Kessock lifeboat rescue becalmed yacht with mechanical failure.
The 32ft yacht with 3 crew had set off from Kristiansand in Southern Norway four days previously.
As they approached the inner Moray Firth in the early hours of Sunday 9 June they started to prepare their engine for the final approach to Inverness Marina they realised they had gearbox problems but were safely continuing their passage under sail.
However around midnight the wind died leaving them becalmed and they alerted the UK Coastguard with a Pan Pan VHF message.
The Pan Pan call was picked up by the crew of the Petrofac Atlantic who launched their Fast Rescue Craft (FRC) and took the yacht under tow.
In the meantime the Coastguard paged the Kessock lifeboat volunteers at 12.01 am and tasked them to meet up with them, transfer the tow and continue the passage back to Inverness.
Launching into flat calm conditions and a rising tide the crew of the RNLI Atlantic B Class lifeboat, Robert and Isobel Mowat, were with the yacht within 20 minutes.
The tow was quickly transferred and the passage back to Inverness started.
With one lifeboat crew on board with the yacht’s experienced crew the passage back to Inverness was without incident.
Inverness Coastguard team were waiting in the Marina to assist with berthing 2.5 hours after taking over the tow.
Kessock Lifeboat crew returned to the lifeboat station just before 3am.
RNLI media contacts
For more information please contact:
Dan Holland, Volunteer Lifeboat Press Officer, RNLI Kessock, 07900 567 496 [email protected]
Gemma McDonald, Regional Media Manager (Scotland), 07826 900639 or [email protected]
Martin Macnamara, Regional Media Officer (Scotland), 07920 365929 or [email protected]
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