Tourist, have you ever done long range SAR?

Missing yacht
 

RP
Don't start him off!
Tourist
How's the sandpit?

Truly showing your ignorance there fella.

Hull found by US Navy
 

The Beeb is reporting that a US Navy warship despatched to the area has found the hull of the Cheeki Rafiki. The ship had only a surface swimmer aboard; the swimmer banged on the hull and apparently received no response.

They found the cabin of the yacht was flooded and the windows shattered. The yacht's keel was also broken, causing a breach in the hull. It wasn't clear if the life raft had been deployed.

The article leaves it unstated whether the hull will be recovered, and only said "they now expect to find the rest of the vessel soon" (whatever that means).

Full article at the BBC News.

EDIT: Later version of story at link above says the life raft had not been deployed...

A sad conclusion. RIP.

Thanks to our American chums for extending the search. I trust we will do the same should the need arise.

Thanks to the searchers - thoughts with families and friends of the crew of Cheeki Raffiki. It is a hard demanding sport

Just heard search called off as life raft confirmed still on board. Many many thanks for giving it your best to all involved in the search

Tourist

I couldn't agree more.

Trying to justify MPAs for search is rescue is just plain dumb...:=

However, justifying an MPA capability to hunt subs, protect the National Deterent, escort friendly naval task forces, provide over the horizon maritime ISTAR and shadowing other Navy's vessels (such as the recent visits by the Russian Udaloy or the ADMIRAL KUSNETSOV and her support vessels). Now that is a justification...:D

Sad news for families today...:(

I think we now have to accept these sailors are now lost and our thoughts should be with their families. I think that the US Coast Guard and other assets from all nations have done an extremely professional job in the search for them and I pay tribute to them.

Time to close this thread.

Agree on all points.

Agree, but if it continues should concentrate on the yacht and crew, and thanks to the searchers, civil and military, but not get emeshed in the "MPA" debate - that is for another time, another place.

Agree.
 

Yes a sad conclusion. The families of these lost sailors have my deepest sympathy.

Terribly disappointing news. The capsize must have been catastophic and almost instantaneous. Thoughts are with their families and friends.

Normally 2 guys on watch clipped on and two guys down below sleeping. Not an easy escape at night.

Any idea what the procedure is, if any, for recovering the boat and any bodies ?

El G.

Sad but predictable ending, the sea is unforgiving. There has been some speculation about the suitability of the yacht design, with its bolted on keel, for the type of sailing it was subjected to.

These guys died doing what they enjoyed. I imagine the atmosphere in Farnham today must be rather sombre, I was there yesterday and the rescue operation was a main topic of discussion.

RIP.

Now, can we please learn the lesson of taking the Coastguards' (USCG, UK) word for it next time? This way funds can be better spent on the next person who needs rescuing.

Always assumed that fuel costs were pretty low in that part of the world Fox !

El G.

" Any idea what the procedure is, if any, for recovering the boat and any bodies ?"


I thought they sunk boats like that ?

Fox 3 - but when the search was first abandoned, the non-deployment of the liferaft was not known. Crew could still have been in an, albeit small, air pocket in the upturned hull. Had those facts been ascertained then, abandoning the search then might have been a correct decision, but not when those points remained unresolved, IMHO