SOMERSET, Mass. – June 19, 2026 – With three Gladding-Hearn pilot boats already in their fleet, the Lake Charles pilots have taken delivery of another launch from the Somerset, Mass., shipyard. The pilots, who took delivery of their first Gladding-Hearn pilot boat, a 63-footer, in 1995, support crew transfers from the Cameron, La., jetties to the sea buoy, approximately 30 miles offshore across the Gulf of America.
Based on the Cameron Pilot II delivered in 2019, the new all-aluminum pilot boat features the Deep-V hull by Ray Hunt Design and has an overall length of 73’, beam of 23’, and draft of 5.3’. It is powered by twin Cummins QSK38-M1, EPA Tier 4-certified diesel engines, each delivering 1,300 Bhp at 1,800 rpm and a top speed of over 27 knots. Each engine is equipped with a Cummins EPA Tier 4-compliant SCR exhaust after-treatment system that reduces NOx and particulate emissions by more than 80%. The engines drive a pair of Bruntons 5-blade nibral propellers, connected to Twin Disc gearboxes. Like the Cameron Pilot II, the new pilot boat has shallow shaft tunnels fabricated into the hull, which improve water flow into the propellers, thus “reducing the shaft angles and vessel draft and limiting cavitation damage, which can extend the life of propellers and improve efficiency,” explained Winn Willard of Ray Hunt Design.
To optimize fuel economy, vessel handling, and comfort, twin Humphree interceptors, with automatic trim optimization and active ride control, were installed at the transom. Two Kohler 32kW generators produce electricity.
The vessel’s wheelhouse is aft of amidships on a flush deck, with forward-leaning front windows, each fitted with retractable solar blinds. With a centerline helm station, the wheelhouse is outfitted with eight Llebroc pilot and crew seats, a sofa, and two baggage racks. The forecastle includes a stateroom with upper and lower berths, an enclosed head, a small galley, and hanging lockers and storage. Six reverse-cycle air-conditioning units, totaling 80,000 BTUs, cool the wheelhouse and forecastle. Shipyard officials said interior sound levels are below 80 decibels at full power.
Outside the wheelhouse are wide side-decks and handrails, and on the foredeck aft of the wave break are port and starboard boarding platforms. A control station is at the transom. A rescue recess, with stairs leading to a platform, is e built into the transom. A winch-operated J-Basket rescue system at the transom retrieves pilots in the water.