Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
Book Your Place at the 16th Annual Marine Economics and Policy Research Symposium in Galway Next Month
3rd November 2026 Marine Planning
The 16th Annual Marine Economics and Policy Research Symposium, hosted by the Socio-Economic Marine Research Unit (SEMRU) at the University of Galway in partnership with the Marine Institute, will take place on Tuesday 1 December at the PorterShed in Galway…
Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels on the Erne System and members of the public that Tullyinishmore Jetty, located on the Erne River between Enniskillen and Carrybridge in Northern Ireland, is closed until this Friday 6 November to facilitate the…
Navantia UK Opens Resurgent Hall at Belfast’s Harland & Wolff Shipyard
3rd November 2026 Belfast Lough
Navantia UK has opened its new Resurgent Hall at Harland & Wolff in Belfast, following a major programme of investment to prepare the shipyard for the next generation of naval shipbuilding. The facility was opened on Monday (2 November) by…
Applications Open for Appointment to Panel of Surveyors for Surveying Small Fishing Vessels
3rd November 2026 Fishing
The Marine Survey Office (MSO) of the Department of Transport is seeking application for appointment to a panel of surveyors to conduct surveys of fishing vessels of less than 15m length overall. This is in accordance with the Code of…
The environmental organisation, Greenpeace, has issued a statement saying that activists on board its ship, Arctic Sunrise, have dropped boulders weighing several tons onto the seabed off the UK coast, in the Southern North Sea, which it describes as “the…
Ronan Kenneally has won Monkstown Bay Sailing Club's October Dinghy League in Cork Harbour, securing the Class 1 title with a second-place finish in Saturday's final race. The club's Sailing Secretary, racing an ILCA 7, had led the series after three races and…
Route du Rhum Leaders Face Tactical Decisions as Ultims Race Southwest
3rd November 2026 La Route du Rhum Race
The Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe fleet is entering a decisive tactical phase, with the leading Ultim trimarans making rapid progress southwest as weather shifts and damage to two of the ocean giants reshapes the early contest. Tom Laperche (SVR Lazartigue)…
Wicklow Rowing Club's Kate Dunne produced a battling performance in the Women's Solo Beach Sprints at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games on Monday, 2nd November, going out in the Last 16 against Swiss race favourite Tanya Brendle. The 17-year-old…
Route du Rhum: Two Skippers Heading for Ireland After Atlantic Drama
3rd November 2026 La Route du Rhum Race
Francis Joyon is heading for Ireland aboard a cargo ship following his Route du Rhum capsize, while Charles Caudrelier has suffered major foil damage aboard Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. Race leader Tom Laperche has covered an extraordinary 775 nautical miles…
Portrush RNLI all-weather lifeboat was requested to launch by the coastguard on Sunday evening (1 November) at 7.06pm to reports of a 14-metre fishing vessel that had suffered engine failure just off Ballycastle Harbour. The volunteer crew launched at 7.26pm…
Howth Yacht Club's 2026/27 Dinghy Frostbites began in unusually pleasant November conditions on Sunday, 1st November, with sunshine, blue skies and a northerly breeze welcoming a diverse fleet for the opening two races of the Winter Series. The long-running event,…
Ireland's Olympic sailing hopefuls are preparing for a significant year on the road to Los Angeles 2028 after World Sailing published the Notice of Race for the 2027 World Sailing Championships in Gdynia, Poland. The championships will be staged across two continents,…
The historic tea clipper Cutty Sark will ring out with traditional sailors' songs when its annual Sea Shanty Festival returns to Greenwich, London, on Saturday, 21st November 2026. The event celebrates the vessel's 157th birthday, bringing together maritime folk musicians, shanty groups…
Ireland's Cara of the South, a 10.67-metre Tradewind 35, is the smallest yacht entered in the 2026 ARC+ transatlantic rally, which celebrated its opening ceremony in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on Sunday, 1st November. The Irish entry is among an international…
French offshore sailing legend Francis Joyon has capsized aboard his ORMA trimaran Océans during the 2026 Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe solo transatlantic race. Initial reports indicate that the skipper is uninjured, although a rescue operation has been launched…
Three members of Cork's O'Leary sailing family — Anthony and his sons Peter and Robert — are entered for the 2026 Star World Championship in Miami, where 97 teams from 17 nations are preparing for six races on Biscayne Bay from 9…
The chairman of the board of the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG), Dr Patrick Hartigan, has said that a new research vessel is essential to meet the organisation's objectives of gathering data through citizen science. In the Group's 2025…
After a landmark season that brought two ILCA World Championships to Dublin Bay, Ireland's single-handed dinghy fleet is already looking ahead. ILCA Ireland has published an eight-event championship calendar for 2027, with racing scheduled nationwide from March to September. The…
Newly published UK Coastguard research has highlighted potential staffing difficulties for coastal rescue teams under proposed changes to the employment arrangements of Coastguard Rescue Officers, with implications for Northern Ireland's network of rescue stations. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)…
The Royal Cork Yacht Club's Under-25 team made a winning start to the Brown & Brown-sponsored Winter League on Sunday (1 November), taking first place under three handicap systems aboard the J/24 Jambalaya in bright sunshine on Cork Harbour. Racing…
