The 6th Edition has been revised to include and explain the latest SOLAS Regulations for the safety of pilots and others who have to undertake the hazardous operation of boarding a ship by a rope ladder. It also aims to provide guidance for ships' personnel who are responsible for the safe rigging of these ladders. This small book is an essential piece of equipment and is an invaluable addition to every ship's reference library. Relevant SOLAS regulations and IMO recommendations are produced here in full, but equally important are the explanations for the need to comply with these regulations by safety awareness and good seamanship. The illustrations and the straightforward seaman-like English will be readily understood by Pilots and Shipmasters of all nationalities. The book is pocket-size and Pilots will find it to be of great assistance when it is necessary to explain the need for changes to ships' equipment. No pilot should be without one. Nautical schools, Marine Surveyors, ships' agents, port authorities, and other personnel who are involved in climbing, owning, making or inspecting pilot ladders will all find this book to be an invaluable investment. Regulations on their own cannot ensure safety; the letter of the law is sometimes interpreted in a way that defeats its intention. This book gives a practical understanding of the rules and recommendations, based on the author's own experience - he has climbed thousands of pilot ladders, he has kept abreast of developments in pilot ladder construction and has been an active participant for many years with the International Maritime Pilots' Association.