[cyclotic]

The decision maker is a Baltimore based harbor pilot. Most of those guys have decades of knowledge in the port

[rxsid]

"The decision maker is a Baltimore based harbor pilot."

The buck stops with the Captain. The Captain is always in charge (except while in the Panama canal) and the pilot is never in the "chain of command." The Captain can override a pilot's verbal suggestion(s), or actual piloting, at any time.

So the "decision maker" is the Captain.