Vicenç Tomás argues that the College of Pilots, with Antonio Molinero at the helm, consolidated the pilotage service through ongoing refresher courses and technical workshops, whose most important benefit is to familiarize us among pilots, exchange experiences, and learn some technical aspects, especially those related to new technologies.
You are the man who left his position as a pilot in Valencia to go to a smaller port, an unusual decision. Why did you come to Menorca?
There are others like me, I’m not the first. During the height of Covid, Fermín, a pilot from Mahón, called me to come to Menorca because both he and Ricardo were getting older and needed replacements. I considered that I already had money saved. I don’t have major expenses. I like Mahón; its port allows me a relaxed, peaceful life—a fantastic port to end my professional career. In Valencia, I barely had a social life. In Mahón, I’ve made a home near Cala Llonga, with a staircase leading to the sea. I have a Zodiac tied to a small dock, and with it, I get around everywhere. The work of a pilot allows me a magnificent life. Sometimes there are problems, but they are problems you can solve with knowledge and accumulated experience: a large Navy ship, a cruise liner without side thrusters, difficult maneuvers—but I enjoy them because they let you put your professionalism to the test. We had to renew the pilot boats. The boat we have in Mahón was bought from the Joan Roig shipyard, Nasai. A good vessel. We needed another to cover shortages, so we bought it from the Valencia Corporation. Since I knew it well and transporting it to Menorca was prohibitively expensive, I sailed it from Valencia myself—a good trip, fast and smooth. The Valencia boat is sturdy, well-suited to handle rough seas when the Tramontana blows. Sometimes you have to go out in heavy seas to board incoming ships in Mahón. Some ferries come in, and we board them inside, but the small, very luxurious cruise ships with sails—if you don’t have a good boat, you won’t board them.
The small dock and the motorboat for getting around the port of Mahón
Now we’ve managed to take responsibility for port control and have organized pilotage in Ciutadella, which has greatly improved the financial situation of the Pilots’ Corporation. These were long, sometimes tense, but fruitful negotiations. Negotiating and discussing with people who know what they’re dealing with is relatively straightforward if there’s a minimum of good faith. The parties know the goal, the best outcome, and only need to discuss how to get there and each stakeholder’s involvement.
You pilots are what remains of the organized nautical profession; setting aside all the differences, which are many, you occupy a role analogous to notaries in relation to lawyers: a professional elite aware of your corporate role. Most Spanish sailors were pushed off ships by a market that prefers cheap, resigned Asian technicians. We defended ourselves against globalization with relative success, thanks to the courage of many colleagues who fought in the Free Union of the Merchant Navy and the work of exceptional jurists, José María Ruiz Soroa and his law partner Santiago Zabaleta, whom you honored with the title of Honorary Pilot.
The cultural tradition, deeply rooted in history, that compels the mariner to be individualistic, anarchic, and untamed has played a negative role when we have attempted to organize ourselves to defend our interests before society. The great Ernesto Anastasio tried it at the beginning of the last century, the founder of the pilotage we know today, founder and first president of the Federation of Spanish Pilots, and he was torn apart by the idiots of that reactionary left who believe that with a few pennies of ideology, rattling words, and much conceit they already know the solution to social conflicts. All attempts to unite the profession under a single organization failed. But the pilots maintained unity to defend your interests. How do you see the future of pilotage in the face of technological changes?
The pilots must concern ourselves with the future. Times are changing, and the guild should pay more attention. The myth of pilotage, the money you earn, working hard, very hard—no one gives anything for free—is the great attraction to draw people in. I am not in favor of competition; a single service provider is more logical, but the provider of nautical pilotage services must be required to have enough pilots. The General Directorate of Merchant Marine and the Port Authorities know, or should know, that the workload per pilot shift can sometimes be excessive. They should go to work well-rested, and shifts should be conducted as God commands.
The vessels of the Mahón Pilots Corporation.
On the other hand, I insist that in certain ports and traffics, such as regular line services, the possibility of establishing some form of remote pilotage system to replace pilotage exemptions should be explored. If this is not addressed by the guild, it will not move forward, but it is a fact that the definition of pilotage already includes assisted pilotage, whether we like it or not.
How many maneuvers do you think, at most, a pilot could perform in one shift?
Ten, though the number depends on the port. In some ports, like Seville, the calculation must be different. It also depends on the type of traffic. With cruise ships and ferries, the pilots limit ourselves to verifying the maneuver, indicating the docking, and remaining on the bridge in case of any issues, or in some cases, few, to direct the tugs, as it is the captains who know the ship, which has several very powerful lateral propellers and cutting-edge technology of enormous effectiveness. Another matter is a large container ship with problems, requiring a complicated maneuver with tugs, maneuvers that demand a well-rested pilot, free from fatigue, capable of anticipating the vessel’s movements. Fatigue comes from excessive working hours, shifts of 12 or 24 hours.
The pilot Vicenç Tomás at the headquarters of the Corporation.
The mindset of many pilots is to never earn less. In a port, the senior pilot, the president of that port’s Pilots Corporation, approaches the Port Authority to try to get an additional pilot added to the roster. The PA responds: very well, can you share the cost structure of the Corporation? That’s where the story ended. The Administration could put a stop to it. No one dares to confront the problem because they must keep the pilots satisfied, because the terminals, the shipping companies, everyone makes a lot of money, and no one wants to jeopardize all that. The shipping companies.
above all, they have made immense fortunes in recent years, a fortune they use to control the entire supply chain.
Tell me about your cultural projects.
From my experience at La Fura, I’ve been in contact with people from the cultural world who fueled my cultural interests. At La Boyera, which was my residence, we launched an original initiative, Slam Poetry, something like contests of unpublished and original poetry, where the audience votes for you. I participate whenever I can.
Have you published anything?
No, I do it as a hobby. Pure enjoyment.
What kind of poetry is recited in Slam Poetry?
In Catalan, no one votes for you—you have to do it in Spanish. All types of poetry are valid. I like to step outside the comfort zone. The estate I own was made available to disabled children through the administration, with a foundation they have here, because I have a disabled son. They came to see the house, but adapting it required a lot of money, and in the end, they gave up. That’s when I came up with the Slam Poetry idea.
Do you plan to stay in Menorca until retirement?
Yes. I don’t see myself in a big port. I already know that life. I could leave here with a unique and fantastic project to send a ship, even if I had to renew my expired certificates. I’d say I’ll retire here.
Sometimes I feel nostalgic for maneuvers with large container ships and two or three tugs. In Menorca, tug maneuvers are very rare.
Before we finish, let’s talk about your articles in NAUCHER.
I was, and still am, concerned, as I’ve told you, about the future of pilotage. The European Commission, in its port services regulation, defines pilotage as the guidance of a pilot “or a pilot station.” That is, they admit assisted pilotage, off the ship. Yet pilots in most European countries still haven’t accepted this reality, which changes the current concept of pilotage.
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