22M Pilot Boat

Modern pilot boats are specialized craft that must comply with the new requirements not previously demanded by operators.

The platform must be stable in all six-movement vectors, in all weather and sea conditions, especially when alongside a ship.

It must be quick, say 30 knots so that it can go without time wasting and do more than one job per trip.

Manoeuvrability at rest and at speed must be the very best so that the boat can be put in exactly the right spot and kept there against all kinds of disruptive forces.

Accommodation must be comfortable and air-conditioned to give pilots and crew a chance to relax and prepare for difficult jobs in pleasant surroundings.

Most importantly it must be easy to come alongside a ship at any speed and just as easy to break off again.

Low maintenance and a long life must combine with a relatively low capital outlay.

The conventional steel mono-hull of say 24m in length, displacing some 50 tons and capable of 15 knots falls far short in very many aspects when driven by big diesels, props and rudders.

One of its biggest handicaps is the problem of breaking the suction load that keeps it glued to the ships side when under way.

This suction is caused by the hull lines of the mono-hull creating a venturi when in close proximity of the ships hull.

The closer it gets the greater the suction, negative pressure because of the accelerated flow of the water that is being forced into the gap by the pilot boats bows.

It is the aspect ration, length divided by the beam of about 3 that exacerbates this problem for mon-ohulls.

For fast catamarans with an aspect ration of 10 for the sponson this unwanted phenomenon just about disappears to save all the extreme revving of engines, stress and strain that can be observed on today's pilot boats in South Africa, leading to reported engine failures.

The Germans went to a SWATH layout to try and make the perfect pilot boat, but the cost is astronomical.

Other aspects in favour of a 22m fibreglass catamaran with FAST foils are the very well damped hull movements.

A practical and proven alternative Pilot Boat

Under the present conditions in South Africa we believe that a practical compromise is needed to accommodate the requirements of the immediate future.

The designated Pilot Boat must be safe, quick, affordable, and acceptable to existing personnel and new trainees alike, both Pilots and Crew.

We suggest here that the proven South African designed and built BOBKAT 2200 is able to meet this requirement up to the 97% level. The implied 3% against its advantage is due to the effort that will be necessary to convince the Old Guard still in decision-making positions of the true perspective. That is to say, that one DOES NOT NEED one hundred tonnes of steel driven by hundreds of horsepower and multiple crew to move one man over only a few kilometres distance, a number of times a day at any given harbour.

The BOBKAT 2200 has been thoroughly proven in service in its capacity as ASR by the South African Navy, as well as by numerous private owners operating it as ferries and survey / service boats. The BOBKAT 2200 is set to become the benchmark for Pilot Boats operating in unfriendly seas, as frequently dished up by the South African environment at the Cape of Storms.

This special Custom Model with its many features specifically suited to Pilotage work, is offered as an alternative to the normal specified 27m mono-hull.