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Aerial Hunt for Drifting Trawler Itoitz Set for Saturday After AIS Goes Dark

An aerial reconnaissance is planned for Saturday to confirm whether the unmanned vessel has sunk.

Overview

  • Salvamento Marítimo plans to deploy an aircraft on Saturday to check the Itoitz’s status once conditions allow.
  • The vessel’s AIS signal was lost and its emergency beacon activated overnight, and authorities aim to verify a possible sinking about 65 nautical miles northwest of Cabo Peñas.
  • Severe weather with an orange sea alert and waves up to nine meters has prevented ships from operating in the area.
  • An earlier tow secured by the Salvamar María Pita on Wednesday failed when the line parted, and the Alonso de Chaves later returned to its Gijón base due to the storm.
  • All seven crew were rescued on Monday by the fishing vessel Abra de Muxía and evacuated by the Helimer 402 helicopter to A Coruña.