Nilaya / Berserk Missing

[ice]

Originally Posted by Landkrabbe

Chile is also checking that the vessel is safe. That shouldn't be a problem normally, but in Andhøy's case you never know. We already know they chose not to bring an EPIRB, but as a non-SOLAS vessel I presume it's not required for the Nilaya.

Chile has had a Search and Rescue insurance requirement, which the port captain can require (of any vessel) at his discretion. That could pose a problem if the port captain decides to make it one.

A second potential problem is if the port captain decides because of the film crew and Jarles prior TV films, that this is a commercial voyage, rather than just for private pleasure. If so, then the safety standards are much tougher - SOLAS as much as they can be applied to the size vessel.

Out of curiosity - what is the specific safety equipment requirement for norwegian flag 16m sailboats - to leave Norway and cross an ocean - for pleasure, and for charter? That would be the standard that Chile could hold Jarle to.

So, it's certaintly in Jarle's best interest to not get on the bad side of the Puerto Williams Port Captain.

[Landkrabbe]

Originally Posted by ice

Chile has had a Search and Rescue insurance requirement, which the port captain can require (of any vessel) at his discretion. That could pose a problem if the port captain decides to make it one.

Do they enforce that against vessels which are making innocent passage without any plans to anchor or land in Chile as well? After all, the Nilaya wouldn't have stopped if she hadn't been forced to due to the false vessel name and suspected trafficking.

Originally Posted by ice

A second potential problem is if the port captain decides because of the film crew and Jarles prior TV films, that this is a commercial voyage,

That's a good point. Is there a precedence for that sort of thing in Chile? I know the Top Gear people were stopped both in the USA and Italy not for traffic violations but for checking their work permits. (In the case of the USA, the work visas were for news reporting, not entertainment, so they made a huge number out of being as boring as possible )

[ice]

Originally Posted by Landkrabbe

Do they enforce that against vessels which are making innocent passage without any plans to anchor or land in Chile as well?

If the port captain wanted to. Jarle was sailing in the Chile SAR area. It has been done, before but rarely.

That's a good point. Is there a presence for that sort of thing in Chile?

I think I noted in a post somewhere way above that this is a massive problem in both Chile and Argentina at the moment (and the past 10 years). There is a fleet of perhaps two dozen foreign flagged sailboats making a (very good) living chartering their boats (to the horn, S Georgia and Antarctic). Most are not paying any taxes and meet none of the safety requirements and lie when they check in and out that they are 'just sailing with friends'. The officials in Chile and Argentina are quite pissed off at these folks but have not figured out how to officially/legally distinguish them from private pleasure cruisers (who they like and what to encourage). The officials certainly unofficially know who is who. They have tried various different rules to try to sort out the problem but none has really worked yet. Jarle wants to try to avoid getting caught up in that mess - I am sure he is aware of it as it was happening the last time he was in Chile. But it all depends on the Port Captain and if he wants to make things easy or hard - at the moment Ushuaia/Argentina is actually being more difficult on this 'work' issue than Chile.

.........

[matauwhi]

G'day, Mates. Today's New Zealand Herald is reporting Jarle has been arrested:
Norwegian explorer's arrest in Chile - World - NZ Herald News

I wonder "what" cruising permit was cancelled and "what" nationality was declared of the ship on the permit. It will be interesting to see what scenario plays out:

1. Was Busby really kidnapped which will mean further issues for Jarle? or
2. Did Busby go along under his own free will (remember he had his Maori flag that he supposedly planted on the continent)?

If number 2, it will be interesting to see if the New Zealand authorities front up with a passport for him (a lot of implications for other nationals who leave without a passport in the future) and if he chooses to continue on Nilaya if/when it is released. Cheers

[Andrew Troup]

Further to my recent post on yachts which have sailed to McMurdo

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...tml#post912520

I've remembered a novelty item: a Moth - (a tiny sailing dinghy common in NZ) sailed there, but not To there :-) in 1965: right in Winter Quarters Bay, which is just about as far south as it's ever possible to sail, except perhaps somewhere like the Bay of Whales (near Roosevelt Island) in a good ice year.

And that led me to stumble across a more recent visit even than Nilaya's to the region - by "Scorpio" out of the Ukraine, who appear not to have known about any of their four (or five, if you count the Moth) predecessors*, as they claimed a record for furthest south.
It seems they actually didn't make it into the Sound, as the reported latitude was 77 South, which is slightly north of the tip of Ross Island.

To be only a few weeks behind Nilaya and not know of their existence seems quirky: to be so ill-informed about such a high profile incursion that they went on to claim a record, they must have been emulating two out of three of the wise monkeys of fable.
Mind you, Sail World didn't pick it up either, at least not until I told them... which is strange given that they'd provided a forum for Andhøy to try to repair his battered reputation among the people who sail in the deep down under.

Sail-World.com : Ukrainian yacht crew in Antarctic record - and more to come

On an even more whimsical note, given that it's a yacht club on an arm of the sea, it would take only an annual regatta or a hefty bribe for the McMurdo Yacht Club to challenge for the next Americas Cup, methinks!

* I should reiterate there may be more: these are only the ones I'm aware of. In particular, my knowledge is sketchy between 2000 and 2010: I'd welcome hearing about any others.

[Landkrabbe]

Andhøy has told the Norwegian media that he re-christened the Nilaya "Berserk" at the memorial ceremony in the Ross Sound, and that the new name was painted on the side. They are supposedly waiting for ship's documents from Russia.

However, on the photo in this article, I can't see any "Berserk" name, only "Nilaya" at the stern. Also, she's not flying a Russian flag, but rather a Skull and Crossbones. Flying it from the yardarm is the international symbol for "PARTY OVER HERE" I guess, but using it as an ensign must be the international symbol for "boneheads in command".
Andhøy holdt i Chile: - En mye lunere stemning nå - VG Nett

[ShipHappens]

Landkrabbe:
The "Berserk" name is written on the starboard side of the boat, as can be seen in this picture from Dagbladet.

[Landkrabbe]

Aha. So they didn't bother putting the new name on the stern or port sides then.
That picture also shows that they were a pirate flagged vessel when they were stopped by the Armada. Ha ha ha. Oh wow.

[Landkrabbe]

The Nilaya was NZ flagged, and Andhøy previously claimed that she was Russian flagged with an unnamed Russian captain. According to the Armada, Andhøy is now claiming that the Nilaya is Norwegian flagged, but it lacks documentation to that effect:
- Andhøy har ikke dokumentasjon på at skipet fører norsk flagg - Aftenposten

[matauwhi]

G'day, mates. Here is the Chiliean media's report on the current situation:
Norwegian Explorer Held in Puerto Williams Should Leave this Week - ILC News - Chile's local newspaper in English | ILC News – Chile's local newspaper in English

Cheers

[callmecrazy]

Originally Posted by matauwhi

G'day, mates. Here is the Chiliean media's report on the current situation:
Norwegian Explorer Held in Puerto Williams Should Leave this Week - ILC News - Chile's local newspaper in English | ILC News – Chile's local newspaper in English

Cheers

Good News

Like I said before (somewhere in this godforsaken thread), Jarle has been to Chile more than once and even shared vodka at sea off Antarctica with the Chilean Navy. They are not as strict as certain people would like us to believe.

Sounds like NZ is the only one with any beef at this point, and I doubt they are really very concerned about a minor customs infraction (despite what the media says). These are not criminals and the authorities are well aware of that fact. It sounds to me that this reporter looked into the various accusations and found nothing to report.

[Landkrabbe]

Every seafaring state would have a beef with a ship without nationality and sailing under false name actually - even more so if they have so-called stowaways aboard.

As for NZ, their beef is the customs and immigrations violations, the violations of the Antarctic legislation and international treaties, and the various cleanup and SAR expenses which they presumably would bill Andhøy and co for. Neither of these beefs would require them to get Chile to arrest the vessel though, because there should be ample opportunity to seek redress for that later. Also, since Norway has signed all kinds of international treaties I guess New Zealand and the other treaty parties can count on Norway taking responsibility on Andhøy's behalf if he runs away.

It doesn't sound like New Zealand asked for the ship's arrest, but rather sent a fax over listing their escapades so far, so Chile and Argentina had fair warning that there was a TV reality drama boat on its way.

As for being criminals, they do seem to intentionally violate laws everywhere they go as long as they think it'll make good TV entertainment. I'm really more concerned with their organized crime connections, but I doubt the Hells Angels is going to go up against the Armada. Norwegian "bikie gangs" don't even have motorcycles, let alone boats.

Edit:
In the latest article on Dagbladet.no, an Armada official says that the Nilaya crew indeed first claimed that the vessel was Russian and that the Russian was the ship's master. I presume that after this failed, they presented Andhøy as the true master and the ship's identity as Norwegian.
http://www.dagbladet.no/2012/04/03/n...laya/20939944/

[ice]

Just as a side comment . . . It is quite windy down there (offshore) at the moment:

[matauwhi]

G'afternoon, Mates. RadioLive here in New Zealand is reporting that Busby is awaiting the appropriate airline flights to return to New Zealand. It will be interesting to see who fronts up for the costs of the flights. Cheers. P.S. It's blowing a bit here too at the moment!

[careka]

Jarle and frends onboard, must be having a good time. i guess it will all be on TV in september.

NRK Nett-TV - hastighetsmåling

1.10 to 2.30