Scott signs port security clearance bill in Tampa

Tampa Tribune - May 24, 2011
www2.tbo.com

TAMPA -- Gov. Rick Scott today signed into law an employee security-clearance bill to eliminate the requirement for duplicative state and federal security standards that have added costs to employers at Florida's seaports.

Port director: Tampa well positioned for increased trade

Tampa Tribune - April 7, 2011
www2.tbo.com

The Port of Tampa is well-positioned for increased trade once the Panama Canal expansion is completed, including sufficient Sunshine Skyway Bridge clearance for larger cargo ships, port director Richard Wainio told the Hillsborough County Commission on Wednesday.

Port Everglades: Design phase started on $35 million cruise terminal upgrade

Sun Sentinel – April 2, 2011
blogs.sun-sentinel.com

Port Everglades recently entered the design phase of an estimated $35 million cruise terminal renovation project that is slated to start in late 2012.

Strong winds pull Carnival cruise ship from dock

Miami Herald - March 31, 2011
miamiherald.com

Strong winds from a passing storm separated a Carnival cruise ship from its dock at Cape Canaveral.

Singular port security

Panama City News Herald - March 27, 2011
newsherald.com

Truck drivers, stevedores and others who handle the freight at Florida’s seaports carry a heavy burden, both physically and economically. The latter is made worse by their being required to comply with duplicative security measures.

Miami harbor pilots celebrate century of safety

The Miami Herald - March 19, 2011
miamiherald.com

The next time powerful thunderstorms or gusting winds roll into South Florida, spare a thought for Capt. John Jacobsen.

The port: Big economic impact at stake

The Florida Times-Union - March 20, 2011
jacksonville.com

Jacksonville's port is now the hottest topic in town.

Governor OKs Port of Entry plan for Marathon

Florida Keys News - March 11, 2011
keysnews.com

Marathon is one step closer to landing the Point of Entry moniker, a designation vital to opening the city up to international travel.

Port Manatee readies to expand as Florida exports escalate

Bradenton Herald - March 4, 2011
www.bradenton.com

New figures rank Florida as the nation’s fourth largest export state even as facilities like Port Manatee ready themselves for an increase in traffic expected from the Panama Canal expansion.

Port Manatee at heart of transportation authority vision

Bradenton Herald - Feb. 23, 2011
www.bradenton.com

BRADENTON -- Manatee County commissioners were polite but restrained Tuesday after a Tampa attorney pitched a regional transportation authority that he said could attract world trade to Port Manatee and “drastically diversify” Florida’s economy to create hundreds of thousands of jobs.

Safety, security harbor pilots’ priorities

Miami Herald, April 4, 2010
http://www.miamiherald.com
Tony Villamil’s March 28 Speakup letter, Reform harbor pilot system, mischaracterizes the facts of the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability’s (OPPAGA) findings in regard to Florida’s harbor-pilot system…

Ports: Harbor pilots deserve support

Florida Times-Union, March 26, 2010
http://jacksonville.com/opinion
There are many issues that will be important for Northeast Florida to monitor this legislative session.

Guest column: Harbor pilots put Florida first

St. Augustine Record, March 21, 2010
http://staugustine.com/opinions
It continues to amaze me that the foreign cruise and cargo ship owners continue to attack Florida’s harbor pilots with intentional misrepresentation of the facts and personal attacks on those that disagree with their self-centered agenda. To claim that Florida’s harbor pilots threaten jobs and job growth is absurd and a stretch even for the best of the spinmeisters.

Harbor pilots put port security first

Florida Today, March 21, 2010
http://www.floridatoday.com/article
I am writing in response to the recent letter, “ Harbor pilot article missed the boat.”

Harbor pilots make Florida’s ports safer

South East Shipping News, March 18, 2010
http://seshippingnews.typepad.com/south_east_shipping_news
While Tony Villamil is a noted economist, his Feb. 27 opinion in the Sun Sentinel regarding Florida’s harbor pilot system warrants a response. He did not articulate that his study was conducted on behalf of a foreign group of ship owners that has relentlessly targeted the private harbor pilot profession in Florida. Further, I believe that he mischaracterized the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability’s findings, pulling from bits and pieces of information and weaving them into a misleading and inaccurate conclusion that solely benefits his client.

Guest Column: Thrasher: Supports Jax, Fernandina Harbor pilots

St. Augustine Record, March 14, 2010
http://staugustine.com/opinions
There are many issues that will be important for Northeast Florida to monitor this session of the Legislature, but one in particular that should be on the radar screen of all of us who count on commerce and tourism traffic in and out of the Port of Jacksonville and the Port of Fernandina — our St. Johns Bar Pilots and Cumberland Sound Pilots.

Harbor pilots steer clear of rule change

Tallahassee Democrat, March 1, 2010
http://www.tallahassee.com
To the chagrin of the cruise industry and the relief of harbor pilots, a state report does not recommend major changes in the way the …

Shipping industries, pilots disagree over piloting rate regulation

Florida Times-Union, March 1, 2010
http://jacksonville.com
TALLAHASSEE — Harbor pilots and maritime industries are feuding over the regulation of piloting rates in difficult economic times, with both sides arguing that a recent legislative report proves their point.

Who gets to steer big ships into port?

St. Petersburg Times, February 17, 2010
http://www.tampabay.com
Ever see the TV show The Love Boat?

Florida pilots defend existing system

Lloyd’s List, February 15, 2010
Lloyd’s List (PDF)
FLORIDA pilots have cited a state agency’s reluctance to modify the existing pilotage system as proof that the current system “provides the greatest benefit to the public”.

Cptn. Thomas Hackett – Oasis of the Seas

WPLG TV Local 10 Miami, December 12, 2009
http://floridapilots.com
The world’s largest cruise ship is about to set sail into South Florida; but parking the Oasis of the Seas will be no easy feat; and no one knows that better than the pilot in charge of the task.

The high cost of bringing the biggest boats to port

St. Petersburg Times, December 6, 2009
http://www.tampabay.com/news
Harbor pilot Joseph Shary ticks off some hazards of his profession as he rides out to climb aboard a tanker bigger than the tallest building in the Tampa Bay area.

A few words about ports, politics and Florida’s Harbor Pilots

South East Shipping News, October 23, 2009
http://seshippingnews.typepad.com
Who wants a discount pilot with limited experience docking your overloaded cruise ship in a torrential gale with a litigious bunch of blue hairs on board?

Harbor Pilots Help Guide Ships

Florida Today, November 19, 2009
http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net
Harbor pilots ensure the safe passage of ships into and out of Port Canaveral.

Harbor pilots in rough water

Florida Today, November 15, 2009
http://www.floridatoday.com
PORT CANAVERAL – Grabbing the shifting rope ladder to scramble five stories up the side of a berthed freighter, harbor pilot Capt. David Callan risked his life for the first time of the day.

Florida Pilots: A friend to those who cruise

Chris Cruises, October 25, 2009

http://chriscruises.wordpress.com
If you have been on a cruise and watched carefully as the ship either leaves or comes back to shore, you will have seen what looks like a small speedboat with the word “PILOT” on it.  That pilot is one of a select few individuals with a skill necessary to get your large ship in and out of the port.

Harbor pilots group criticizes study

Travel Weekly, October 22, 2009
http://www.travelweekly.com
The Florida Harbor Pilots Association (FHPA) rejected the outcome of a study that calls the state’s pilot system a monopoly that limits pilot numbers and inflates pilots average salaries to $368,000 per year.

Florida harbor pilots getting ready for world’s largest cruise ship

Professional Mariner, October 2, 2009
http://www.professionalmariner.com
(PORT EVERGLADES, Fla.) — Capt. Andrew Edelstein, of the Florida Harbor Pilots Association, wrote a guest commentary that appeared in the Sun-Sentinel newspaper of Fort Lauderdale. Edelstein said the pilots are working with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line to ensure safety when the world’s largest cruise ship begins calling at Port Everglades.

Would you want this job? Harbor Pilot

WPBT-TV Channel 2 Miami, October 1, 2009
http://ka.uvuvideo.org
Would you would this job? explores out-of-the ordinary career. In this episode, Sarah Bitterman, student at St Thomas University, meets with a Harbor Pilot to learn more about his profession.

Harbor pilots ready to meet needs of port

South Florida Sun-Sentinel, September 30, 2009
http://www.sun-sentinel.com
We agree with the Sun Sentinel article that piloting the world’s largest cruise ship is no job for amateurs. A lot of planning has gone into ensuring the home of the world’s largest ship is ready for this caliber of a vessel.

NOAA to cut buoy info program, Harbor pilots concerned about safe navigation

Key West Citizen, August 16, 2009
http://keysnews.com
Key West harbor pilot Capt. Bob McGuire accesses information from the Sand Key Lighthouse monitoring station via computer numerous times a day. However, that monitoring station and six others throughout the Florida Keys and South Florida could be shut down as soon as September.

International trade rebound skips South Florida

Miami Herald, August 14, 2009
http://www.miamiherald.com
While nationwide trade is on the upswing, signaling the recession is beginning to lose steam, activity at South Florida’s ports shows the downturn is far from over.

Harbor pilots critical to safety in ports

Palm Beach Post, August 9, 2009
http://g2.palmbeachpost.com
A recent story in The Post that points out how dangerous it has become to navigate the Port of Palm Beach (“Small boats obstructing large vessels in channel,” July 25) illustrates the ongoing need across Florida for highly trained and highly skilled harbor pilots.