Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
#RNLI - It’s shaping up to be the start of a busy season for the volunteer lifeboat crew at Union Hall RNLI with two callouts in less than two weeks. On Saturday 8 April, the inshore lifeboat launched at 12.14pm…
Regional Oil Pollution Exercise to Take Place at Spanish Point, County Clare
21st April 2017 Shannon Estuary
A training exercise testing the response capabilities of Shannon Foynes Port Company, local authorities and other organisations who operate in the vicinity of the Shannon Estuary will take place at Spanish Point, County Clare, on Wednesday and Thursday of next…
A new Lagoon catamaran 40 model will be available this Autumn. Builders say the new size represents a combining of two Lagoon generations, the 39 and 400. The new yacht has aft rigging for greater performance and a self-tacking jib…
Some boats are Classics from birth, others acquire Classic status over time, and there are others beyond that again which have had imaginative things done to them in order to confer a new Classic status writes W M Nixon. Back…
Rush Sailing Club's Rogers Takes Early Radial Lead At ISA Youth Champs
20th April 2017 Youth Sailing
Over 130 boats took to the water today at Ballyholme Yacht Club on Belfast Lough on Day 1 of the ISA Youth Pathway National Championships and Optimist Trials. The event is supported by Ards & North Down Borough Council. Only…
Go north for decent sailing breezes.....that’s the message being brought home by the Galway crew of the Irish National Sailing School’s J/109 Jedi as they continue to benefit from much firmer mainly westerly winds over the north of the country…
#MarineNotice - Geoscience company CGG is currently conducting a 3D seismic survey off the South West Coast of Ireland in the Porcupine Basin. The three-month survey was scheduled to begin on Tuesday 11 April and will continue till Saturday 15…
Live Crab Exports To China Set To Resume After Landmark Protocol Signed In Dublin
20th April 2017 Fishing
#SeafoodExports - Food and Marine Minister Michael Creed and his Chinese counterpart have agreed an export certificate which will permit the resumption of live crab exports to the critically important Chinese market. The Irish seafood sector has been extremely anxious…
#RNLI - Ballycotton RNLI was launched yesterday morning (Wednesday 19 April) to rescue a dog that was stranded on the side of a cliff near the East Cork village. The all-weather and inshore lifeboats were both launched to an area…
#FerryFigures – According to the 14th edition of the Irish Maritime Transport Economist report launched today, there was a decline of 2.6% in ferry passenger numbers in 2016. The figure relates to those travelling between the island of Ireland, Britain…
Traffic in Irish Ports Remains Strong in 2016 Despite Challenging Trading Environment
20th April 2017 Ports & Shipping
#MaritimeReport - The 14th edition of the Irish Maritime Transport Economist report produced by the Irish Maritime Development Office (IMDO) on Ireland’s maritime freight industry was launched today. The report shows that in 2016, total port traffic increased by 2%,…
The grandnephew of an RNLI bowman who was awarded the charity’s bronze medal for gallantry for his part in the daring rescue of 12 people from a Greek freighter back in 1938, has made a visit from the UK to…
#NewContract - A new contract for Harland & Wolff is to provide parts for an off-shore windfarm off the coast of Germany — supporting 80 jobs. The Belfast Telegraph writes that the firm has been chosen by jacket foundation supplier…
Ballyholme Yacht Club Hosts 250 Youth Sailing Hopefuls for ISA Nationals 2017
19th April 2017 Youth Sailing
With four days of an intensive programme getting under way tomorrow (Thursday) on three different course areas off Ballyholme Bay on Belfast Lough, the ISA Youth Sailing Nationals is making a spectacular debut in Northern Ireland writes W M Nixon.…
#RNLI - It was a busy Easter Monday (17 April) with two consecutive callouts for Clogherhead RNLI in Co Louth. At 6pm, the all-weather lifeboat was launched to assist a razor boat in difficulty off Mosney in Co Meath. The…
Irish Powerboat Team Sets Sights On 11 World Records Over Next Three Years
19th April 2017 Powerboat Racing
#Powerboats - An Irish-based powerboat racing team is aiming for a full 11 offshore endurance and speed records over the next three years. “It’s ambitious, but it’s do-able,” as Red Bull hears from John Ryan, team driver and throttle man…
#DLRHeritage - Easter is over but there’s plenty more to do with this year’s Spring into Heritage (28 April-18 June) programme organised by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. Beginning next Monday, the DLR Heritage programme offers a variety of events and…
Irish Water Safety Survey: Getting The Public To Understand The Importance of 'Swimming as a Life Skill'
19th April 2017 Island Nation
The Chief Executive of the State agency responsible for promoting water safety has been telling me about an interesting piece of research which his organisation carried out over the past two months. The purpose of this research on water safety…
Méabh Ní Ghionnáin from Droim, Leitir Móir, Galway met with the Marine Institute’s scientists and crew on the RV Celtic Explorer today on her 9th birthday (18th April) to see the loading of the 1 ½ metre Lancer unmanned sailboat…
The round Ireland voyage by a Galway crew with the Irish National Sailing School’s J/109 Jedi has seen some good sailing, despite unseasonably light winds or even total calm over much of Ireland. However, on a venture sailing clockwise from…
