s job as one of con-
trol and safety. “Before a ship arrives at
almost any port in the world, a local pilot
goes out in a small boat, boards the ship
several miles out at sea, usually from a
rope ladder, takes over from the ship’s
captain, and guides the ship into port.
He or she is in control of the ship until
it is safely tied up at the dock,” he said.
“When the ship departs, the process is
reversed. The pilot controls the move-
ment of the ship until it is away from
the congested waters of the port safely
out at sea in deep water. [Then he/she]
hands control of the vessel back to the
ship’s captain and leaves the ship via the
same small boat and heads back to shore,
ready for his or her next job.”
The Port of Galveston has 16 pilots (15
male, one female), so eight of them are
on duty for about two weeks while the
other eight are off, allowing Chris to
enjoy his home in Sun City just about
half of each month.
Although he is a commissioned harbor
pilot, Chris said that pilots are trained
according to their location. “I know
Galveston Harbor the way a New York
pilot knows his or her harbor, or a Tokyo
Bay pilot, or Liverpool pilot or any pilot
in any port knows his or her particular
ports,” he said. “Pilots are unique to
their particular ports. I cannot pilot a
ship into Corpus Christi, nor can a Cor-
pus Christi pilot take a ship into Galves-
ton. In Texas and most other states in
the U.S., pilots hold a Captain’s License
issued by the U.S. Coast Guard and a
commission from the state’s governor
authorizing him or her to legally pilot
ships in their assigned port. In Texas
and most other ports in the world, the
use of a commissioned pilot is mandatory
by law for most ships.”
The Port of Galveston harbors five cruise
ships—Crown Princess, Mariner of the
Seas, Disney Magic, Carnival Magic
and Carnival Triumph —making it the
fourth largest cruise market in the coun-
try; however, the cruise ships make up
only about 5-10 percent of Chris’ and the
other pilots’ calls. Eighty percent of the
pilots’ business is made by bringing in
oil tankers into the Port of Texas City,
while the other 10-15 percent is with
dry-cargo ships.
No matter what kind of ship he’s piloting,
there is always one key goal. “Our job is
safety—that’s it in a nutshell,” he said.
Next time you’re out in Galveston wait-
ing to board a cruise ship, or finally com-
ing home back to Texas shores, know
that you’re in safe hands—perhaps even
your neighbor’s.
Horticulture Club Open House
Saturday, February 23, 2-4 p.m.
Sun City Gardens, 141 Sun City Blvd.
Come tour the community gardens, operated and main-
tained by Sun City residents! Learn about raised beds,
native plants and, their newest feature, the fully-au-
tomated greenhouse! See page 124 for more details.
Fun Facts:
• The draft of a ship is how much
of the ship is under water. Be-
fore piloting a vessel, Chris’ first
question is always, “What’s your
draft?” The Port of Galveston
allows a 45-foot draft.
• The common language for radio
communications between ships
is English, just like Air Traffic
Control.
• Galveston is the oldest port in
Texas, and the Galveston Pilots
Association was established in
1845 by the Republic of Texas.
• The City of Galveston actually
owns the Port of Galveston;
other ports are managed by a
port authority.