[VanShuyten]

They don’t need to unload the entire ship, just a couple of tons of crates. That might take just an hour once they get tied up to the dock.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"They don’t need to unload the entire ship, just a couple of tons of crates. That might take just an hour once they get tied up to the dock."

There's getting into and out of the harbor (coordination with the harbor pilot), there's pier times, there's getting the proper cranes etc.. needed at the pier to offload. Keep in mind these aren't the only ships coming into and out of that harbor. It's not simply, pull up to the doc and offload your stuff and leave. It's a lot more complicated than that. I think the first report of them being in the harbor was bogus.

[cherokee1]

It’s not even that complicated. Most intercoastal freighters, as these are, can unload themselves. They can unlock a boom and swing a load over the side while at sea. Fairly heavy stuff could be dropped into a barge or landing craft of most any sort and left to find its own way ashore. There’s no mention anyplace of what kind of traffic might be moving inshore? And the Persians are a waskily bunch-—they might simply be dropping buoyant packages in the water for pickup by PIRATES? Hardly any different than dope smugglers?