A skipper has been fined £3,000 after he set sail in his Second World War boat with just an iPad to navigate – and promptly crashed into a ferry when the Wi-Fi connection dropped.
What happened?
David Carlin, 34, accidentally navigated the 50ft wooden Peggotty – which did not even have a compass – into the main shipping lane of the Humber Estuary during a dense fog, where he collided with a cargo ferry last May.
His wooden vessel, which had faulty navigation lights and radar, sunk within half an hour and Mr. Carlin, a pilot with Associated British Ports, was forced to put out a Mayday call.
Mr. Carlin and his passenger, who had been using a navigation app on the iPad when the collision occurred, were rescued by a lifeboat.
Fined for breaching laws:
The DFDS Seaways cargo ferry, Petunia Seaways, was 1,400 times bigger than the Peggotty and its skipper did not even realise the collision had occurred – carrying on its journey to Gothenburg in Sweden. He was also fined £3,000 by Hull magistrates for breaching maritime laws.
Mr. Carlin was not on duty at the time but remains suspended from his job.
Gwen Lancaster, of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s Hull Marine Office, said: “I am surprised this collision, which could easily have resulted in far worse consequences, occurred in the first place.”
“Both vessels were under the command of experienced professional captains who should have known better.”
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Source: The Times & The Sunday Times
