Section 61G14-15.004 - Boarding and Disembarking(1) Except when subsection (2) applies, pilots shall board inbound vessels before or at the time they cross the Territorial Sea Line of Demarcation and disembark from outbound vessels at or after the time they cross such line; or, board and disembark vessels at the traditional pilot station, as approved by the Board and specifically listed below:(a) Fernandina: Pilots board and disembark vessels drawing more than 23 feet off St. Mary's Entrance Lighted Buoy "STM" in the vicinity of Latitude 30º 42.9' N, Longitude 81º 14.6' W. Vessels drawing 23 feet or less should remain north of the entrance channel and shall be boarded and disembarked from in the vicinity of St. Mary's Entrance Lighted Bouy 6 in the vicinity of Latitude 30º 42.8' N, Longitude 081º 20.0' W.(b) Jacksonville: For vessels drawing over 40 feet and up to 47 feet, pilots board and disembark in the vicinity of Latitude 30º 21' 53'' N, Longitude 081º 10' 32'' W (Area A). For vessels drawing over 40 feet and less, pilots board and disembark in the vicinity of Latitude 30º 23' 35'' N, Longitude 081º 19' 8'' W (Area B).(c) Port Canaveral: Pilots board inbound vessels one mile southeast of Approach Channel Lighted Bouys 3 and 4; however, deep draft vessels and large cruise ships are boarded from one and a half to two miles southeast of Approach Channel Lighted Bouys 3 and 4. Pilots disembark outbound vessels in the vicinity of Approach Channel Lighted Bouys 7 and 8 to Lighted Bouys 5 and 6; however, pilots disembark large or deep draft vessels after Approach Channel lighted Bouys 3 and 4 are passed outbound.(d) Fort Pierce: Pilots board and disembark off the sea buoy in the vicinity of 27º 28.6' N 80º 15.4' W.(e) Port of Palm Beach: Pilots board and disembark off the sea buoy in the vicinity of 26º 46.3' N 80º 00.6' W.(f) Port Everglades: Pilots board and disembark off the sea buoy in the vicinity of 26º 05.5' N 80º 04.8' W.(g) Miami: Pilots board vessels seaward off the sea buoy in the vicinity of 25º 46.1' N 80º 05.0' W. They leave outbound vessels after clearing channel buoys #2 and #3 in the vicinity of 25º 45.8' N 80º 05.9' W.(h) Key West: Pilots board vessels in position Latitude 24º 25.5' N, Longitude 81º 48.0' W, approximately 2 nautical miles south of Key West Entrance Lighted Whistle Bouy KW, or in position Latitude 24º 41.0' N, Longitude 81º 55.0' W, approximately 2 nautical miles north of the Key West Northwest Channel Entrance Lighted Bell Buoy in the vicinity of 24º 38.8' N 81º 54.0' W. Pilots disembark vessels in the vicinity of the Entrance Bouys.(i) Fort Myers: Pilots board and disembark vessels off San Carlos Bay Light #1 in the vicinity of 26º 25.1' N 81º 57.5' W.(j) Boca Grande: Pilots board and disembark vessels off the Entrance Lighted Bell Buoy #2 in the vicinity of 26º 39.8' N 82º 19.6' W.(k) Tampa: In Egmont Channel, pilots normally board and disembark vessels between buoys #11 and #13 in the vicinity of 27º 36.5' N 82º 49.7' W and upon request will board and disembark off the sea buoy in the vicinity of 27º 35.3' N 83º 00.7' W. When entering by Southwest Channel pilots board off Entrance Lighted Bell Buoy #1 in the vicinity of 27º 32' N 82º 48.2' W.(l) Port St. Joe: At this time a pilot station is not maintained at Port St. Joe. Vessels are required to proceed to the Port of Panama City and use the boarding and disembarking points provided for that port. Any boarding and disembarking off the Port St. Joe entrance channel will be by prior arrangement.(m) Panama City: Pilots board vessels off the sea bouy in the vicinity of 30º 05' N 085º 46.4' W and disembark vessels after clearing channel bouys #1 and #2.(n) Pensacola: Pilots board and disembark vessels seaward of Pensacola Bay Entrance Lighted Gong Buoy #1 in the vicinity of 30º 16' N 87º 17.4' W.(2) When conditions make boarding and disembarking a vessel unsafe at the location specified in subsection (1), the location, time and manner of boarding and disembarking shall be mutually agreed upon by the master and the pilot involved, so as to provide an acceptable level of safety.Fla. Admin. Code Ann. R. 61G14-15.004
Rulemaking Authority 310.185 FS. Law Implemented 310.002, 310.141 FS.
New 7-2-89, Amended 11-28-90, Formerly 21SS-8.012, 21SS-15.004, Amended 7-9-09, Amended by Florida Register Volume 43, Number 030, February 14, 2017 effective 2/27/2017, Amended by Florida Register Volume 48, Number 188, September 27, 2022 effective 10/10/2022.New 7-2-89, Amended 11-28-90, Formerly 21SS-8.012, 21SS-15.004, Amended 7-9-09, 2-27-17, 10-10-22.