Aquatic Adventures: Navigating With A Harbor Pilot

MIAMI (CBS4) -- When large container ships and cruise ships travel through local waters, they are not under the direction of the ship's captain as many people might expect. The vessels are actually under the control of someone else. In today's Aquatic Adventures, CBS4's Jeff Berardelli takes you along for a ride with a harbor pilot.

Container ships, tankers and cruise ships cannot dock at the Port of Miami without a Biscayne Bay Harbor pilot who are the experts of the harbor and know the port much better than anyone else.

Captain Michael Jaccoma has 23 years of experience and has mastered the caveats of our local water such as the currents and channels. The ships they help steer can be more than 1,000 feet long and over 50,000 tons.

The harbor pilots prevent accidents.

"If it leaks oil its gonna go all over beautiful Biscayne bay or the pristine waters of south beach," said Jaccoma.

Once they board the ships, the harbor pilots discuss the plan with the ship's captain before taking over navigational control of the ship. He's responsible for giving orders to the helmsman.

The harbor pilots are responsible for about 20 movements in and out of port each day. They pilot tankers, container ships and cruise ships.