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Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
Niklas Zennström’s Carkeek 52 Rán (SWE) is entered for the 2025 RORC Caribbean 600
The stage is set for an electrifying 16th edition of the RORC Caribbean 600, starting Monday 24th February 2025, from Antigua. The early entries in IRC Zero reveal a fierce battle among some of the most advanced offshore racing machines…
Irish Sailing has announced three job openings, each offering a unique opportunity to contribute to the growth and development of sailing, powerboating, and windsurfing in Ireland. Irish Sailing is the National Governing Body for sailing, powerboating, and windsurfing. Its vision…
Chart production and support, including Imray Notices to Mariners, will continue through the 2025 season. Beyond that, no new editions will be published
Trusted by mariners and sailing enthusiasts for more than two centuries, Imray is announcing the gradual conclusion of its chart publishing operations, marking the end of an era. While this decision has not been taken lightly, it recognises growing trends…
The search for the missing Galway Swimmer continues. Organisers of the continued search said yesterday on social media that day 8 and 9 are “critical”
The family of Máire Ní Fhatharta who has been missing since she went swimming in Galway Bay a week ago have said they are overwhelmed by the community response. Organisers of the continued search said yesterday on social media that…
The panellists for the 2024 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race Media Launch, from left to right: Peter Bremner, Sebastian Bohm, Wendy Tuck, Phillip Kurts, Matt Allen and Christian Beck
A fleet of 108 yachts is set to take on the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s (CYCA) 79th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race (RSHYR) on 26 December at 1300 hours. Previous Tattersall Cup winners are in the fleet, including defending…
J109s (from left) Indecision, Riders on the Storm and Jump the Gun emerge from the back of Dun Laoghaire's East Pier in the third race downwind leg to the Muglins Rock in the 2024 AIB DBSC Turkey Shoot Series on Dublin Bay
The vintage Sigma 33 one-design Boojum took an 11-second win in last Sunday's third race of the AIB DBSC Turkey Shoot Series on Dublin Bay. In another great turnout for the 72-boat entry, the 1978 David Thomas design beat the Beneteau 31.7 Camira on…
Netting and salmon illegally caught on the River Nore
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has secured a conviction against a man for illegally netting salmon on the River Nore. Francis Kennedy of Oaklawns, Paulstown, Co Kilkenny was accused of unlawfully capturing salmon at a catch-and-release fishery on 30 June this…
Filleted pike flesh illegally caught at the River Barrow
Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has gained a conviction against an angler for using live roach to catch pike. Aleksandr Gavryuchenkov of Ewings Bar apartments, Carlow was found to have illegally used live fish as bait in an incident near Ballytiglea…
Bangor RNLI volunteers at the Irish Lights Commissioners reception on Wednesday 13 November
On Wednesday last (13 November) volunteers from Bangor RNLI in Northern Ireland attended a reception held at the Commissioners of Irish Lights head office in Dun Laoghaire. Christine Beale, Chris Beale and Tom Bell represented the station at the reception…
Seize the day. Howth's Brass Monkeys racing on Sunday morning before the first burst of winter suddenly arrives. And if you're wondering how Gerry Smyth's Sigma 33 An Oifig from Skerries comes to be apparently so well placed immediately after the start, see Photo 2
It was a perfect sailing Sunday (November 17th) with a westerly wind of approximately ten knots at the start writes Pat Connolly, followed by stronger winds throughout the race, as accurately presaged by the increasingly busy-looking sky to the north.…
The Kilmore Quay RNLI allweather lifeboat
Kilmore Quay RNLI rescued a casualty on the Great Saltee who was reported overdue yesterday (Monday, 18 November). The Irish Coast Guard requested that the volunteer crew launch their all-weather Tamar class relief lifeboat, RNLB Irene Muriel Rees, at 11:30…
James McCormack, Patricia McCormack (Club Person of the Year), Commodore Bev Lowes, Edward O’Regan (Club Person of the Year), and Aoife O’Regan at the Laying Up Supper held at Foynes Yacht Club last weekend
Foynes Yacht Club's Laying Up Supper took place last Saturday evening at the Shannon Estuary Clubhouse, marking a wonderful conclusion to the season. Commodore Bev Lowes presented the Club Person of the Year trophies to two very deserving recipients, Patricia…
Here we go! The first of the short sprint-style races in Dun Laoghaire harbour for nine RS Aeros and 5 RS Neos
The first of six Saturdays delivered six short sprint-style races in the harbour for nine RS Aeros and five RS Neo. There is no better way to spend a mild Saturday morning sailing fast and fun little boats. The concept…
Harland & Wolff (Scilly Ferries) Ltd—to give its full name, Afloat adds—was a new subsidiary of the famous shipbuilder that was set earlier this year by the firm’s former management. Ultimately it was wound down before a single voyage was ever made between Penzance, Cornwall, and St Mary’s, the largest of the five inhabited islands off south-west England.
Shipyard group Harland & Wolff’s botched venture into the ferry sector, reports CityFM, showed it owed more than £3m to creditors after it collapsed earlier this year into administration, filings have revealed. Its subsidiary, Harland & Wolff (Scilly Ferries) Ltd,…
Daniel (left) and Harry Thompson were PY 2 division myg winners at the Viking Marine DMYC Frostbites at Dun Laoghaire Harbour
Met Eireann forecast – light to moderate westerlies, "check". Small craft warning – Yes, but from Wicklow Head southwards, "check". Marine warnings – None, "check". XCWeather – 9/10 knots gusting 18 – 20knots, westerly………small seed of doubt! Projected temperature –…
Jersey cabinet minister, Kirsten Morel will be quizzed by a scrutiny panel today over how the ferry contract tender process has been handled
A Government of Jersey cabinet minister is today (19 Nov.) set to face questions over negotiations to find a ferry operator to serve the largest of the Channel Islands with the UK and France. It has been announced by the…
A road tanker with HVO supplies the alternative fuel to the dredger Causeway berthed at the Port of Waterford’s main terminal at Belview.
A first for Irish ports has begun at the Port of Waterford, where a dredger currently involved in maintenance operations is being fuelled by hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), writes Jehan Ashmore. The Port of Waterford, along with Dutch dredging company…
Rob Espey and Mike Ferguson lead the RS400 Frostie Series on Belfast Lough
On Sunday, November 17th, the RS400 Frostie Series continued at the Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club (RNIYC) with challenging conditions on Belfast Lough. A cool northwest wind ranging from 13 to 18 knots set the stage for three exciting…
Afloat.ie regrets to record the death of Brian Buchanan, for many years a leading figure in the offshore racing scene in Northern Ireland and internationally. Although he became best-known as the owner of "The Special One", the remarkable Frers 49…
File image of Bundoran RNLI’s inshore Lifeboat William Henry Liddington
Bundoran RNLI responded to a call-out on Saturday evening (16 November) following a report from the Irish Coast Guard of an overdue kitesurfer. The volunteer crew launched their inshore lifeboat at 6.26pm following reports of a missing kitesurfer who had…

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