U36 leaving Plymouth Devonport Dockyard.
Mavic 3 x7 zoom in low light and spots of rain.
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Stupid question time.
Would that vessel have a Pilot on board like a ship? Just curious.
@Speedbird Probably not. It’s a war canoe leaving a Naval Dockyard so, unless Der Kapitan wants a pilot he won’t have to have one.
Served on Subs for over 18 years and never saw a Pilot on board, if we went into a port the skipper was not familiar with, a Pilot launch would come out and guide the Sub to the berth.
Yep…and if he screws it up…shot at dawn…and at the least a courts martial.
All international visiting navies have a pilot on board when sailing up the River Thames to moor alongside HMS Belfast. But as @SeaHunter has mentioned for most naval ports it will be a pilot launch itself.
Not aways 
There is actually a mud flat /spit that sticks out in Portsmouth Harbour from the Gosport side just passed the entrance to Haslar Creek (old SM1 base HMS Dolphin) that had the nick name “Promotion Point” quiet a few skippers ran foul of it when turning into Haslar Creek but going aground there never seemed to harm their career.
I’m pretty sure the chap in the orange jacket was the pilot although I did not see the pilot boat ahead or astern of the sub as usual, but then I did see the sub coming down river at the last minute and rushed out with the drone.
Gentlemen in those days
Pretty sure the last time a U-boat came anywhere near Plymouth, it wasn’t welcomed with anything except maybe a few artillery shells