Mike Lynch's yacht doomed by extreme wind, interim report finds

15/5/2025 15:56

The superyacht that sank off Sicily last year, killing British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and six others, was probably knocked over by winds of more than 117 kilometres an hour, an interim UK report said on Thursday.



The 56-metre-long (184-foot) Bayesian was moored off the small port of Porticello, near Palermo, in August last year when it was likely hit by a very strong downward wind, killing Lynch, his daughter Hannah and five others, Britain's Marine Accident Investigations Branch said.



The investigation established that, when the yacht's retractable keel was in the raised position, wind speeds in excess of 117km per hour on the beam were sufficient to knock Bayesian over. It said it was possible the yacht was similarly vulnerable to winds of lower speed.



These vulnerabilities were not identified in the stability information book carried on board and were consequently unknown to either the owner or the crew of Bayesian.



"The findings indicate that the extreme wind experienced by Bayesian was sufficient to knock the yacht over," said Andrew Moll, Chief Inspector of Marine Accidents.



"Further, once the yacht had heeled beyond an angle of 70 degrees the situation was irrecoverable."



The report said a sudden increase in the wind speed caused the yacht to keel over to 90 degrees in less than 15 seconds.