Fremantle Ports
Western Australia
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Small Craft

Tug Operations

FP Osprey is a twin-hulled aluminium high-speed vessel.

Parmelia, is an all weather, fibre-glass vessel.

Fremantle Ports has a number of boats that assist visiting vessels to enter and exit the harbour.

Towage in Fremantle's Inner and Outer Harbours is provided by private operators. Tugs are small, powerful vessels used for towing or pushing ships in port.

Line boats are small, powerful vessels controlled by one person. They are used to pull heavy mooring lines fastened to the line boat, from a ship to the wharf. Port Services personnel then secure the lines on bollards. The Harbour Launch Company operates line boats in Fremantle's Inner Harbour.

Pilots at Fremantle are all qualified sea captains, expert in ship handling, with many years' experience in manoeuvring both large and small vessels in the channels off Fremantle in all weather conditions. During a pilot transfer, the skipper of the pilot boat must match the speed of the vessel being boarded. The pilot boat comes alongside at about eight knots and must continue at that speed, while the pilot climbs a ladder on to or off the ship.

After boarding the ship and reaching the bridge the pilot exchanges information and shows the ship's master the Passage Plan he intends to follow. The pilot then guides the ship through Port waters to the berth, by giving steering and engine commands, directing tugs, line boats and mooring line handling until the vessel is safely secured at the wharf.

The emergency response boat is designed and equipped to respond quickly and efficiently to emergencies in Fremantle Ports waters, and is used also for other purposes such as hydrographic surveying, agitation dredging and maintenance of beacons and buoys.

The vessel is 25 metres long, with a top speed of around 15 knots, giving a fast response time to any emergency situation which may arise in the Port. It is a designated respondent to the Ferry Disaster Plan, which is co-ordinated by the WA Police Service. FP Response is fitted with various marine and shore-based radios, which link it to the State Emergency Services and the Kwinana Integrated Emergency Plan.

Can you answer these questions?

  1. What is a line boat?

  2. What is a tug boat?

  3. What is a pilot boat?

  4. What is an emergency response boat?

  5. How are lines secured to the wharf?

  6. How does a pilot board a ship? How does a pilot board an aeroplane?

  7. How is an emergency co-ordinated from the emergency response boat?

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