Well, it's a sad diversion I suppose. However, I've done a bit of sailing myself, and what I do know is that this very large yacht should not have capsized and sunk like it did. The NZ captain of the vessel will be questioned about all this. For the vessel to capsize and sink in just two minutes suggests some fundamental flaw in its design.

1. was there any prior warning of possible storms? - though perhaps not quite so dramatic as actually happened - the captain who survived will need to explain all this, as likely hatches and porthole were open in the heat of Sicily. Sicily is now in the process of being desertified of course.

https://www.euronews.com/2024/07/19/droughts-desertification-heatwaves-the-climate-crisis-hits-sicily-hard.

2. The fact that the vessel was at anchor, although usually a safe thing, might have been a factor in swinging the vessel so violently that it "tripped up"

3 The incredibly long mast, was the longest in the world, now second, was almost certainly a serious design fault. Basically, for bragging rights, the designer put the boat at risk, the leverage of the mast and rigging in high winds would be significant, and its moment of intertia huge if swinging from side to side in heavy seas or winds, and it's very doubtful the vessel would sail any faster. For a cruising vessel there's absolutely no need for a mast that tall, and for seaworthiness a two masted vessel, eg ketch or schooner is much preferable. Modern technology is great, but there's something to be said for tradition and knowledge gained over centuries of sailing history.

The yacht has another NZ association as the designer was Ron Holland,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Holland

Here's the blurb on the yacht, its design and its fate

https://rutherfordreader.com/bayesian-yacht/

4. Apparently the vessel had a swing keel, and if retracted, which it would have been at anchor, this would have reduced the vessel's stability yet further.

5. The squall or water spout was certainly violent, but such a large well built vessel should have coped with it.

It's all very tragic. So the publicity is understandable, people will be noting that wealth doesn't always protect you from danger or harm - it was similar with the Atlantis sub, wasn't it.

Finally, when the Bayesian was built, the mast at 237 ft high was the highest aluminium mast in the world, well, in the long pole stakes, if you can't boast a long penis or a long car bonnet, then a mast will substitute, so Bezos's new super yacht has an even longer mast, now the world's longest, at 278 feet. Hmm, thinks Bezos?. However, Bezos's boat is much much bigger, and is a three masted schooner, so perhaps he'll get away with it.

Just compare the height of the mast, to the length and width of the boat, the mast is out of proportion. Look too at the rigging. Six spreaders on the mast. And this is a "cruising" yacht?





and Bezos's contribution to a new egalitarian world