Boat owner convicted over Amateur Radio Rockall DXpedition

At a hearing yesterday in Kirkwall, the owner skipper of a vessel was fined £5,000 for a breach of safety legislation.

On 14th June 2005, Ian Trumpess the owner skipper of the MV Invincible took a party of amateur radio enthusiasts from Stromness to Rockall, a distance of more than 200 miles out into the North Atlantic Ocean, despite having been told by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) that his boat was not suitable for the voyage.

The group booked the Invincible after finding a web site which advertised that Mr. Trumpess had undertaken a similar voyage in the past. They first met with Mr. Trumpess when they arrived in Stromness on the 11th June.

The group arrived at Rockall on the 16th where the amateur radio enthusiasts made a series of radio transmissions before returning to Stromness.

In Kirkwall Sheriff Court yesterday Mr Trumpess pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to operate the ship in a safe manner, under the Merchant Shipping Act 1995.

He accepted that he had failed to take all reasonable steps to secure the safe operation of the vessel in that it sailed beyond the distance that it, the skipper, or the crew were qualified to go and without adequate means of communication.

In summing up Sheriff G Napier said:
"This was a reckless and foolhardy escapade, especially since you knew that you had been told not to proceed by the MCA. You took people to where there was a real danger and considerable doubt as to your ability to cope in an emergency."

After discount for an early plea the Sheriff fined
Mr. Trumpess £5,000.

Tom Borland MCA Operations Manager for Scotland and Northern Ireland said:
"The vessel, its equipment and crew were not suitable to undertake this voyage. The punishment imposed by the court should send a strong message to the operators of this type of craft that such irresponsible behaviour will not be ignored by the MCA "

Source: Maritime and Coastguard Agency

Latest news stories..

• Get our news headlines for your website • Submit your news story