Fremantle Ports
Western Australia
About Fremantle PortsPort Planning & DevelopmentShipping & TradeEnvironment & SafetyCommercial & PropertyCommunityEducationMedia & Publications
Education
 
   
Home | Education | Primary | How the Port Works |  Small Craft
Small Craft

Tug operations

A line boat

Port Services personnel securing a ship's line to a bollard

Pilot boat Parmelia alongside a ship ready for a pilot transfer

A pilot being transferred between a pilot boat and a ship

Parmelia is an all-weather, fibreglass vessel.

FP Response, emergency response boat

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

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

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. Harbour Services Australia operates line boats in Fremantle's Inner Harbour.

Pilot boats, such as  FP Parmelia and the FP Paddy Troy, transfer marine pilots to ships entering the port and leaving the port. 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 onto 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, FP Response, 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 coordinated 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 marine pilot board a ship? How does a pilot board an aeroplane?

  7. How is an emergency coordinated from the emergency response boat?

More information
© Fremantle Ports 2010 Disclaimer