germania 6 segelyacht

„Germania VI” : Krupps letzte Yacht, heute ein Ausbildungs-Klassiker

Lasse Johannsen

 ·  03.04.2023

„Vorleine los und ein!“ Unter dem sonoren Brummeln ihres 160 PS starken Mercedes-Benz-Diesels schiebt sich die mintgrüne „Germania VI“ aus dem verträumten Stadthafen von Neustadt. Es ist noch nicht viel los, und nur die Morgensonne scheint zu beobachten, was vor sich geht. Kurz darauf liegt die Einfahrt achteraus, die Segel stehen.

Ruhe kehrt ein, der Blick schweift über Deck, und die Gedanken wandern aus. Manchen Yachten wohnt ein Zauber inne. „Germania VI“ ist so eine Yacht. Schon ihr Anblick, der eigentümlich hellgrün schimmernde Rumpf, die Kontraste von lackiertem Mahagoni, strahlend weißem Aufbau und blitzendem Chrom an Deck, wirken einzigartig. Und auch sonst hebt sich das Schiff in mehrfacher Hinsicht ab.

Der Klassiker hat eine besondere Aura

Da ist die außergewöhnliche Entste­hungs­geschichte der letzten Yacht des Großindustriellen Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, da ist eine Gästeliste, die sich liest wie das „Who’s who“ aus Wirtschaft und Politik. Und da sind die bis zu 15000 in jedem Sommer gesegelten Seemeilen, die der Ausbildung des seglerischen Nachwuchses dienen. Grund genug, ihrem Wesen bei einem Tag an Bord einmal etwas genauer nachzuspüren.

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„Hooool dicht!“ Skipper Dr. Michael Schädlich, an Bord nur „Mike“ genannt, ruft seine Kommandos in wohldosierter Lautstärke über Deck. Er steht eingeklemmt zwischen dem weiß glänzenden Besanmast und der verchromten Steuersäule, eine Hand in der Tasche, eine am lackierten Ruderrad, und blickt aufmerksam zum Großmast. Vier Mann fallen dort ins Tauwerk ein, ein fünfter holt die Lose über die Winsch durch und belegt das Fall.

Dann fällt Schädlich ab, das Groß bekommt den leichten Druck der aufkommenden Brise aus Südwest zu spüren, und die Crew macht sich daran, die Genua dichtzuholen. Vier Mann haben mittschiffs an Deck am Grinder Platz. Als sie sich ins Zeug legen, erfüllt das blechern widerhallende Knarren der Kaffeemühlen das gesamte Schiff.

Schnell wird klar: Bei aller Prominenz dient „Germania VI“ vor allem zum Segeln. Sie kommt elegant, aber zurückhaltend daher. Und vielleicht ist genau das ihre größte Besonderheit. Denn Superlative zeichnen das Leben der Krupp-Yacht aus, noch bevor es beginnt.

Vor 60 Jahren kommt die „Germania VI” ins Wasser

Dass es 1963 zum Stapellauf der sechsten Yacht ihres Namens kommt, hängt mit einer Familientradition zusammen. Als Gustav von Bohlen und Halbach vor dem Ersten Weltkrieg in das Essener Stahl-Imperium einheiratet, möchte der ehrgeizige Jurist sein Profil schärfen und nicht nur als der Gatte einer Krupp-Tochter wahrgenommen werden. Er tut es, indem er den Kaiser herausfordert. Und zwar auf dessen liebstem Spielplatz, der See. Als Erster vertraut der neue Krupp dem heimischen Konstrukteur Max Oertz und nennt seine auf der eigenen Werft im Kieler Reichskriegshafen gebaute und damit von der Kielsohle bis zum Flaggenknopf deutsche Yacht „Germania“. Majestät wird damit regelmäßig versegelt.

Sohn Alfried erbt die Leidenschaft des Vaters. Für die Teilnahme an den olympischen Segelwettspielen 1936 lässt er sich einen Achter bauen. Mit „Germania III“ gewinnt er unter Skipper Hans Howaldt eine Bronzemedaille. Im Jahr 1951 gibt Krupp eine Fahrtenyacht in Auftrag. Die stählerne, mit 13 KR vermessene Rasmussen-Kon­struktion „Germania V“ wird 1955 fertig­gestellt. Krupp segelt mit der Yawl ausgedehnte Reisen nach Schweden, aber auch Regatten – Nordseewoche, Kieler Woche und schließlich Rennen über den Atlantik.

Die Hochseesegelei gefällt Krupp derart gut, dass er sich eine neue Yacht wünscht, die leichter sein soll und für Transatlantik­regatten optimiert. Er möchte seine gesammelten Erfahrungen und Wünsche einfließen lassen.

Vom Klassiker-Traum zur Realität

Krupp beauftragt das amerikanische Erfolgsbüro Sparkman and Stephens mit der Konstruktion. Er nimmt, ganz der studierte Ingenieur, an der Entstehung seines Traums von der ersten Sekunde an intensiv teil. Jedes Detail lässt er sich im Entwurfsstadium erläutern. Der Unternehmer zeigt Experimentierfreude und kann seine Begeisterung für alles technisch Neue ausleben. So stimmt er zu, als man bei S&S vorschlägt, statt mit Krupp-Stahl aus Aluminium zu bauen. Neuland. Zwar ist bereits 1955 bei Böhling die 17-Meter-Hochseeyacht „Kormoran“ mit diesem Leichtmetall beplankt worden, „Germania VI“ aber wird vollständig aus Alu geschweißt, als erste Hochseeyacht der Welt.

Es ist bemerkenswert, dass Krupp seine neue Yacht radikal dem Zweck unterordnet. Was da entsteht, wird kein Repräsentationsobjekt für seine Firma, kein luxuriöses Gefährt für den Urlaub, kein männliches Statussymbol. Richtig wohl fühlt sich der Lenker eines Firmenimperiums als Teil seiner Amateurcrew an Bord. Und so entsteht eine moderne Mannschaftsyacht für das Segeln auf hoher See. „Das deutsche Kraftwerk“ werden amerikanische Konkurrenten die in Ducolux-Hellgrün 88-8 lackierte Schöne später nennen.

Immer noch zeugt neben der eigentümlichen Farbgebung der rote Greif, das Wappentier derer von Bohlen und Halbach, von dieser Vergangenheit. „Cave Grypem“, „Nimm dich vor dem Greif in Acht“, steht mahnend unter dem roten Fabeltier, das sich auf dem Rennstander wiederfindet, auf den blauen Crewpullovern oder auf dem Geschirr.

Der Klassiker wird immer wieder fit gemacht

Auch geblieben ist dem Klassiker sein Wesen. Heute zeigt es sich bei 24 Knoten Wind von der besten Seite. Voll und bei läuft die gewaltige 22-Meter-Yacht unter leisem Blöken des Kickers mit zehn Knoten und Schaum vor der Nase der Sonne entgegen. Die Crew ist in Hochstimmung, es ist der erste Törn der Saison, wie in jedem Frühjahr ist einiges neu. In diesem Winter wurde die Wellenbremse ausgebaut und erstmals ein Drehflügelpropeller montiert, der nach einigen Anlaufschwierigkeiten jetzt vor allem unter Segeln zeigt, was er kann. „Das bringt sicher einen Knoten“, sagt Schädlich, der sich noch gut an das bei solchen Geschwindigkeiten qualmende Gummi der alten Wellenbremse und die Geräuschkulisse einer mitdrehenden Welle erinnern kann.

Der Skipper schaut ins 30 Meter hohe Rigg. Es ist bereits das dritte. Die Abmessungen aber sind original. Gewaltig. Allein die Wantenschoner könnten auf einer 30-Fuß-Yacht als Spinnakerbaum dienen. Auch die Segelgarderobe ist gigantisch. Um die mehr als 40 Tonnen Bootsgewicht zu beschleunigen, stehen so seltene Tücher wie ein Besan-Spinnaker zur Verfügung, allein das Groß­segel misst 120 Quadratmeter, die Genua 160 und der Spinnaker gar 300. „Auf den Schoten können vier Tonnen Zug lasten“, sagt Schädlich und erklärt, dass es an Bord daher zu den ersten Lektionen gehört, wie man eine Schot unfallfrei fiert. Denn bis heute werden die Segel auf dem Klassiker „Germania VI“ selbstverständlich weder hydraulisch noch elektrisch bedient.

Auch sonst befindet sich der Klassiker nahezu im Originalzustand, ein kleines Wunder. Denn ein Orkan verwüstete im August 1989 das Schiff im Heimathafen Kiel-Düsternbrook zum wirtschaftlichen Totalschaden. Die „Germania VI“ schlug über Stunden mit dem Heck auf die Beton-Einfassung der Uferpromenade, und die auf ihre Bordwand drückenden Nachbarlieger taten ein Übriges.

1989 muss die „Germania VI” grundsaniert werden

Nach einer Totalsanierung durch die Böbs-Werft in Travemünde, die einem Neubau gleichkam, präsentiert sich die Yacht wieder wie nach dem Stapellauf. Der Gang unter Deck gleicht einer Zeitreise. Im Kartenhaus befindet sich neben den zeitgenössischen Instrumenten noch die Schwachstromtechnik der sechziger Jahre. Ein aus Holz lamellierter Haltegriff aus der Essener Straßenbahn legt Zeugnis von der Detailverliebtheit und Herkunft des Ersteigners ab. Unter den Bodenbrettern befinden sich Antriebsdiesel, Generator, Heizung, jede Menge Technik.

Im Durchgang zum Salon hängen kaum zu zählende Teilnehmerplaketten hochklassiger Regattaveranstaltungen, bei denen der heutige Klassiker „Germania VI“ und ihre Vorgängerin gestartet sind. Allein aus den Lebzeiten Krupps zeugen sie von drei Bermuda-Rennen, zwei Wettfahrten von Buenos Aires nach Rio de Janeiro und zwei Transatlantikregatten in den Jahren 1960 und 1966.

An Steuerbord befindet sich die Funkbude. Mit Kurz- und Grenzwelle, DSC-fähigem UKW-Funk, Satellitentelefon und Inmarsat-Faxgerät kann die Verbindung zur Außenwelt jederzeit hergestellt werden.

Im Salon dann eine kleine Abweichung vom ursprünglichen Zustand: Die Schotten sind nicht mehr elfenbeinfarben bemalt, sondern mit hellen Furnieren verkleidet, an der Steuerbordseite verbirgt sich dahinter eine alkofenartige Koje. Bilder erinnern an Krupp und die erste „Germania“. Vor dem Salon zwei Kammern, die Kombüse und das Reich des Bootsmanns.

Die „Germania VI” dient bis heute als Ausbildungsyacht

Mittlerweile ist es elf. Die Uhr schlägt drei Doppelglasen, das lockt die eingeweihten Crewmitglieder in die Plicht. Es gibt eine „medizinische Maßnahme“. Heute besteht sie aus einem trockenen Sekt mit einem Spritzer Aperol. Ein beliebtes Ritual mit hohem Wiedererkennungswert. Man kommt ins Klönen. Viel „Weißt du noch“ macht die Runde und verrät, hier ist Teamgeist zu Hause. Das verbindet die Mitsegler. Wie die überhaupt zusammengewürfelt sind, fragt ein Gast. „Wir verwalten uns selbst“, erklärt Schädlich das Crewkonzept der Ausbildungsyacht. Es gebe keinen Verein, in den man eintreten müsse, und keine Jahres­beiträge, die zu leisten seien. Mitsegeln dürfe grundsätzlich jeder.

Hintergrund ist die Bestimmung der „Germania VI“. Ihre Eigentümerin, die Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Stiftung, setzt das Schiff gemäß dem Wunsch des Stifters zu Ausbildungszwecken ein. Der seglerische Nachwuchs soll das Hochsee­segeln als Mannschaftssport im Sinne bester Seemannschaft erlernen, wie es schon zu Zeiten des Ersteigners geschah.

Kuratoriumsvorsitzender Berthold Beitz, er war Krupps Generalbevollmächtigter, wacht bis heute persönlich über diese Zweckerfüllung. Beitz, der in diesem Jahr seinen 100. Geburtstag feiert, bespricht noch immer jede Jahresplanung mit Chef-Skipper Schädlich, hält Kontakt zum Bootsmann und geht zur Kieler Woche an Bord, um sich vom guten Zustand der „Germania VI“ zu überzeugen.

Der Klassiker wird eigenverantwortlich verwaltet

So kam auch Smut Jörn Kirchhübel zu seinem Job. Der 48-jährige Naturwissenschaftler aus Norddeutschland ist seit zehn Jahren dabei. „Meist wächst die Crew durch Mund-zu-Mund-Propaganda“, sagt Kirch­hübel. „Da kennt jemand einen, der kennt wieder einen, und so war das auch bei mir.“ In der Kartei sind Mitsegler aus dem gesamten Bundesgebiet verzeichnet, die verschiedensten Berufe sind vertreten. Mit dem heutigen Thyssen-Krupp-Konzern hat keiner von ihnen etwas zu tun. Für Nachwuchs sorgt ein Ausschuss. Der 26-jährige Johannes Stüber gehört ihm an. „Wir sind zu sechst und sorgen dafür, dass junge Leute in die Crew hineinwachsen“, sagt er. Es gebe Patenschaften und Crewtreffen, und wenn Reisen nicht voll besetzt seien, werde auch schon mal hinterhertelefoniert.

Interessenten bewerben sich mit einem seglerischen Lebenslauf und werden dann eingeladen. Einmal in die Crew aufgenommen, müssen alle die gleichen Formalien einhalten. Pro Tag ist eine Pauschale zu leisten, die alles umfasst, bis hin zur Verpflegung. Im Januar wird der Fahrtplan auf einer internen Internetseite veröffentlicht, und die Mitsegler können sich verbindlich anmelden. Nach der Zusage sollten sie aber nicht allzu oft wieder abspringen; wer nicht zuverlässig ist, wird nicht wieder mitgenommen.

Überall wird die „Germania VI” erkannt

„Die ‚Germania VI‘ ist ein bekannter und gut erkennbarer Klassiker“, sagt Schädlich. „Wo wir auftauchen, nimmt man meist auch von uns Kenntnis.“ Wer auf der Krupp’schen Yacht zur Crew gehört, muss sich daher vor allem gut benehmen. Diese Grundvorausset­zung sei wohl auch eines der Erfolgs­rezepte, so Schädlich. Seit 1971 ist er an Bord, einen echten Streit hat er in all den Jahren auf „Germania VI“ noch nicht erlebt.

Die Crew besteht üblicherweise aus 13 Mann. In den rund 110 Betriebstagen im Jahr kommen auf diese Weise etwa 150 Segler an Bord, 1800 sind es insgesamt schon gewesen. Frauen gehören bis heute nicht zur Crew. Dafür üblicherweise neben dem Skipper zwei Wachführer, ein Vorschiffs­direktor, ein Navigator, ein Funker, ein Spieß, der ein Auge auf die innere Führung hat, ein Smut, meist ein Bordarzt und natürlich Bootsmann Günter Bunke. Auch für den 72-Jährigen gibt es in diesem Sommer ein Jubiläum zu feiern: Er ist seit 30 Jahren an Bord. In Vollzeit. Im Sommer wie im Winter.

Denn wenn die „Germania VI“ im Herbst von Kiel nach Travemünde verholt wird, wo sie bei der Böbs-Werft ins Winterlager geht, bezieht Bunke auf dem Gelände ein kleines Zimmer und geht frühmorgens schon vor den Arbeitern auf sein Schiff. Und wenn die Bootsbauer sich nach Hause aufmachen, ist er meist noch ein Weilchen beschäftigt.

Eine einsame Zeit? „Nein“, sagt Bunke, eher so eine Art Abschalten nach dem Kommen und Gehen der vielen Besatzungsmitglieder im Sommer. Es sei seine Familie, so Bunke. Es fällt leicht, ihm das zu glauben. Denn weiter erzählt der bärtige Mann, dass er seit seinem ersten Arbeitstag während jeder gesegelten Seemeile an Bord war, bis auf eine kurze Abwesenheit wegen Krankheit. Und er erzählt von den vielen Reisen, die er auf diese Weise gefahren ist, entlang der westafrikanischen Küste oder 1992 zu den Olympischen Spielen nach Barcelona. „Ein Traumberuf“, sagt er. Auf die Frage, was in der Rückschau das Schönste daran sei, muss Bunke nicht lange nachdenken: „Wir sind immer wieder heil nach Hause gekommen.“

Technische Daten „Germania VI”:

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Germania Nova

• Amenities & Toys

GERMANIA NOVA yacht NOT for charter*

59.8m  /  196'2 | marin luxuryachts | 2011.

Owner & Guests

Cabin Configuration

• Previous Yacht

Special Features:

• Timeless racing schooner rig
• Vast teak decks — made for exhilarating outdoor living
• Classic brass and wood fittings
• Plenty of excellent tenders and toys onboard
• Stunning full-beam master cabin aft with ensuite

The 59.8m/196'2" classic yacht 'Germania Nova' (ex. Germania) was built by Marin LuxurYachts at their Marin shipyard. Her interior is styled by design house Clay Oliver and she was completed in 2011. This luxury vessel's exterior design is the work of Max Oertz.

Guest Accommodation

Germania Nova has been designed to comfortably accommodate up to 10 guests in 5 suites. She is also capable of carrying up to 13 crew onboard to ensure a relaxed luxury yacht experience.

Onboard Comfort & Entertainment

Her features include a gym, WiFi and air conditioning.

Range & Performance

Germania Nova is built with a steel hull and wood superstructure, with steel/teak decks. Powered by 1 x diesel Deutz (BF6M1015ML) 402hp engines running at 2100rpm, she comfortably cruises at 9 knots, reaches a maximum speed of 14 knots with a range of up to 2,000 nautical miles from her 13,500 litre fuel tanks. Her water tanks store around 9,000 Litres of fresh water. She was built to Germanischer Lloyd ✠ 100 A5 Sailing Yacht MC- classification society rules, and is MCA LY2 Compliant.

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NOTE to U.S. Customs & Border Protection

NOTE TO U.S. CUSTOMS & BORDER PROTECTION

Due to the international and fluid nature of the yachting business and the fact there is no global central industry listing service to which all charter yachts subscribe it is impossible to ascertain a truly up-to-date view of the market. We are a news and information service and not always informed when yachts leave the charter market, or when they are recently sold and renamed it is not clear if they are still for charter. Whilst we use our best endeavors to maintain accurate information, the existence of a listing on this website should in no way supersede official documentation supplied by representatives of a yacht.

Specification

S/Y Germania Nova

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Practical Boat Owner

• Digital edition

Best 30ft German boats from three brands that have rapidly risen to prominence

• Peter Poland
• August 4, 2022

Peter Poland looks at ‘fantastisch’ 30ft German boats that have proved how a hobby can become a multi-million euro business…

Having left university with a degree in modern languages, I followed the example of many of my contemporaries. I went to work in the City. Those who stuck to the financial sector for the rest of their careers – whether in the UK or abroad – are now wealthy enough to pour large sums into our old college’s coffers.

But not me. After about 18 months, a university chum and I pooled our savings, left our jobs and bought a wooden 25ft yacht. Then we set sail for the West Indies.

But after a memorable month in Barbados, I had to hitch a lift home on a steamer because of family problems back in the UK. End of adventure and back to a Lloyds broker: where I ended up as manager of the overseas department.

The lure of yachts was still strong, however. So despite City guru Jim Slater’s alleged opinion that ‘the thing makers are the fools’, I walked out of the city and became… a maker of things. Boat things.

Still, my modern languages were useful at the European boat shows I attended as an exhibitor, or visited to research new ideas and see what innovations were worth ‘borrowing’.

Article continues below…

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It was on one such expedition that I came across a then little known German firm that built solid, hand-crafted yachts; very much in the Scandinavian idiom. These elegant yachts came from the pen of German designer Axel Mohnhaupt between 1981 and 1993. The yachts were called Bavarias.

Bavaria Yachts: A potted history

Founder Winfried Herrmann started work as a vacuum cleaner salesman. Then in the late 1960s he set up Fensterfabrik Heha-Plast, manufacturing windows and doors on an industrial scale.

As a hobby he also sailed; then started a separate division in his window empire to build boats. Thus, in 1978, Bavaria Yachtbau was born. ‘Never make your hobby your business,’ I was once advised; ‘the only way to make a small fortune out of boat building is to start with a big one.’ But Herrmann eventually proved this wrong.

In the early 1980s the window business went under – dragging Bavaria down with it – but yacht dealer Josef Meltl came to the rescue by taking a 50% shareholding. So, after weathering the financial storms in the early 1990s, Herrmann took boatbuilding to a new level with new and efficient production methods.

Marketing and PR specialist Marcus Schlichtling told me: “Bavaria was founded in 1978 and Hermann’s target was to build sailing boats for a fair price, so that a lot of people were able to buy them.

“The progress of Bavaria was huge and fast. Hermann was a Henry Ford in the yacht industry. He increased production to four product lines. Hull and deck were built with the help of the industry’s first CNC milling machine. In carpentry, he optimised production with robots and varnishing machines.”

In 2007 Herrmann and his business partner Meltl pulled off a major coup, selling Bavaria for a reputed 1.3 billion euros to Bain Capital.

‘Taking boatbuilding to a new level with efficient production’

It’s a world record for a firm of leisure boat builders. German sailing magazine Yacht wrote of Herrmann ‘the sale would have been satisfying – the ultimate crowning of the career of a self-made man who went from vacuum cleaner salesman to a multi-millionaire.’

Herrmann’s timing was perfect. Shortly after the sale to Bain, the 2008/9 financial crisis hit the world and annual production fell from 3,500 boats to less than 1,000.

Like other builders, Bavaria took a heavy hit . Then Bain sold control of the company to US private equity investors in 2009 . In just two years, they probably lost close to €1billion.

Since then, Bavaria has resumed its upward path, most recently being bought by a private equity fund in 2018 .

Bavaria’s early history and success splits into four periods. On the sailboat side these coincide with the company’s involvement with four different designers: in the early days Axel Mohnhaupt; in the glory days J&J; and later Farr Yacht Design in 2010; then Cossutti Yacht Design from 2017.

Mohnhaupt was little known outside Germany. The Bavarias he drew during the 1980s are his major claim to fame; although he was also involved in successful America’s Cup campaigns, including the 1974 winner Intrepid.

His Bavarias were akin to the sportier Scandinavian yachts built at that time: sleek lines, an abundance of woodwork down below, an excellent finish and reasonably priced. Bavaria’s aim in the 1980s was to produce a quality yacht with a spacious interior.

Bavaria 890

Around the 30ft size, Mohnhaupt’s 1981 Bavaria 890 (29ft 4in) is an elegant and desirable yacht. Its layout is conventional for its time; featuring an amidships heads, forepeak berths, a spacious saloon, aft galley and chart table and a quarter berth. Thanks to a beam of 9ft 9in, there’s plenty of space below.

A fractional rig gives a sail area/displacement ratio of 15.2 while a ballast ratio of 43.7% and displacement/length ratio of 229 indicate stability under sail.

Bavaria 960/300

The 1985 Bavaria 960 (31ft 6in; beam 9ft 10in; weight 7,937lb) and 1989 Bavaria 300 (31ft 4in; beam 9ft 10in; weight 7,496lb) are two of the earliest Mohnhaupt designs to have an aft heads compartment and stern double cabin.

Both are fractional rigged with sleeker looks than later Bavarias, a fin keel (with a bulb on the 300), a spade rudder and a ballast ratio of around 40%. But sadly not many made it to the UK. These Mohnhaupt Bavarias were produced in smaller numbers in the 1980s, aiming at the mid to high quality end of the market.

Dramatic changes appeared when Bavaria moved to J&J (Jernej and Japec Jakopin) for its new designs. J&J worked in Slovenia with specialist boat development company Seaway.

This unique set up made J&J and Seaway leading providers of yacht design, engineering and tooling. They started with Elan in 1983, later including Jeanneau, Dufour, and Grand Soleil among their clients. Bavaria beat a path to their door in 1994 with a commission for their new Bavaria 39 followed a year later by a new 41.

Japec told me “Up to 2008 we designed, engineered and tooled 89 Bavaria models, sail and power. Sales went from r11 million (DM22m) in 1992 to r279 million in 2006/2007.”

The earlier Bavaria 31 is over a tonne lighter than the Bavaria Cruiser 31…

The 1999 Bavaria 31 was the first J&J model around the 30ft size. With graceful overhangs, an elegantly shaped coachroof and a bulbed fin keel the 31 has a DLR of 180 and ballast ratio of 30.5%.

Thanks to a beam of 9ft 9in the modern layout below features an aft heads and double cabin. The similar but later 2007 Bavaria Cruiser 31, however, has a wider beam of 11ft 1in and shorter overhangs.

… but Cruiser 31 has more accommodation and stowage space. Photo: Bavaria Yachts

So it has even more space below, a bigger chart table and increased stowage space throughout. Its bulbed fin keel gives a ballast ratio of 23.4% and DLR of 226. Weighing 10,340lb it’s heavier than the earlier Bavaria 31 that weighs 7,937lb.

Bavaria Cruiser 30

The 2005 Bavaria Cruiser 30 is a good example of the new ‘cruiser series’ that included 26 yachts between 30ft and 51ft. An interior difference between these and earlier production Bavarias was a switch to lighter toned mahogany veneers in the joinery.

Bavaria Cruiser 30 offers a lot of boat within its 30ft length. Photo: Marco McGinty/Alamy

The Cruiser 30 comes with three keel options: deep or shoal draught bulbed fin keels and a less common ‘tandem’ keel.

Its generous beam of 10ft 9in, wider stern and short overhangs give a spacious interior.

The Bavaria Owners Association put me in contact with Guy Martin who bought his Bavaria 30 Cruiser several years ago.

He told me: “We liked the interior woodwork; it’s solid and not too dark… she has a solid feel about her.

“Performance is good enough for a cruiser. We have in-mast furling, which I wouldn’t recommend from a performance standpoint.

Unfurl the headsail and she sails at a respectable 5-6 knots. Her sweet spot is 8-16 knots of wind; she’s not much good in anything below 5 knots.

“All in all, a very well balanced boat. We have a shallow draught tandem keel so she doesn’t point so well. I sail single- or short-handed all the time and she’s perfect for this. For one or two people the yacht is very comfortable for cruising. Two adults and two children are fine. Any more adults and it gets a little tight.

“I’d like to change up to a larger yacht but have spent so much money upgrading, I’m loath to do so. I bumped into the previous owner who did just that, and regretted selling her. So maybe I’ll stick with her!”

The J&J-designed Bavaria Cruiser 30 offers a well finished saloon. Photo: yachtsnet.co.uk

I also contacted recent buyers Alex and Marian Agnew who told me: “Our boat is Amy , a 1993 Bavaria 30 , bought in December 2020 during lockdown.

“She’s our first boat and appealed to us firstly because of the size and also the amount of extras which had been fitted in order for her to be sailed short-handed such as in-boom reefing, electric winch , Raymarine autohelm etc.

“She had been well cared for… we received a glowing survey report. We feel she stands out due to the condition for her age.”

Bavaria 30 Amy with neat in-boom furling. Photo: Alex Agnew

Amy has already taken the Agnews on enjoyable cruises around the Solent and down to Poole and is proving to be a good ‘lockdown purchase’.

American magazine Sail summed up the 2005 Bavaria Cruiser 30 well, saying: ‘The Bavaria 30 is an entry-level cruiser with all the features that any sailor would look for in a coastal cruiser.

Bavaria Cruiser 30 accommodation plan. Photo: yachtsnet.co.uk

‘With each of its two cabins equipped with a double bunk, hanging locker, and small open area, the interior is large enough to accommodate two couples or a small family on a weekend (or even longer) cruise.

“The straight settees in the saloon are over six feet long, and its inlaid dining table can drop down to create a double bunk. The space has just over six feet of headroom.

“The J&J hull should offer a responsive and forgiving ride. The fin keel carries over 2,200 pounds of ballast in the bulb for stability, and the deep spade rudder should provide plenty of bite.”

Cruiser 34 – the smallest Bavaria Cruiser now available as a new boat

The smallest Bavaria cruiser now available as a new boat is the Cruiser 34. Like most production boatyards, Bavaria is building ever-bigger yachts but says “We believe that even smaller yachts can be great fun.

“With the Bavaria Cruiser 34 we have succeeded in bringing together the most important aspects of sailing – sailing pleasure and spaciousness – in one boat.” But if you want a 30ft Bavaria, second-hand is the only way!

Dehler Yachts: A potted history

If you’re in the market for a sportier cruiser, a Dehler could be the answer. Like many boatbuilders, Willi Dehler started off doing something entirely different. His son Karl (who still works for Dehler, now owned by Hanse) told me: “In 1958 my parents had their own shop selling TVs, radios and all electric parts.

“Then they started sailing as a hobby in a van de Stadt-designed Stern dingy. From that time on, my father had contact with Mr van de Stadt and a lifetime friendship began.”

Cees van Tongeren (of van de Stadt Designs) told me: “Dehler wanted to build a GRP caravan and went to Ricus van de Stadt for advice… but Ricus persuaded him to build boats instead. So in the early 60s Dehler asked van de Stadt to design a stub keel centreboarder in two variants; with a cabin top as cabin cruiser and without as daysailer.”

The first Dehler, the Varianta (21ft 4in), became one of the all time top-selling European classes. Photo: Van de Stadt Design

Dehler Varianta

The resulting yacht – the Varianta (21ft 4in) – became the most successful Dehler ever and one of the all time top-selling European classes. In the mid-1960s the market wasn’t awash with small GRP family cruisers; so there was plenty of pent up demand.

Dehler hit the jackpot with his first throw of the dice and went on to sell around 4,400 Variantas between 1966 and 1982. This success gave Dehler the foundation on which to set up a state-of-the-art manufacturing process; a process that was to stand the company in good stead for many decades.

The 1974 Optima 92 aft cockpit version (30.18ft). Photo: Van de Stadt Design

Dehler Optima 92

The 1974 Optima 92 (30ft 2in) was the first Dehler to exceed 30ft and appeal to offshore cruising sailors. And it was extremely innovative in many respects, being one of the first cruisers to offer a heads relocated from amidships to a compartment aft, near the companionway.

Its airy and comfortable saloon was one of the first to benefit from hull ports set into the topsides. Its large L-shaped galley (to starboard) and navigator’s chart table and quarter berth area (to port) were well suited to offshore cruising; as were its wheel steering, 48% ballast ratio and 273.8 DLR.

Dehler Optima 98

If that didn’t appeal, there was a later ‘stretched’ aft cabin centre cockpit version – the Optima 98 (32ft 1in). These Optimas had fractional rigs (as opposed to the then almost universal masthead rig) and offered wheel steering.

Such features were unusual on 1970s cruisers around 30ft ; and more so on top quality yachts sold at competitive prices. No wonder Dehler was on the crest of a wave. It’s worth remembering that Bénéteau did not build its first fast cruiser, the First 30, until 1976.

At the same time Dehler was stretching its lead on its competitors by fine-tuning its production methods with a unique ‘in house’ supply system.

It bought aluminium extrusions to manufacture its own masts and booms and employed riggers to make standing and running rigging. Its steel fabrication division made pulpits, pushpits, shroud plates and custom steelwork items that go into or onto a production yacht.

Dehler also built an ABS forming machine; so under deck locker units, small hatches and other non-structural parts were made in house from panels of ABS. Put simply, Dehler majored on saving costs and gaining efficiency. Yet it did not cut corners. Its boats were well made and competitively priced.

Duetta 86 introduced in 1979 was a class act. Photo: Van de Stadt Design

Dehler Duetta 86

The Duetta 86 (28ft 3in), introduced in 1979, was ideal for Dehler Varianta or Delanta owners wanting bigger boats. Cees van Tongeren drew this fast cruiser to be cut above the norm. With its sleek coachroof, well-defined overhangs and moderate freeboard, the Duetta was a class act.

What’s more its 2.95m beam, 43% ballast ratio, 19.88 SA/Disp ratio and 160 DLR add up to an appealing mix of performance and stability. Like some other Dehler cruisers at that time, it came with either an aft or centre cockpit; the latter in conjunction with a separate stern cabin.

And all in just 28ft 3in. Headroom, space and standard of finish in all versions were excellent.

Dehler 31 flying a spinnaker. Photo: Yachting Monthly Archive

In 1980 Dehler underwent a revolution. Cees van Tongeren designed the world-beating DB1 production ¾ tonner; followed a year later by the even more successful DB2.

This was later modified and de-tuned to become the hugely popular Dehler 34 (LOA 33ft 2in) which in turn spawned the 1984 Dehler 31 – one of my all-time favourite fast cruisers.

When Hunter Boats was a UK Dehler agent, we couldn’t get enough of them. The 30ft 10in Dehler 31 (also known as the Duetta 94) has a beam of 10ft 2in, ballast ratio of 40.6% and weighs 7,055lb. A DLR of 220 and SA/Disp ratio of 19.33 denote well above average sailing performance.

Dehler 31 (aka Duetta 94) sail plan

Available with a tiller or wheel – each with a mainsheet track in the cockpit – the helmsman has excellent control. Down below there’s a twin berth forepeak, straight sided saloon settees/berths, a fixed chart table and heads compartment aft to starboard, a good sized galley and an aft double cabin.

It all works well, although the Dehler 31 isn’t as voluminous as some modern cruisers. The finish is well executed and the interior décor came in two versions: a standard mahogany finish or a white finish with wooden cappings and trim around locker openings etc (known as the Nova version).

After testing a well-used Dehler 31 in 2014, PBO’s sister title Yachting Monthly said: “Given that she is a family cruising boat, she is fast for her size. She’s forgiving enough for relaxed cruising, but offers plenty of oomph for racer-types to play with.

“Most Dehler 31s will be at least 20 years old by now, but the quality of construction means they will hide their age well. For sailors from a dinghy background, or for cruisers who like getting stuck into the sailing, this boat has a lot to offer.”

Dehler 29 is a Judel/Vrolijk design. Photo: SailingScenes.com

The 1998 Judel/Vrolijk-designed Dehler 29 (28ft 9in) has a different style and look to earlier van de Stadt Dehlers, but ample performance and space below. Well worth a look. As is the J/V Dehler 30 OD racer.

Hanse Yachts: A potted history

Hanse Yachts (now owner of Dehler) was the brainchild of Michael Schmidt; one of the most remarkable yacht builders in recent times.

When I asked Schmidt how he kicked off, he replied: “I started boatbuilding with C&C yachts in the mid-70s, when we began production for Europe.

“In the early 80s I bought my own boatyard and started to build the first prepreg carbon-fibre Admiral Cuppers. Our race boats like Düsselboot, Rubin, Pinta, Outsider and Tina-I-Punkt were successful offshore racers, winning the Admiral’s Cup and Sardinia Cup. I sailed several times for Germany in the Admiral’s Cup.”

When the Berlin Wall crumbled in 1990 Schmidt was quick off the mark and looked for a boatbuilding property on the former East Germany’s coastline. He correctly anticipated bargain prices for those who got in early.

Schmidt’s search was successful. He told me: “The factory was a shed where they built and repaired wooden fishing boats. They had good woodworkers, and we trained people in all aspects of boatbuilding. East Germany was a good place because the people were very motivated to build something up.”

Low overhead costs and labour rates also helped to produce boats at competitive prices, Schmidt explained. “We received some grants which made it easier to invest.

“But there were difficulties getting established in the East because in those days the infrastructure was more limited. However, with a good, motivated team and a clear mission Hanse Yachts became successful.” To put it mildly!

Hanse’s first GRP production yacht hit the water in 1993; which shows how meteoric Schmidt’s rise has been. Compared to the start-up dates of GRP construction by other production boatbuilders – Beneteau in 1963, Jeanneau in 1964, Westerly in 1963 and Nicholson is 1962 – Hanse was late on the scene.

But having given major European competitors 30 years head start, Hanse is now a market leader, while some have faltered or fallen by the wayside.

Hanse 291 under spinnaker during the 2015 Round the Island Race. Photo: Niall Ferguson/Alamy

Instead of getting an all-new model designed and going through the costly, lengthy process of producing moulds, Schmidt bought the mould tools of an attractive Scandinavian cruiser-racer called the Aphrodite 29.

Being a racing man at heart, he went for this pretty, sporty yacht rather than a ‘floating caravan.’

Thanks to the renamed Hanse 291’s performance, looks and extremely competitive price, it sold fast.

When Schmidt first exhibited it at the Hamburg boat show, he hung a banner on the guard-rail saying 44,444 Deutschmarks (around r23,000) – which worried competitors and delighted customers.

Designed by Carl Beyer, the attractive Hanse 291 (29ft 3in; weight 5,732lb) has a moderate beam of 8ft 10in, a ballast ratio of 40.4%, a DLR of 152, a SA/Disp ratio of 18.34 and its fin keel draws 5ft 4in.

All of which gives a sparkling performance. Down below the Hanse 291 has a conventional layout with amidships heads, twin berth forepeak, saloon, galley and spacious quarter berth.

Andy Hind, Westerly sales manager at the time, told me: “At the Hamburg boat show I stumbled across the embryonic Hanse stand. On it was a pretty 29-footer, the first Hanse 291.

“With a lovely easily-driven underwater shape, tall fractional rig, narrowish beam and perfect proportions, she looked quick. Inside she has five beds, a proper heads, a kitchen with cooker and fridge and a dining table that seats six! I became a victim of ‘boat show euphoria’.”

When the first Hanse 291 arrived at Hamble Point, Andy snapped it up. He told me: “I entered the Round the Island Race that year. The wind was 12-15 knots and she flew. Spinnaker up at the Needles and we were reeling in the Sigma 33s. The result? 6th overall on her maiden race.

“This boat has got something… I’ve vowed to win the Round the Island Race one day. In the 2014 RTI we were pipped by under two minutes; so second and the Silver Roman Bowl. The most frustrating result possible!”

While the revamped and slightly enlarged Hanse 292 (now with an aft heads compartment and athwartships aft double berth), 1997 Hanse 300 and Hanse 301 derivations continued to sell, Schmidt was considering another set of second-hand moulds.

The Finngulf 33 was a sleek Scandinavian and the rebranded Hanse 331 was a logical follow on to the top-selling 291/292.

The newer (2016) Hanse 315 model. Photo: Graham Snook

The 2006 Hanse 315 (30ft 9in and not to be confused with the later 2016 Hanse 315 model) was one of the early Judel/Vrolijk Hanse designs. Weighing 9,480lb, it had a beam of 10ft 6in, a heavily-bulbed fin keel (ballast ratio 30.5%), a DLR of 209 and a SA/Disp ratio of 23.49.

It also offered a wheel steering option and a self-tacking jib. Down below, it has a spacious layout with an aft heads compartment and aft double berth cabin. The 2016 Hanse 315 (31ft 6in) is a very different yacht. Also designed by Judel/Vrolijk, it has a beam of 11ft, a wide transom and near vertical stem and stern.

Inside the newer Hanse 315. Photo: Graham Snook

Its deep, heavily-bulbed fin keel gives a DLR of 199 and ballast ratio of 32% while a SA/Disp ratio of 17.06 ensures good performance. Other notable features are a fractional rig, a self-tacking jib and wheel steering (twin wheels are an option).

Proving its prowess, the new Hanse 315 won the 2015/16 European Yacht of the Year Award in the family cruiser category. Yachting World ’s tester Toby Hodges wrote “In my opinion, the Hanse 315 is the best recent example of a compact big yacht… she is simply a delight to sail, aided by steering that is superlight and responsive.”

Fulsome praise indeed – and proof that modern Hanses are now the dominant German range.

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Inside the shocking Sicily yacht tragedy that left 7 people dead

There was a violent storm, but even then, luxury yachts are built to weather such events. so why did this boat sink off the coast of sicily, leaving seven people dead, by natalie finn | e news • published august 24, 2024 • updated on august 24, 2024 at 10:34 am.

Originally appeared on E! Online

Nobody was trying to reach the lowest depths of the ocean or otherwise test the boundaries of human endurance .

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But what was supposed to be a routine pleasure cruise aboard a superyacht turned deadly all the same on the morning of Aug. 19 when the 184-foot Bayesian got caught in a storm and sank off the coast of Sicily .

"I can't remember the last time I read about a vessel going down quickly like that," Stephen Richter of SAR Marine Consulting told NBC News . "You know, completely capsizing and going down that quickly, a vessel of that nature, a yacht of that size."

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Of the 22 people onboard, including crew, seven people died. The last of the bodies was recovered Aug. 23, an expectedly sad coda to what had already been a tragic week as the search for answers as to how this happened got underway.

And to be sure, every minute of the Bayesian's ill-fated outing is being fiercely scrutinized, starting with the general seaworthiness of the vessel itself.

Because, frankly, this was a freak occurrence.

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"Boats of this size, they’re taking passengers on an excursion or a holiday," Richter explained. "They are not going to put them in situations where it may be dangerous or it may be uncomfortable, so this storm that popped up was obviously an anomaly. These vessels that carry passengers, they’re typically very well-maintained, very well-appointed."

But in this case, a $40 million yacht sank, seven people are dead—including a billionaire tech mogul and his 18-year-old daughter—and morbid fascination doesn't need a second wind.

Here is how the story of the Sicily yacht tragedy has unfolded so far:

What happened to the yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily?

The Bayesian had set off from the Sicilian port of Milazzo on Aug. 14 at capacity with 12 guests and 10 crewmembers aboard.

The aluminum-hulled vessel was built in 2008 by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi and registered in the U.K. Cruise sites listed it as available for charter at $215,000 per week, per the Associated Press.

On the morning of Aug. 19, the superyacht was anchored off the coast of Porticello, a small fishing village in the Sicilian province of Palermo (also the name of Sicily's capital city), when a violent storm hit.

The vessel "suddenly sank" at around 5 a.m. local time, seemingly due to "the terrible weather conditions," the City Council of Bagheria announced shortly afterward, per NBC News .

At the time, only one person was confirmed dead—the ship's chef—but six others were said to be missing. The 15 survivors—who managed to make it onto an inflatable life boat, according to emergency officials—were rescued that morning by the crew of another yacht that had been nearby when the storm hit.

"Fifteen people inside," Karsten Borner, the Dutch captain of the ship that was able to help (the Sir Robert Baden Powell), told reporters afterward, per Reuters. "Four people were injured, three heavily injured, and we brought them to our ship. Then we communicated with the coast guard, and after some time, the coast guard came and later picked up injured people."

When the storm hit, his boat ran into "a strong hurricane gust," Borner said, "and we had to start the engine to keep the ship in an angled position."

They "managed to keep the ship in position," he continued, but once the storm died down, they realized the other boat that had been behind them—the Bayesian—was gone.

The wreck ended up settling 165 feet below the surface, according to Italy's national fire department.

Fire officials said that divers, a motorboat and a helicopter were deployed to search for the missing.

Meanwhile, footage was captured of the ship capsizing on closed-circuit TV about a half-mile away from where it was anchored.

In the video obtained by NBC News, the illuminated 250-foot aluminum mast of the ship appears to list severely to one side before disappearing completely. Survivors recalled having just a few minutes to literally abandon ship.

Who were the seven people who died when the yacht Bayesian sank?

The tragedy initially became headline news because billionaire tech mogul Mike Lynch—"Britain's Bill Gates," some U.K. media called him—was among the missing. His body was ultimately recovered Aug. 22 .

"They told me that suddenly they found themselves catapulted into the water without even understanding how they had got there," Dr. Fabio Genco, head of the Palermo Emergency Medical Services, told NBC News Aug. 22. "And that the whole thing seems to have lasted from 3 to 5 minutes."

Genco said he got to Porticello about an hour after the Bayesian capsized.

Survivors "told me that it was all dark, that the yacht hoisted itself up and then went down," he said. "All the objects were falling on them. That’s why I immediately made sure, by asking them questions, if they had any internal injuries."

Why did the yacht sink?

Italian prosecutors are investigating to determine what transpired before the boat went down, according to NBC News.

Meanwhile, the CEO of shipbuilder Perini's parent company The Italian Sea Group defended the vessel itself as "unsinkable."

Perini boats "are the safest in the most absolute sense," Giovanni Costantino told Sky News Aug. 22 . What happened to the Bayesian "put me in a state of sadness on one side and of disbelief on the other," he continued. "This incident sounds like an unbelievable story, both technically and as a fact."

Costantino said it had to have been human error that led to the boat sinking, declaring, "Mistakes were made."

"Everything that was done reveals a very long summation of errors," he told newspaper Corriere della Sera Aug. 21, in an interview translated from Italian. "The people should not have been in the cabins, the boat should not have been at anchor."

The weather was "all predictable," he continued, adding that the storm "was fully legible in all the weather charts. It couldn't have been ignored."

The yacht's captain, identified as James Cutfield of New Zealand, was taken to Termini Imerese hospital for treatment. From there, he told La Repubblica, per Sky News , that he didn't see the storm coming.

Borner, the captain of the ship that rescued the 15 Bayesian survivors, told NBC News that he noticed the storm come in at 4 a.m. local time, and saw what looked to him like a waterspout, a type of tornado that forms above water.

The International Centre for Waterspout Research posted on X Aug. 19 that it had "confirmed 18 waterspouts today off the coasts of Italy. Some were powerful waterspouts, one of which may have been responsible for the sinking of a large yacht off of Sicily."

Borner said he didn't know why the Bayesian sank so quickly, guessing "it may have something to do with the mast, which was incredibly long." (A tall mast, even with its sails down, means there's more surface area exposed to wind, which can result in tipping.)

Confirming that one person was dead and six unaccounted for immediately following the wreck on Aug. 19, Salvo Cocina of Sicily's civil protection agency told reporters that a waterspout had struck the area overnight.

"They were in the wrong place at the wrong time," he said.

The 59-year-old founder of software firm Autonomy had been on the trip with his wife Angela Bacares and their 18-year-old, Oxford-bound daughter Hannah to celebrate his recent acquittal in the U.S. on fraud and conspiracy charges stemming from the $11.7 billion purchase of his company by Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

In a bizarre turn of events, Lynch's co-defendant at trial, Stephen Chamberlain, the former vice president of finance at Autonomy, died after being taken off life support following a road accident on Aug. 17. Chamberlain's attorney told Reuters Aug. 20 that his friend and client had been out for a run when he was "fatally struck" by a car.

Meanwhile, multiple people who contributed to Lynch's defense were on the cruise with him and his family.

The bodies of Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer—who testified on Lynch's behalf—and his wife Judy Bloomer, as well as lawyer Chris Morvillo, a partner at the U.S. firm Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda Morvillo, a jewelry designer, were recovered on Aug. 21 .

In a LinkedIn post thanking the team that successfully defended Lynch, Morvillo wrote, per Sky News , "And, finally, a huge thank you to my patient and incredible wife, Neda Morvillo, and my two strong, brilliant, and beautiful daughters, Sabrina Morvillo and Sophia Morvillo. None of this would have been possible without your love and support. I am so glad to be home. And they all lived happily ever after…"

The first casualty confirmed Aug. 19 was the ship's Canadian-Antiguan chef, later identified as Recaldo Thomas.

"He was a one-of-a-kind special human being," a friend of Thomas told The Independent . "Incredibly talented, contagious smile and laugh, an incredible voice with a deep love of the ocean and the moon. I spoke to him nearly every day. He loved his life his friends and his job."

Hannah's body was the last of the missing six to be found , with divers bringing her remains ashore on Aug. 23.

Lynch and Bacares, who was rescued, also shared a 21-year-old daughter, according to The Times.

While awaiting trial, Lynch—who maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings—had spent 13 months under house arrest in San Francisco. Back home in London afterward, he admitted to The Times in July that he'd been afraid of dying in prison if he'd been found guilty. (He faced a possible 25-year sentence.)

"It's bizarre, but now you have a second life," he reflected. "The question is, what do you want to do with it?"

(E!, NBC News and Sky News are all members of the Comcast family.)

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All about the $40m bayesian yacht that capsized, leaving 6 dead and 1 still missing.

The massive superyacht Bayesian that sank off the coast of Italy on Monday won numerous awards for its sleek interior design — and was sold to its original owner for nearly $40 million.

The luxury sailing ship was carrying 22 people when it capsized and sank during a fierce storm early Monday.

The bodies of five of six missing passengers, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch , 69, have been recovered. His daughter, 18-year-old Hannah, is the only one of six known killed in the tragedy yet to be found, a source close to the rescue operation told Reuters.

The ship’s chef, Recaldo Thomas, has also been confirmed dead.

Divers continued searching the wreckage of the 184-foot-long, British-flagged vessel, previously called Salute, on Wednesday after discovering four of the bodies.

When it was built in 2008, the Bayesian had the tallest aluminum mast in the world, standing at 237 feet, earning it the award for best exterior styling at the World Superyacht Awards in 2009, the Telegraph reported.

The sprawling superyacht’s interior, decorated with sleek, minimalist furnishings created by Remi Tessier, has also won numerous awards.

The ship, which accommodated 12 guests, had a master bedroom and three double and two twin bedrooms.

It also featured beige sofas, dark wood furnishings, and a teak deck equipped with a large canvas awning to keep guests cool, according to the outlet.

Some of the ship’s styling, including thin brown pillars and miniature terra cotta sculptures, was inspired by Japanese culture.

What to know after a tornado sank the yacht Bayesian off the coast of Sicily:

• A superyacht capsized off the coast of Sicily after a tornado hit the area early Monday, killing seven passengers.
• British tech tycoon Mike Lynch was identified as one of the bodies pulled from the wreckage. His teenage daughter, Hannah, was the final one to be recovered.
• Lynch — known as “Britain’s Bill Gates” — had invited guests from Clifford Chance, a legal firm that represented him, and Invoke Capital, his own company, on the voyage,  according to the Telegraph . 
• Security camera footage shot from 650 feet from where the  Bayesian sank Monday  shows it disappearing.
• A rare and unexpected “black swan” weather event may have led to the  Bayesian’s speedy demise , maritime experts say.

The extravagant ship won best interior at the International Superyacht Society Awards in 2008 and was also voted one of the best large sailing yachts at the 2009 World Superyacht Awards, according to the outlet.

The yacht’s original owner, John Groenewoud, a Dutch real estate developer, reportedly bought the ship for £30 million ($39 million) when it was built. In 2014, he sold the ship with an asking price of £27 million ($35 million).

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The Bayesian is currently owned by Revtom, a company that listed Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, as its legal owner.

It was named after the Bayesian statistical model that helps financial investors calculate risk — the subject of Lynch’s PhD that later helped him build his empire.

The vessel, operated by yachting company Camper & Nicholsons, had twin 965hp MTU engines, which gave it a range of 3,600 nautical miles at 13 to 15 knots (14 to 17 mph).

RSB Rigging carried out rig service works on the ship with Astilleros de Mallorca, a shipyard facility in Palma, in November 2016.

The Bayesian returned in September 2020 for scheduled service works, including having its mast removed and reinstalled.

Steve Branagh, managing director of RSB Rigging, told the Telegraph: “At this time, our deepest sympathies go out to the friends and families of all those affected by this dreadful tragedy.”

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Inside the shocking Sicily yacht tragedy that left 7 people dead

There was a violent storm, but even then, luxury yachts are built to weather such events. so why did this boat sink off the coast of sicily, leaving seven people dead, by natalie finn | e news • published august 24, 2024 • updated on august 24, 2024 at 9:34 am.

Originally appeared on E! Online

Nobody was trying to reach the lowest depths of the ocean or otherwise test the boundaries of human endurance .

Streaming 24/7: Watch NBC 5 local news and weather for free wherever you are

But what was supposed to be a routine pleasure cruise aboard a superyacht turned deadly all the same on the morning of Aug. 19 when the 184-foot Bayesian got caught in a storm and sank off the coast of Sicily .

"I can't remember the last time I read about a vessel going down quickly like that," Stephen Richter of SAR Marine Consulting told NBC News . "You know, completely capsizing and going down that quickly, a vessel of that nature, a yacht of that size."

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Of the 22 people onboard, including crew, seven people died. The last of the bodies was recovered Aug. 23, an expectedly sad coda to what had already been a tragic week as the search for answers as to how this happened got underway.

And to be sure, every minute of the Bayesian's ill-fated outing is being fiercely scrutinized, starting with the general seaworthiness of the vessel itself.

Because, frankly, this was a freak occurrence.

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"Boats of this size, they’re taking passengers on an excursion or a holiday," Richter explained. "They are not going to put them in situations where it may be dangerous or it may be uncomfortable, so this storm that popped up was obviously an anomaly. These vessels that carry passengers, they’re typically very well-maintained, very well-appointed."

But in this case, a $40 million yacht sank, seven people are dead—including a billionaire tech mogul and his 18-year-old daughter—and morbid fascination doesn't need a second wind.

Here is how the story of the Sicily yacht tragedy has unfolded so far:

What happened to the yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily?

The Bayesian had set off from the Sicilian port of Milazzo on Aug. 14 at capacity with 12 guests and 10 crewmembers aboard.

The aluminum-hulled vessel was built in 2008 by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi and registered in the U.K. Cruise sites listed it as available for charter at $215,000 per week, per the Associated Press.

On the morning of Aug. 19, the superyacht was anchored off the coast of Porticello, a small fishing village in the Sicilian province of Palermo (also the name of Sicily's capital city), when a violent storm hit.

The vessel "suddenly sank" at around 5 a.m. local time, seemingly due to "the terrible weather conditions," the City Council of Bagheria announced shortly afterward, per NBC News .

At the time, only one person was confirmed dead—the ship's chef—but six others were said to be missing. The 15 survivors—who managed to make it onto an inflatable life boat, according to emergency officials—were rescued that morning by the crew of another yacht that had been nearby when the storm hit.

"Fifteen people inside," Karsten Borner, the Dutch captain of the ship that was able to help (the Sir Robert Baden Powell), told reporters afterward, per Reuters. "Four people were injured, three heavily injured, and we brought them to our ship. Then we communicated with the coast guard, and after some time, the coast guard came and later picked up injured people."

When the storm hit, his boat ran into "a strong hurricane gust," Borner said, "and we had to start the engine to keep the ship in an angled position."

They "managed to keep the ship in position," he continued, but once the storm died down, they realized the other boat that had been behind them—the Bayesian—was gone.

The wreck ended up settling 165 feet below the surface, according to Italy's national fire department.

Fire officials said that divers, a motorboat and a helicopter were deployed to search for the missing.

Meanwhile, footage was captured of the ship capsizing on closed-circuit TV about a half-mile away from where it was anchored.

In the video obtained by NBC News, the illuminated 250-foot aluminum mast of the ship appears to list severely to one side before disappearing completely. Survivors recalled having just a few minutes to literally abandon ship.

Who were the seven people who died when the yacht Bayesian sank?

The tragedy initially became headline news because billionaire tech mogul Mike Lynch—"Britain's Bill Gates," some U.K. media called him—was among the missing. His body was ultimately recovered Aug. 22 .

"They told me that suddenly they found themselves catapulted into the water without even understanding how they had got there," Dr. Fabio Genco, head of the Palermo Emergency Medical Services, told NBC News Aug. 22. "And that the whole thing seems to have lasted from 3 to 5 minutes."

Genco said he got to Porticello about an hour after the Bayesian capsized.

Survivors "told me that it was all dark, that the yacht hoisted itself up and then went down," he said. "All the objects were falling on them. That’s why I immediately made sure, by asking them questions, if they had any internal injuries."

Why did the yacht sink?

Italian prosecutors are investigating to determine what transpired before the boat went down, according to NBC News.

Meanwhile, the CEO of shipbuilder Perini's parent company The Italian Sea Group defended the vessel itself as "unsinkable."

Perini boats "are the safest in the most absolute sense," Giovanni Costantino told Sky News Aug. 22 . What happened to the Bayesian "put me in a state of sadness on one side and of disbelief on the other," he continued. "This incident sounds like an unbelievable story, both technically and as a fact."

Costantino said it had to have been human error that led to the boat sinking, declaring, "Mistakes were made."

"Everything that was done reveals a very long summation of errors," he told newspaper Corriere della Sera Aug. 21, in an interview translated from Italian. "The people should not have been in the cabins, the boat should not have been at anchor."

The weather was "all predictable," he continued, adding that the storm "was fully legible in all the weather charts. It couldn't have been ignored."

The yacht's captain, identified as James Cutfield of New Zealand, was taken to Termini Imerese hospital for treatment. From there, he told La Repubblica, per Sky News , that he didn't see the storm coming.

Borner, the captain of the ship that rescued the 15 Bayesian survivors, told NBC News that he noticed the storm come in at 4 a.m. local time, and saw what looked to him like a waterspout, a type of tornado that forms above water.

The International Centre for Waterspout Research posted on X Aug. 19 that it had "confirmed 18 waterspouts today off the coasts of Italy. Some were powerful waterspouts, one of which may have been responsible for the sinking of a large yacht off of Sicily."

Borner said he didn't know why the Bayesian sank so quickly, guessing "it may have something to do with the mast, which was incredibly long." (A tall mast, even with its sails down, means there's more surface area exposed to wind, which can result in tipping.)

Confirming that one person was dead and six unaccounted for immediately following the wreck on Aug. 19, Salvo Cocina of Sicily's civil protection agency told reporters that a waterspout had struck the area overnight.

"They were in the wrong place at the wrong time," he said.

The 59-year-old founder of software firm Autonomy had been on the trip with his wife Angela Bacares and their 18-year-old, Oxford-bound daughter Hannah to celebrate his recent acquittal in the U.S. on fraud and conspiracy charges stemming from the $11.7 billion purchase of his company by Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

In a bizarre turn of events, Lynch's co-defendant at trial, Stephen Chamberlain, the former vice president of finance at Autonomy, died after being taken off life support following a road accident on Aug. 17. Chamberlain's attorney told Reuters Aug. 20 that his friend and client had been out for a run when he was "fatally struck" by a car.

Meanwhile, multiple people who contributed to Lynch's defense were on the cruise with him and his family.

The bodies of Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer—who testified on Lynch's behalf—and his wife Judy Bloomer, as well as lawyer Chris Morvillo, a partner at the U.S. firm Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda Morvillo, a jewelry designer, were recovered on Aug. 21 .

In a LinkedIn post thanking the team that successfully defended Lynch, Morvillo wrote, per Sky News , "And, finally, a huge thank you to my patient and incredible wife, Neda Morvillo, and my two strong, brilliant, and beautiful daughters, Sabrina Morvillo and Sophia Morvillo. None of this would have been possible without your love and support. I am so glad to be home. And they all lived happily ever after…"

The first casualty confirmed Aug. 19 was the ship's Canadian-Antiguan chef, later identified as Recaldo Thomas.

"He was a one-of-a-kind special human being," a friend of Thomas told The Independent . "Incredibly talented, contagious smile and laugh, an incredible voice with a deep love of the ocean and the moon. I spoke to him nearly every day. He loved his life his friends and his job."

Hannah's body was the last of the missing six to be found , with divers bringing her remains ashore on Aug. 23.

Lynch and Bacares, who was rescued, also shared a 21-year-old daughter, according to The Times.

While awaiting trial, Lynch—who maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings—had spent 13 months under house arrest in San Francisco. Back home in London afterward, he admitted to The Times in July that he'd been afraid of dying in prison if he'd been found guilty. (He faced a possible 25-year sentence.)

"It's bizarre, but now you have a second life," he reflected. "The question is, what do you want to do with it?"

(E!, NBC News and Sky News are all members of the Comcast family.)

How did divers manage to blow up the Nord Stream pipeline? We went down to the spot to find out

German network ard chartered yacht and divers to see how sabotage occurred.

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It was an event that rocked Europe and shook world affairs. 

Early in the morning on Sept. 26, 2022, a series of powerful undersea explosions damaged pipelines under the Baltic Sea near Denmark that carried Russian natural gas to Germany. 

Fingers were immediately pointed at Ukraine, which had been at war with Russia since the latter invaded in February of that year. Ukraine denied involvement, and in the absence of reliable information, conspiracy theories proliferated about who attacked the Nord Stream pipeline.

Did a Russian submarine intentionally destroy it in order to cut off the gas supply to Germany, a country allied with Ukraine? Was it the CIA, as famed U.S. investigative journalist Seymour Hersh wrote? 

The German government has been tightlipped about the affair for two years, but this week, German media outlets ARD, Sueddeutsche Zeitung and Die Zeit jointly reported that federal prosecutors obtained an arrest warrant against a Ukrainian man. A Polish government spokesperson confirmed it.

The German reports identified the man as Volodymyr Z., a diving instructor who last resided in Poland. In a brief telephone conversation on Tuesday with reporters from ARD, Sueddeutsche Zeitung and Die Zeit, Volodymyr Z. expressed surprise at the accusations and denied involvement.

A report this week by the Wall Street Journal also pointed to Ukraine, suggesting the operation was carried out by Ukrainian soldiers and civilians with diving expertise and under the direction of Ukraine's then-commander-in-chief, Valerii Zaluzhnyi.

Journalists at ARD, Germany's public broadcaster, have been hot on the trail since the shocking explosions took place. I was one of the reporters who was part of the team that spent months piecing together what may have occurred. 

To understand what happened to the Nord Stream pipeline that day, ARD chartered the very yacht the perpetrators allegedly used and sent divers into the roiling waters of the Baltic Sea to see how the pipeline might have been attacked.

Group chartered sailing yacht

Several outlets have reported that in early September 2022, a sailing yacht called Andromeda set sail from the port of Hohe Düne in Rostock, Germany. According to the ARD investigation, the commando that was to destroy the pipelines was on board the Andromeda. The group is said to have consisted of six people — five men and one woman. Among them, it is suspected, was Volodymyr Z.

After stops in Rügen, Bornholm and Christiansø in Denmark, Sandhamn in Sweden and Kołobrzeg in Poland, the boat returned to Rostock. 

At some point during the trip, investigators believe the crew dove from the yacht down to the seabed and, in the darkness of the Baltic Sea, attached the explosive devices to the pipeline at a depth of around 80 metres. 

What happened later is well-known. At 2:03 a.m. local time on Sept. 26, 2022, the first explosion damaged Nord Stream 2. Approximately 16 hours later, three other explosions damaged Nord Stream 1. Investigators later found residue of the explosive HMX, also known as octogen, on board the Andromeda.

• Germany issued arrest warrant for Ukrainian diver in Nord Stream pipeline attack
• Denmark, like Sweden before them, ends probe into Nord Stream pipeline 'sabotage'

During our investigation, we wondered just how hard it would have been to carry out such a mission. 

The Andromeda is a charter yacht. Anyone can rent it — so we rented it, too, and took three divers with us.  

As with many charter yachts, the Andromeda was not in the best condition — our skipper called it "one of the worst boats I've ever sailed with." 

He said several electrical components were broken and that the yacht didn't move well in the waves. Then there was the swim platform, which the divers would need to get on and off the boat. If the swell is high, the platform moves up and down, punching into the sea. A diver trying to get back on the boat could be slammed on the head by the platform, causing serious injury. For us, this risk was too high. 

So we returned the Andromeda and chartered a professional diving vessel with a crew that usually recovers Second World War explosives from the bed of the Baltic Sea. 

We then drove to the exact spot where the first explosion happened — 120 kilometres off the German coast, with the Danish island Bornholm in sight.

Trained divers required

We arrived at 6 a.m. to witness a symbolic moment in the Baltic Sea. 

A Russian military ship appeared. Through our radio, we heard, "Russian warship delta echo, U.S. warship Yankee." The U.S. Navy was trying to make contact with the Russian Navy right before our eyes. How could a sabotage operation have gone on undetected in this environment?

The burst pipeline lay almost 80 metres beneath us, a depth not every diver could handle. 

You need to be trained as a tech diver. At that depth, you have to breathe a special mixture of oxygen, helium and nitrogen, and that means carrying about 220 pounds of equipment. 

It is also pitch black at the bottom of the sea. The multiple scuba tanks gave the divers about 40 minutes to find the pipeline, which means they needed to know precisely where to look. A sonar device was required to locate the pipeline beforehand. The Andromeda did not have this kind of device on board, but our new vessel did. 

Our tech divers found the burst pipeline on their second try and filmed it. 

The difficult part for the divers was returning to the surface. The pressure is so intense that if the ascent is not done correctly, divers could experience serious symptoms like paralysis or damage to their lungs. Doing proper decompression from such a depth — which requires divers to switch to a different gas mix — takes about two hours. 

Conducting a complex mission like that from the Andromeda would have been difficult and dangerous. According to the German investigation, it's plausible Volodymyr Z. was trained for dives like that.

Everyone who has examined the Andromeda agrees it's not the vessel anyone would choose to secure a mission. 

As our tech diver Derk Remmers put it: "I would use the Andromeda for a vacation, but not a sabotage mission."

Yet this could be precisely why the saboteurs used it. To stay undetected and unaccountable — which they managed to do until the charges were made public this week.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lea Struckmeier is an investigative journalist and presenter at ARD, Germany's public broadcaster. She is currently spending her Arthur F. Burns Fellowship with CBC.

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Video shows moments before superyacht went down in storm off Sicily

Newly released video captures a luxury superyacht being battered by a violent storm before it suddenly sank off Sicily with 22 people aboard Monday.

The grainy images obtained by NBC News and other outlets were recorded on closed-circuit television not far from where the Bayesian was anchored, about a half-mile from the port of Porticello, on Sicily’s northern coast .

The yacht's 250-foot mast, illuminated with lights and lashed by the storm, appears to bend to one side before it finally disappears and is replaced by darkness.

The speed with which a yacht built to handle the roughest seas capsized stunned maritime experts.  

“I can’t remember the last time I read about a vessel going down quickly like that, you know, completely capsizing and going down that quickly, a vessel of that nature, a yacht of that size,” said Stephen Richter of SAR Marine Consulting.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and five of the 22 other people who were aboard the 184-foot vessel remain unaccounted for and are believed to be trapped in the Bayesian’s hull, nearly 170 feet underwater.

Officials confirmed Monday that at least one person, the ship’s cook, had died.  

Superyachts like the Bayesian, which had been available for charters at a rate of $215,000 a week, are designed to stay afloat even as they are taking on water to give the people aboard a chance to escape, Richter said. 

“Boats of this size, they’re taking passengers on an excursion or a holiday,” Richter said. “They are not going to put them in situations where it may be dangerous or it may be uncomfortable, so this storm that popped up was obviously an anomaly. These vessels that carry passengers, they’re typically very well-maintained, very well-appointed.”

Built by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi in 2008, the U.K.-registered Bayesian could carry 12 guests and a crew of up to 10, according to online specialist yacht sites. Its nearly 250-foot mast is the tallest aluminum sailing mast in the world, according to CharterWorld Luxury Yacht Charters. 

On Tuesday, Italian rescue workers resumed the search for Lynch and the five other passengers still missing: Lynch’s 18-year-old daughter, Hannah; Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife.

“The fear is that the bodies got trapped inside the vessel,” Salvatore Cocina, the head of civil protection in Sicily, told Reuters .

The Bayesian is owned by a firm linked to Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, who was one of the 15 people rescued Monday after it capsized.

“It’s extremely rare for a boat of this size to sink,” Richter said.

What’s not rare is the kind of storm that sank it , said Simon Boxall, senior lecturer in oceanography at Britain’s University of Southampton.

“People assume the Mediterranean is this rather calm and passive place that never gets storms and always blue skies,” Boxall said. “In fact, you get some quite horrendous storms that are not uncommon at this time of year.”

The president of Italy’s meteorological society has said Monday’s violent storm may have involved a waterspout, essentially a tornado over water, or a downburst, which occurs more frequently but doesn’t involve the rotation of the air.

Luca Mercalli, president of the Italian Meteorology Society, also said recent temperatures may have been a factor. 

“The sea surface temperature around Sicily was around 30 degrees Celsius [86 Fahrenheit], which is almost 3 degrees more than normal,” Mercalli told Reuters. “This creates an enormous source of energy that contributes to these storms.”

The Mediterranean sailing vacation was designed to be a celebration for Lynch, who two months ago was acquitted by a San Francisco jury of fraud charges stemming from the 2011 sale of his software company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion.

Prosecutors alleged that Lynch, dubbed “Britain’s Bill Gates,” and Autonomy’s vice president for finance, Stephen Chamberlain, had padded the firm’s finances ahead of the sale. Lynch’s lawyers argued that HP was so eager to acquire Autonomy that it failed to adequately check the books .

Lynch had taken Morvill, who was one of his defense attorneys, on the luxury trip. 

Chamberlain was not on the Bayesian.

In what appears to be a tragic coincidence, a car struck and killed Chamberlain on Saturday as he was jogging in a village about 68 miles north of London, local police said.

“Steve fought successfully to clear his good name at trial earlier this year, and his good name now lives on through his wonderful family,” Chamberlain’s lawyer, Gary Lincenberg, said in a statement .

Henry Austin reported from London and Corky Siemaszko from New York City.

Henry Austin is a senior editor for NBC News Digital based in London.

Corky Siemaszko is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital.

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Everything We Know About the Final Moments of the Passengers Who Died in the Sicily Yacht Tragedy

Five of the seven victims had been "searching for air pockets" as the luxury yacht sank on Aug. 19, authorities said

PERINI NAVI PRESS OFFICE/HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

The luxury yacht Bayesian that sank off the coast of Sicily on Monday, Aug. 19, resulted in the deaths of six passengers and one crew member.

Less than a week later, on Saturday, Aug. 24, Ambrogio Cartosio, the Chief Prosecutor of Termini Imerese, announced that Italian authorities were launching a manslaughter investigation into the sinking , and he identified all of the victims.

The seven victims who died in the tragic sinking were yacht chef Recaldo Thomas; British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and his daughter, Hannah Lynch; Christopher Morvillo and his wife, Neda ; and Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, Judy .

As authorities attempt to answer questions about what exactly led to the sinking of the 183-foot British-flagged vessel — which went down during a "violent storm,” the Italian Coast Guard previously told PEOPLE in a statement — here is what we currently know about the victims’ final moments.

FAMILY HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

During the Aug. 24 press conference, Girolamo Bentivoglio Fiandra, head of the Palermo Fire Brigade, revealed that as the Bayesian began going down early Monday morning, “It was quite clear that people were trying to hide in the cabins.”

“In the left-hand side, we found the first 5 bodies in the left-hand side cabins, and the final body on the right-hand side,” Fiandra said. “We found them on the highest part of the ship, which was closer to the surface. The vessel had three cabins on each side.”

The five victims, who "took refuge” on the luxury yacht’s left side, had been "searching for air pockets" in a final attempt at survival," he added.

HANDOUT/Vigili del Fuoco/AFP via Getty

As for why the victims were in the cabins in the first place, Giovanni Costantino — who leads The Italian Sea Group, the company that now owns Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian back in 2008 — told CNN it was due to a “very long sum of errors."

"Everything that has been done reveals a very long sum of errors,” he said in his interview, translated from Italian. “The people should not have been in the cabins, the boat should not have been at anchor. And then why didn't the crew know about the incoming disturbance?”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Prior to the storm and subsequent sinking, some of the luxury yacht’s passengers were in celebration mode. They had been commemorating the recent acquittal of one of the victims, Lynch, 59, a source close to the survivors previously told PEOPLE.

Two months ago, Lynch was acquitted on all counts of a series of fraud and conspiracy charges he faced in the U.S. after a years-long legal battle dating back to 2018.

Patrick McMullan/Patrick McMullan via Getty 

He celebrated the acquittal on the Bayesian with his daughter and his wife, Angela Bacare, who was rescued along with 14 others on board.

Also celebrating were Morvillo, 59, who represented Lynch in the case, and Bloomer, 70, who was a close friend of the tech entrepreneur.

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Mike Lynch’s Body Is Found After Sicily Yacht Sinking, Official Says

The authorities have recovered the bodies of all but one of the six people missing after disaster struck a yacht carrying the British software tycoon.

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By Emma Bubola and Elisabetta Povoledo

Emma Bubola reported from Porticello, Italy, and Elisabetta Povoledo from Pallanza, Italy.

The body of the British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was among those recovered by Italian divers, an official in the Sicilian capital, Palermo, said on Thursday, confirming that he was killed when a violent storm struck his yacht this week.

Of the 22 people on board the yacht, which had anchored off the Sicilian coast early Monday, when it sank, nine crew members and six passengers survived.

As of Thursday afternoon, Italian recovery teams had retrieved the bodies of the one remaining crew member and five passengers who had been on the yacht, which now lies in 165 feet of water near the port of Porticello, and were searching for one more passenger.

The death of Mr. Lynch was confirmed by Massimo Mariani, the prefect of Palermo, who said that the remaining missing person was the technology entrepreneur’s daughter Hannah.

The others victims were Jonathan Bloomer, the chairman of Morgan Stanley International; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Christopher J. Morvillo, a lawyer at Clifford Chance; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

“This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder,” the Bloomer family said in a statement. “Our parents were incredible people.”

The Morvillo family said it was “completely devastated by the passing of Chris and Neda,” and added, “Their passing is a tremendous loss.”

The yacht was caught in a sudden downpour. Weather experts said that strong winds and lightning had hit the area and that the yacht had most likely been struck by air generated within a thunderstorm descending rapidly or by a waterspout , similar to a tornado over water.

12 guests occupied the yacht’s six cabins. There were also 10 crew members.

Open hatches, doors and cabin windows could have let in water during a storm, according to the manufacturer.

Open hatches, doors and

cabin windows could

have let in water

during a storm,

according to the

manufacturer.

Source: Superyacht Times, YachtCharterFleet, MarineTraffic

By Veronica Penney

Rescue teams involving deep sea divers with the Italian firefighters’ corps, coordinated by the coast guard, as well as helicopters and rescue ships, had worked to reach the hull of the ship, which had settled on its side on the sea floor.

Carlo Dall’Oppio, the national head of Italy’s firefighters, said on Thursday that the boat was tilted by 90 degrees on the sea bottom. He said the bodies had been found “in the cabins,” although it remained unclear if they were all found in the same one.

The rescue teams recovered four bodies on Wednesday and one on Thursday, bringing them ashore in body bags in front of a crowd of reporters and onlookers.

The priority remained “the recovery of the missing body,” said Mr. Mariani. Once that search is completed, the judicial authorities would decide the next steps, he said.

The bodies recovered so far were already at the disposal of prosecutors, he said, “and then there is the investigative phase,” which would include the recovery of the yacht.

The Italian prosecutors handling the case have attracted strong criticism from the local press association because of their reluctance to share any information with reporters.

As of Thursday, they had not held a news conference or released a statement on the investigation, generating what the Sicilian press association called “a black market of news” that made it hard to verify information.

Finally, on Thursday afternoon, Ambrogio Cartosio, the prosecutor handling the case, said that a news conference would be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday in the town of Termini Imerese, the location of his office.

Mr. Mariani said the operations to recover the bodies had gone quickly, taking into account that the divers had a limited amount of time — about 12 minutes — to operate before coming up.

“It was complicated and also potentially dangerous for the divers,” he said, because of the size of the yacht. “There are objective difficulties; thankfully, they are well trained and know what they are doing.”

Michael J. de la Merced contributed reporting from London.

Emma Bubola is a Times reporter based in Rome. More about Emma Bubola

Elisabetta Povoledo is a reporter based in Rome, covering Italy, the Vatican and the culture of the region. She has been a journalist for 35 years. More about Elisabetta Povoledo