Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

The National Yacht Club has announced the Dun Laoghaire Match Racing Cup to take place on Saturday 30 September and Sunday 1 October. Ten teams will complete in the club’s Elliott 6M fleet on what promises to be an action-packed…

Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) officers confiscated 48 live undersize crawfish off the southwest coast late last month. The SFPA says that the crawfish were “returned safely to sea” after the discovery during a routine patrol. It says that a…

The Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) is seeking guarantees from Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan that pilots and winch operators flying for the Irish Coast Guard will remain in employment once the contract transfers from CHC Ireland to Bristow. As…

Over the next two weeks, the Marine Institute will host a first-of-its-kind European science expedition when it makes a stop in Galway. The European Molecular Biological Laboratory (EMBL) is carrying out a pan-European census of coastal ecosystems and their response…

With the forecast showing the makings of an Indian summer, Howth Yacht Club is looking forward to decent weather for the start of its Autumn League in just two weeks’ time on Saturday 16 September. While Howth’s keelboats are understandably…

Cargo quantities in dry-bulk at Dundalk Port for the first half of this year fell sharply by 31% when compared to the first six months of last year according to an Irish Maritime Development Office (IMDO) report. The Co. Louth…

Yesterday (Friday), Afloat.ie listed eight of our “Sailor of the Month” awards for August 2023. As most involved either double-handed teams or helmsmen representing more numerous crews, in total, the achievements mentioned highlighted the successful sailing performance of 22 people…

Two races were sailed on Friday at the Flying Fifteen Nationals, hosted by County Antrim Yacht Club on Belfast Lough. Wind that varied from 10 - 15 knots from ENE was the order of the day with a lumpy sea.…

CHC Ireland is continuing to pursue its High Court challenge to the validity of the tender procedure for the Irish Coast Guard’s Irish Coast Guard’s new helicopter search and rescue contract. The new contract with Bristow Ireland had been automatically…

It has been a busy summer here in UK Sailmakers Ireland with Dun Laoghaire regatta and other regattas. We are pleased to report that we were up to the challenge of getting sails made and ready on time despite the…

Jury decisions have changed rankings on the first stage of La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec, which means Ireland's Tom Dolan has won the leg to Kinsale. The rankings for the first stage of the 54 La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec…

Dublin based Irish Ferries, owned by Irish Continental Group (ICG) has reported lower pre-tax profits and flat revenues for the six months of this year reports RTE News. The results from the half-year report to the end of June, is…

Finn Lynch can add nation qualifying for the Paris Olympics 2024 to his many ILCA 7 achievements to date, including a world silver medal from 2021. In a nerve-jangling conclusion to the Gold fleet series in the Men's single-handed event…

The story of the restored J/24 Headcase in recent years has been a particularly heart-warming one of all-Ireland camaraderie and success, and in August the emphasis was firmly on international success with a final race victory to give a two-point…

The five-day International 29er Europeans at the 1830-founded Royal Swedish YC’s base at Sandhamn near Stockholm was a global sailing highlight for 2023, as it attracted 173 teams from 24 countries for a week of racing very typical of the…

The International 29er is one of the most demanding boats on the global junior sailing scene. Yet the sister-and-brother crew of Clementine & Nathan Van Steenberge have carved their way through its international heights with style, speed and success. Their…

The first J/Cup Championship in Irish waters on Dublin Bay in August 2023 saw several classes of this leading marque represented in the 40-strong fleet, but there was little doubting that the most intensive competition was in the J/109s. This…

In progressing through each phase of a sailing career, the received wisdom is that you should tick off each staging post while you’re ahead. Harry Dunne of Howth was registered with a Departure Lounge “Optimist Age” of 15 going into…

There were 173 teams from 24 countries competing at the International 29er Europeans in Sweden in August, but the five crews sent from Ireland punched way above their weight in a challenging and complex boat, which isn’t for the faint-hearted.…

The rise in the international solo offshore sailing reputation of Tom Dolan, who has been known to describe himself as “an escaped farmboy from north Meath”, has been one of the great Irish sailing sagas of our time. For more…