Skipper sets sail with just a iPad for navigation then crashes into a ferry when his wifi fails in a shipping lane 

  • David Carlin, 34, navigated the 50ft wooden Peggotty into a busy shipping lane 
  • His passenger was using a navigation app on his iPad when wifi signal dropped 
  • They were then struck by a massive cargo ferry which was unaware of collision
  • Mr Carlin and skipper of the ferry have now both been fined £3,000 each 

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 wifi connection dropped.

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 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.

A skipper has been fined £3,000 after he set sail in his Second World War boat (left) with just an iPad to navigate - and promptly crashed into a ferry when the wifi connection dropped

A skipper has been fined £3,000 after he set sail in his Second World War boat (left) with just an iPad to navigate - and promptly crashed into a ferry when the wifi connection dropped

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 dense fog

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 dense fog

Mr Carlin and his passenger, who had been using a navigation app on the iPad when the collision occurred, were rescued by a lifeboat.

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.

The Sun reports Mr Carlin and his wife Hannah Bowie had been planning on selling the boat, which is a former Royal Navy training vessel, and he was sailing it from Grimsby to Hull for a survey.

Mr Carlin was not on duty at the time but remains suspended from his job.

Mr Carlin and his passenger, who had been using a navigation app on the iPad when the collision occurred, were rescued by a lifeboat

Mr Carlin and his passenger, who had been using a navigation app on the iPad when the collision occurred, were rescued by a lifeboat

Mr Carlin and his passenger (not pictureed), who had been using a navigation app on the iPad when the collision occurred, were rescued by a lifeboat

Mr Carlin and his passenger (not pictureed), who had been using a navigation app on the iPad when the collision occurred, were rescued by a lifeboat

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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