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Crew of five rescued from grounded yacht.

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Christchurch

The Coastguard responded to the incident near Pāua-o-Hinekotau Head and all five crew members were safely dropped off at Lyttelton on Wednesday night.

The 12m racing yacht remains at the base of a cliff, with 15 litres of diesel on board in sealed tanks.

The regional council said the diesel onboard was in sealed tanks, and the risk of any environment impact was low.

"The yacht has remained in the same position but is significantly damaged. It is now secure via ropes to the shore," Parr told Chris Lynch Media .

"We are currently monitoring the situation closely and working with the owner, insurers and salvors to collect debris as required.

"There may be loose debris under the surface of the water. We are asking the public to stay well clear of this operational area."

The grounding is not expected to impact the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix on Saturday and Sunday at Lyttelton Harbour.

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Five rescued after yacht runs aground on banks peninsula.

An Environment Canterbury photo of a yacht that ran aground at the bottom of a cliff on Banks Peninsula.

Five crew were rescued from the marooned yacht on Wednesday evening. Photo: Environment Canterbury

A yacht carrying 15 litres of diesel has run aground at the bottom of a cliff on Canterbury's Banks Peninsula.

The regional council said the Harbourmaster's office was notified on Wednesday evening, and all five crew were rescued and returned safety to Lyttelton.

It said the 12-metre racing yacht remained aground near Pāua-o-Hinekotau Head, west of Diamond Harbour, in an area difficult to access by foot.

Regional on-scene commander Emma Parr said the Port was closed overnight as a precaution due to the boat not being secured and the potential for floating debris.

"The yacht has remained in the same position but is significantly damaged. It is now secure via ropes to the shore," she said.

"We are currently monitoring the situation closely and working with the owner, insurers and salvors to collect debris as required.

"There may be loose debris under the surface of the water. We are asking the public to stay well clear of this operational area."

The regional council said the diesel onboard was in sealed tanks, and the risk of any environment impacts was low.

Parr said unfavourable weather conditions meant a safe recovery attempt might not be possible prior to the SailGP event this weekend.

The regional council said SailGP would still go ahead as planned.

In September, thousands of litres of diesel leaked from the Austro Carina fishing boat after it ran aground at Red Bluff on Banks Peninsula .

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission is still looking into the circumstances of the grounding .

emergency services
environment

Oil spill reported off coast of Banks Peninsula

Aa fishing vessel that ran aground on the south coast of Banks Peninsula has about 10,000 litres of diesel and 400 litres of hydraulic oil on board.

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For sale: Five superyacht projects in need of rescue

As a publication that celebrates vessels old and new, there are few sorrier sights than a forgotten hull languishing ashore. But with some love and attention – and a healthy stay in a refit yard – there is still hope for these once glorious vessels. We handpick five options for an ambitious owner in search of their next restoration project...

Builder: Feadship Length: 26.4m Year: 1964

Rebuilding a Feadship has become a badge of honour for owners brave enough to take on such a task. Launched in 1964 as Exact , this classic canoe stern has had as many lives as a cat, with nine names in total. She was built for the former commodore of the New York Yacht Club, J Burr Bartram, for observing the 1964 America’s Cup trials and offered great views of the racing for NYYC selection committee members from anywhere on the main deck. Bartram skippered her himself. "I really enjoy handling her," he told Yachting Magazine in 1965. "She steers and manoeuvres so well that it is a positive pleasure, and it adds a great deal to the fun of a day at sea for me."

Brokerage firm Denison Yachting is upfront about the commitment needed, estimating it will take six to eight months or 7,500 man-hours to rebuild her pitted steel hull alone at a cost of €500,000, while the price of a total refit is put at least €8 million, with €120,000 needed to transport her to the Netherlands. But the end result could be worth it: ownership of a timeless Feadship Heritage Fleet classic with a storied history.

Lying in Freeport, City is for sale with Denison Yachting asking $200,000.

Ambriabella

Builder: Felszegi Length: 52m Year: 1962

Like Cinderella, Ambriabella has been waiting for some time for her prince to come. A former passenger ship, she was launched by Felszegi Shipyards near Trieste, Italy, in 1962 and operated as a Vaporetti water bus connecting Trieste, Grado, and Venice. Later in life, she transported passengers to Croatia and around the Greek islands.

After years of servitude, she washed up in Piraeus, near Athens, where she was tracked down after a nine-year search by a group of entrepreneurs using satellite imagery and saved in the nick of time from the wrecking ball by being bought from her then-owner, a professional magician. She is for sale with plans for converting her, like her sistership Dionea , who was restored and is now chartered successfully in the Western Med. The conversion plans, drawn up by maritime consultancy firm Wissman and Associates, would see Ambriabella , after rebuild and refit at Quaiat Yard in Trieste, where she is now lying, accommodate 12 guests with a full-beam owner’s suite, a full-beam VIP and four other cabins, two lounges and formal dining. Costs have not been disclosed, but she could become a real beauty for the right owner.

Ambriabella is for sale with Quaiat with full pricing available upon request.

Builder: Feadship Length: 44.2m Year: 1975

This is an easier task: the 1975-built Feadship Valeria has already been restored to as-new condition and completely redesigned and refitted to suit modern tastes. When built, Valeria , then Lac II , offered many firsts – she was the first Feadship with an interior designed by Cannes-based architect Pierre Tanter, marking the start of a long relationship between the yard and the designer. And she had a roll-out helicopter deck. She first went on sale in 1978 and was bought by the Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, who ran her as his presidential yacht for 25 years as Al-Farah . Following another sale and a complete strip-back at Ocean Quay in Southampton, UK, which included an extension to her hull to provide a swim platform, a new upper deck and mast design, and the addition of a spa pool, these days she sleeps 12 guests served by a crew of nine in an interior by Design Unlimited – although unfortunately, that retractable helideck is no more.

Lying in the Netherlands, Valeria is for sale with TWW Yachts asking €15,000,000.

Builder: J.A. Silver Ltd. Length: 24.5m Year: 1939

As an esteemed piece of war memorabilia, this wooden motor yacht makes for a worthy restoration project. Launched in 1939 at the Clydeside yard at Rosneath, Conidaw was requisitioned later that year by the Royal Navy as a "Depth sounding patrol boat". It was in the May of the following year that she would play an integral role in two of World War II's most famed campaigns: the Siege of Calais and the Dunkirk Evacuation, saving over 900 soldiers in the process. It was the Conidaw , in fact, that delivered Churchill's iconic message to Brigadier Nicholson: "Calais must be held at all costs".

Her time under siege has left her with some scarring – Conidaw's port engine still has a cracked sump from the bombardment, crudely repaired to war economy standard. Now, she sits in the French port of La Ciotat, a decade of neglect reducing her to fading paintwork and peeling varnish. With a stabiliser fitted circa-1965 (one of the first to be fitted to a yacht of her size!), an anchor windlass made by Thomas Reid, and two Gardner engines, this hardy vessel is ready to give another 75 years of service after a thorough overhaul. Conidaw contains four guest cabins and separate crew accommodation, with repairs estimated at €3 million.

Conidaw is listed for sale with Sandeman with pricing available upon request.

Builder: Falcon Maritime Length: 25.3m Year: 1996

Priceless (ex. Falcon 1 ) was originally built as a proof of concept platform, showcasing a corrugated aluminium manufacturing process with a special adhesive that allowed the bulkheads to “float” on the hull’s skin, dampening vibration and noise. Falcon Marine built the hull and superstructure in the 1980s, but it was not finished until 1996 with a final build cost of $6,000,000. She is a project for the diehard DIY-er, in need of a complete interior refit and some exterior cosmetic updating. Once restored, however, she can accommodate four guests plus two crew members in more high-octane ocean adventures. Lying in Dania Beach, Florida, she was once capable of 40 knots thanks to two converted 16V92s and a pair of Rossi surface drives.

Priceless is listed for sale with HMY Yacht Sales asking $469,000.

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Jurien Bay sea rescue saves five people as man and daughter swim 9km after yacht sinks

Glenn Anderson with a large gash to his forhead.

A man who was plucked from the ocean at Jurien Bay in Western Australia with his 11-year-old daughter has told how he was determined the pair would make it to safety.

Key points:

The yacht ran into trouble in "treacherous" conditions on Sunday
A man swam towards shore with his daughter after they drifted away from three others in the group
They were flown to hospital and the others suffered shock and hypothermia

Three other adults were also rescued after the yacht they were all on struck a reef and disintegrated more than 200 kilometres north of Perth about 11.30am on Sunday.

Those three adults were rescued about two-and-a-half hours after an EPIRB strapped to the body of one of the women was activated, when their vessel struck trouble.

It took a further two hours to find Glenn Anderson and his 11-year-old daughter Ruby, who had drifted away from the group.

Speaking at Perth Children's Hospital Mr Anderson recounted the ordeal.

He said the breaking wave that tipped his vessel came seemingly out of nowhere.

"Myself and my daughter Ruby were up in the cockpit and we got knocked out of the boat into the water," he said.

"I hit my head on something on the way down and she broke her leg.

"We came up and I grabbed a hold of her."

Glenn Anderson and his daughter Ruby on Mr Anderson's yacht.

Mr Anderson said his own injuries were his last concern.

"When she came up, Ruby said 'Dad, your head!' and I said 'Don't worry about that we'll think about that later', and not long after that she said her leg was really sore," he said.

"I was just trying to make sure that I was keeping her head above water to start with, and she wasn't going to die, and I wasn't going to lose her."

"She is a good swimmer but, in the circumstances, I wasn't taking any chances."

The father said he was determined to swim to shore.

"In the back of the mind we were going to get picked up or we were going to make it to the beach," he said.

"One way or the other we were getting out of that water, there was never any thought that I wasn't going to make it, I was just going to keep swimming until I got there.

"I had my child in my arms and just needed to get her to shore and safety.

"There was no way I could give up, stopping was not an option.

"I just kept saying to her, 'We are going to make it'.

"I just kept trying to make sure that she wasn't going to go to sleep … and I could tell she was going hypothermic and was dehydrated.

"Probably in the last half-an-hour to an hour is when she really started going down-hill.

"She seemed a bit delirious … but she was so brave. I'm really proud of her."

Much more than a yacht lost

Mr Anderson said the way the vessel sunk in a matter minutes looked "like something out of a movie".

And he said he lost far more than just the yacht.

"Our nine-month-old puppy, a kelpie named Banjo, unfortunately he was down in one of the cabins when it all happened," he said.

"I also live aboard the boat, so that was also my home and all my possessions going down."

Pair 'not in very good condition'

Jurien Bay Marine Rescue deputy commander Wayne Harston spoke earlier on Monday.

He said Mr Anderson and his daughter had swum about five nautical miles (9.2 kilometres) towards the shore.

A large bright yellow RAC rescue chopper sits on the ground, people wearing high vis stand nearby.

"A father and daughter had drifted from the other three and we actually found them [after] someone on the beach actually saw them about 300 metres off Jurien Bay," he said.

"The little girl and the father weren't in a very good condition, they've been taken to hospital in the RAC helicopter."

The three others who had been in the water for a shorter period — a 32-year-old man and two women aged 35 and 32 — were treated for shock and hypothermia.

The distress beacon was detected by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), who sent a Challenger jet to the scene, along with a Department of Fire and Emergency Services helicopter, a private helicopter and marine vessels.

Yacht 'smashed up'

Mr Harston described the conditions as "treacherous", with a strong wind warning at 30-35 knots and a 4- to 5-metre swell.

A head and shoulders shot of a man standing in front of a rescue boat.

"The yacht must have hit the reef outside of Jurien here and the boat sank," he said.

"It was smashed up, there was lots of debris in the water so the boat actually disintegrated."

Police said it was believed a wave knocked the man and his daughter into the water before a second wave caused it to be swamped, resulting in the three remaining crew members jumping into the ocean.

All five on board the yacht were wearing life jackets.

It is understood the vessel took five minutes to sink from when it was hit by the wave.

Mr Hartson said the weather was so bad, they had been forced to turn back to shore in the marine rescue vessel and board a larger Department of Fisheries boat to continue the search.

He praised all involved in the search, including AMSA and the RAC rescue helicopter.

"We're very lucky we've got a great community here, we had two charter boats out there with us, two cray boats, plus the Fisheries boat," he said.

The yacht was en route from Rottnest Island to Exmouth when it ran into trouble.

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Two Saved From Sinking Yacht in Dramatic Rescue During Deadly Christmas Storms

Two people were rescued from a sinking yacht in waters off Queensland’s Gold Coast amid deadly Christmas Day storms .

Queensland Police said officers were conducting welfare check patrols near Crab Island and South Stradbroke Island on Christmas night, December 25, when they were alerted to the partially capsized vessel.

Bodycam footage shows officers rescuing the pair as lightning bolts lit up the night sky and wild storms lashed south-east Queensland.

Police said in a statement that officers were dealing with a large number of calls for help following the storms, with fallen trees, downed power lines, and other safety hazards. Credit: Queensland Police via Storyful

Video Transcript

[ENGINE IDLING]

- [INAUDIBLE]

- I think they're trapped inside.

[AUDIO OUT]

It's too shallow. Hang on a second. [INAUDIBLE].

All right, can you make your way to the front hatch and get out that way? All right, the front hatch, because basically, we're just going to get you off the boat, that's all we're doing.

That's fine. I'm here I'll help her out.

Just go up [INAUDIBLE] sitting on the [INAUDIBLE] there. Yep. You got it?

The main thing is you're safe. All right?

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The Time Surfer Duke Kahanamoku Rescued People From A Sinking Ship

Legendary surfer Duke Kahanamoku basically lived in and on the water. Surfer Today remembered the Hawaiian native as "the father of modern surfing." While surfing had been suppressed by foreign missionaries almost to the point of extinction by the end of the 19th century, Kahanamoku was part of a small group of local wave riders who kept the sport alive. In addition to popularizing surfing across the globe, he was also a world-class swimmer. He would go on to be the first person to be honored as a Hall of Famer in both surfing and swimming. He traveled to Australia, New Zealand, California, and elsewhere performing in surfing exhibitions on a wooden surf board he made himself.

According to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum , he developed the flutter kick, a new style of swimming that replaced the scissors kick as the predominant swimming technique the world over. Nicknamed "The Duke" and "The Big Kahuna," Kahanamoku broke the 100-yard freestyle world record in his very first competition, and he went on to win three Olympic gold medals. After becoming a world champion, he moved to Hollywood for a time and worked as an actor. It was during his time in California — June 1925 — that his skills would end up serving a purpose more vital than sport when he saved the lives of eight people who were caught on a sinking ship.

Duke Kahanamoku's lazy weekend turned into life-or-death situation

On June 14, 1925, Kahanamoku crawled out of the tent he'd pitched on Newport Beach to enjoy what was meant to be "a lazy weekend," according to The Olympians . But instead of an invigorating morning swim, The Duke would find an emergency situation brewing on the waves. A yacht named Thema , whose captain had missed the checkered warning flag, was having trouble in the tempestuous waters of the Pacific. A sudden squall kicked the waves up to 20 feet high, and the boat was listing dangerously at a 45-degree angle atop the swells. Kahanamoku saw the glass of the windows breaking and men and rigging flying overboard. He knew he had to act. So he grabbed his longboard and hit the waves.

Kahanamoku paddled out to the floundering craft and pulled three struggling fisherman onto his board. His actions had inspired his surfing buddies to join in on the rescue, and his friends Jerry Vultee and Owen Hale met him out in the water to ferry the men back to shore. Kahanamoku turned back toward the sinking ship . He snagged two more and returned them to safety, then headed out for a third trip. Bystanders on shore helped out, resuscitating the unconscious fishermen. By the end of the ordeal, the surfers saved 12 of the 17 fishermen aboard the Thelma. Kahanamoku rescued eight of them himself.

Duke Kahanamoku describes the rescue to the press

According to the L.A. Times , scuttled seafaring vessels were a not uncommon occurrence in that part of California at the time. Five fishermen had drowned a year earlier when their 30-foot boat capsized in a storm off the Corona del Mar beach. Just three weeks before The Duke's heroic actions, a teenager drowned after a rowboat he was in with two friends overturned in turbulent waters. When Kahanamoku saw the Thelma struggling, he knew he had to take action.

"Only a porpoise or a sea lion had the right to be out there," he told reporters after the rescue. "From the shore we saw the Thelma wallowing in the water just seaward of where the breakers were falling. You could see her rails crowded with fishermen. She appeared to be trying to fight her way toward safe water ... but it obviously was a losing battle." The scene he described sounded truly harrowing, and the men aboard the Thelma were lucky such a world-class swimmer/surfer was around to help them out.

But Kahanamoku, of course, didn't have his reputation in mind as he paddled out to save the men. "Neither I or my pals were thinking heroics," he told a newspaper in Honolulu later. "We were simply running ... me with my board and the others to get their boards ... and hoping to save lives."

Man rescued from sinking yacht in Oregon allegedly left dead fish at 'Goonies' house days earlier

Police in Astoria, Oregon, said the yacht had been stolen.

A man saved from a sinking yacht was later identified as a wanted suspect who allegedly left a fish on the porch of the house from “The Goonies” in Oregon, police said.

The yacht had been stolen and the man, identified as Jericho Labonte, 35, was arrested after the rescue, police in Astoria, Oregon, said.

The U.S. Coast Guard’s Pacific Northwest district on Friday released a video of a yacht in danger in high waves at the mouth of the Colombia River.

“The surf made rescue by boat dangerous, so the aircrew decided to lower the rescue swimmer and have the owner enter the water for rescue,” the Coast Guard said. “As he entered the water the vessel capsized but the rescue swimmer was able to safely recover the individual.”

PHOTO: In this photo provided by the U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Northwest, a Coast Guard ship, left, attempts to a rescue a distressed yacht at the mouth of the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington state on Feb. 3, 2023.

After the Coast Guard posted the video, police in Astoria, Oregon, said they began receiving calls about both the rescued man and the vessel.

“On February 3, 2023, we received a call from Port Security Chief Matt Hansen informing us that the vessel involved in the Coast Guard rescue earlier in the day was stolen from the Port of Astoria,” the department said in a news release . “He recognized the vessel on the video, contacted the owner, and confirmed that it had been stolen.”

PHOTO: In this photo provided by the U.S Coast Guard Pacific Northwest, Coast Guard personnel help carry a swimmer from a rescue helicopter after he was rescued from the mouth of the Columbia River on Feb. 3, 2023, at Coast Guard Base Astoria, Oregon.

Calls also began coming in about the man who had been rescued, with locals identifying him as Labonte, police said. Police in Victoria, British Columbia, had been searching for Labonte since at least Jan. 19, when they issued a province-wide arrest warrant for him for five unendorsed warrants for charges of criminal harassment, mischief and three counts of failure to comply.

Police in Oregon said Labonte was released from the hospital on Friday before they realized who he was.

“He had been transported to Columbia Memorial Hospital after the rescue as a precaution and was discharged before being identified as the suspect,” Astoria police officials said.

PHOTO: In this photo provided by the U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Northwest, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer reaches a boat right before a giant wave rolled the craft at the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023.

Astoria Police said they had added their own charges against Labonte, saying in press release that he was wanted on charges including theft, endangering another person, unauthorized use of a vehicle and criminal mischief.

They said they had received a call on Feb. 1 saying that Labonte “had posted a video of himself on Facebook placing a dead fish on the front porch of the Goonies’ house.”

Labonte was arrested on Friday evening at the Seaside Warming Center, a shelter in Astoria, police said.

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Greek authorities seize 3.75 million capsules of contraband nerve pain drug pregabalin

ATHENS, Greece — Greek authorities said Saturday they seized more than three tons of the prescription nerve pain drug pregabalin and impounded a yacht registered in the United Kingdom.

The operation took place Thursday night at the port of Lavrio, 70 kilometers (43 miles) southeast of Athens, the coast guard said.

On the yacht, the coast guard found 3.75 million capsules of Nervigesic, a brand name used by Indian pharmaceuticals firm HAB Pharma for pregabalin. The capsules were packaged in 500 cardboard boxes weighing nearly 3.15 tons, the statement said.

Pregabalin is used to treat nerve pain caused by a variety of conditions, such as diabetes and shingles, and also to treat a type of seizure called partial seizure because it has its origin at a single location in the brain.

The raid was ordered based on information from Greece’s “National Intelligence Agency about the activity of networks of Egyptian nationals in Greek territory,” the statement said.

The yacht and its contents remain at the Lavrio port while local authorities conduct an investigation, the coast guard said.

Yachting World

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Superyacht saves 16 in harrowing Caribbean migrant rescue

Helen Fretter
April 3, 2023

The captain and crew of a 121ft superyacht rescued 16 suspected migrants from the hull of an upturned fishing boat off St Kitts in the Caribbean

The captain and crew of a 121ft/37m sailing superyacht were central to a search and rescue last week which saw 16 people safely recovered from the hull of an upturned fishing boat, on the night of Tuesday 28 March.

The stricken fishing vessel is believed to have been carrying migrants from the island of Antigua to St Thomas, in the US Virgin Islands. Tragically a further 16 people are thought to have died in the incident.

Thomas Auckland, captain of SY Genevieve , shared the following detailed account of the search and rescue incident, and the procedures he and his crew used, with Yachting World .

SY Genevieve is a 121ft Ed Dubois-designed sloop launched in 1996.

Superyacht rescue

“At 23.30 on 27th March 2023, while motor-sailing from Antigua to Saint Maarten, approximately 16nm NE of Conaree, St Kitts, the lookout heard a faint noise that sounded like a woman’s scream. We immediately throttled back, and then both heard a clear audible scream.

“[The lookout] at once mustered the crew, who donned lifejackets with PLBs and radios, as I furled the headsail, activated a DSC and called a Mayday. (In retrospect, this should have been a Mayday Relay).

“We then positioned four crew around the vessel with torches or searchlights to try to locate the woman or women. The First Mate was in charge of all radio comms and alarms from this muster until we found the capsized vessel.

“Six minutes later we spotted some retro-reflective tape and discovered a man clinging on to part of a damaged life jacket. We used a small circular fender, attaching an additional buoyancy aid to aid grip, fastened to a rescue line to throw downwind at mid-ships.

“We were able to pull him to the stern, where two crew members hauled him onboard from the folding swim platform. He was retrieved at 23:39.

“While we had not compromised our safety, we had taken a considerable amount of water into the lazarette, and it was clear that this was not an ideal way to retrieve someone from the water in this sea state (roughly 2 metres & 20kts). By the time he reached the cockpit he was unconscious.

“We continued our search, knowing there was at least one more person, a woman, still in the water, but unable to ascertain if there were further persons at risk.

“At 23:57 we spotted a woman clinging to a white plastic barrel, approximately 400m downwind of the first casualty. She was recovered in the same fashion, although it was much harder to get her out of the water: it took three of us to haul her onboard, and had she slipped under the swim platform I have no doubt she would have been knocked unconscious.

“Once in the cockpit she informed us that she had been travelling on a small boat which had left Antigua, bound for St Thomas (USVI), with approximately 32 people onboard. The vessel had broken down, taken on water and capsized.

“I discharged two red parachute flares at this point.

“With no knowledge of whether or not the vessel was still afloat, we decided to continue slowly downwind towards the brightest looms of St Kitts which would be visible from the water, assuming that if afloat it would have more windage than the casualties in the water.

“At around 00:28, the crew started spotting plastic drums floating in the water, and shortly afterwards they noticed a light coming in and out of sight, which later proved to be the light of a mobile phone being waved around.”

Survivors found on capsized boat

“On approach we discovered the upturned fishing skiff, La Belle Michelle with 15 persons straddled on the hull, approximately 1.1nm from the first casualty.

“All the crew assembled on the aft deck, and together we quickly constructed a plan of how best to remove the individuals from the capsized vessel. This was a solid-hulled boat with two upturned outboards, so bringing it alongside in the given prevailing sea state was never a viable option.

“We therefore used the floating line and fender attached to a long Dyneema tail, which was floated downwind to them; then the line was tied around the leg of one of the outboards by one of the casualties, under instruction from our crew. We brought this to our starboard stern and on to a primary winch for control. This line was at once under several tonnes of load, so once it was affixed, we were very reluctant to move it.

“We then used a rescue sling with a thick Dyneema tail for grip and additional safety line attached. This rescue sling proved invaluable.

“Our plan was for the casualties to run themselves along the rope one by one, and once they reached the starboard quarter of the vessel, to transfer to the rescue sling, with which we would pull them to the midships and haul them clear of the water (we have a midships freeboard of just over 2 metres and discussed using a halyard at this stage, but we were rolling too violently for this to be safe or effective).

SY Genevieve, pictured sailing on another occasion, was part of a major search and rescue operation off St Kitts in March 2023. Photos Alexis Andrews

“At this point all the crew were assigned new roles:

Captain: throwing the rescue sling, communicating with casualties, removal from water at midships.
Engineer: hauling casualties up side deck, communicating with casualties, removal from water at midships.
First Mate: ensuring rescue line and safety were free to run, resetting the sling, removal from water at midships.
Chef: ensuring rescue lines and safety were free to run, removing casualties from the water, then clearing the side deck.
Stewardess: triage, assessing injuries, getting casualties into the cockpit, water, bedding etc.
Deck/Stewardess: illumination, using the large spotlight to light the vessel and then the casualties as they came across.

“The casualties were at first clearly reluctant to entrust themselves to the rope. Only two of the persons were wearing life jackets (who turned out to be the drivers) and most of them were unable to swim.

“We later discovered that they were wearing all the clothes they owned, often three pairs of jeans, and over six upper layers each, which obviously made swimming very challenging. (Even though this made the casualties very heavy, this actually ended up proving helpful, as it gave us something to hold onto as we pulled them onboard).

“After three or four persons had been successfully retrieved, they needed much less encouragement to come across, and the process worked very well providing they left the vessel one at a time, as holding the “tow line” as it was under load was clearly very challenging. The teamwork displayed by the crew here was astounding, without them creating such an effective process of recovery, there is no way we would have got those 14 people off that hull.

“It became apparent that towards the end the casualties were becoming less and less physically able, and unfortunately the last casualty fell from the hull and was unable to make it along the line. We remained attached to the hull searching for the last individual until 01:57.”

Tragically the final casualty could not be found. Auckland confirmed that the 16 survivors that the Genevieve crew recovered were later transferred ashore with only minor injuries.

Sixteen people were rescued by the SY Genevieve, here recovering in the cockpit (identities protected). Photo: Thomas Auckland

Aboard SY Genevieve

Auckland continues: “Thereafter, I decided that marking the upturned hull with lights strapped to a lifejacket and cutting it loose was the best option, as I felt the situation was becoming hazardous. In hindsight, this was perhaps my biggest regret, as we had spare PLBs on board and should have affixed one, as this would have served as a helpful search marker for MV Britannia , who had just taken up the role of on-scene MRCC.

“Events now entered a new phase. I was clearly aware that we had 16 migrants on board, 13 of whom were male, of which we knew nothing other than the fact that they were willing to risk their lives being smuggled across to St Thomas.

“So we locked down the exterior of the boat and placed the female members of crew up forward, with everyone in direct radio contact. All casualties had been given water, sugary drinks, food and blankets, and were grouped together in the cockpit.

“The male crew members remained at the helm station, while I ran back and forth on the VOIP line with MRCC Fort du France, who requested that we remain at the scene until air support arrived. As there was evidently a security risk on board, at 03:42 we were given permission to depart the scene and headed directly to Basseterre in St Kitts, which was approximately 34nm away.”

It’s believed that the casualties included migrants from Cameroon. Following the introduction of charter flights between Nigeria and Antigua in November 2022, around 600 passengers from troubled West African countries are believed to have remained on the island of Antigua.

Auckland continues: “Once the day dawned and we were under Coastguard escort, it became quite clear that these terrified Cameroonian nationals were extremely grateful to us and posed no risk to us at all. The female crew came and administered basic first aid; fed, watered and tried to dry out as much of their clothing as possible, before we arrived in Basseterre.

“On arrival they were transferred via Coastguard boat, where I went ashore and made statements to the various authorities.”

Thomas Auckland, Captain of SY Genevieve. Photo: T Auckland

Captain’s reflections on the rescue

“I think what I take away most from this is just how well the crew performed under immense pressure: they were all making very sensible and rational decisions in a situation in which they have had very little training. We of course were incredibly lucky to hear a scream in the dark over the wind, and also unbelievably lucky that we were able to save so many people.

“We have sat together with an industry professional and dissected the night’s events in great detail, and we are also discussing it very openly among ourselves. All of the crew, myself included, are still in a stage of processing all that occurred. It is affecting everybody in a slightly different way, but knowing that there were 32 people on board, and only 16 survived is perhaps the hardest part for us all to comprehend.

“I sincerely hope that none of you ever have to encounter such an event during your time at sea, but if you do I hope this account may be of some use. In conclusion, never underestimate the importance of good watch-keeping – and rest assured that the teamwork and professionalism exhibited by your crew will leave you feeling very, very proud.”

Auckland also expressed his thanks to MRCC Fort du France, MV Britannia , Marine Assist Osprey, SY Midnight , St Kitts Coastguard and other vessels which assisted in the operation.

The crew of SY Genevieve have also set up a JustGiving page to raise funds to helpp stranded Cameroonian Nationals in Antigua, with funds intended to help provide basic housing, sanitation and food for this community. “Unlike the night of March 28th, no more innocent people need to be lost on the ocean in search of a new life,” said Auckland.

The JustGiving link is https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/helpingcamerooniansinantigua?utm_term=zMD6K4y89

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The Haves and the Have-Yachts

By Evan Osnos

In the Victorian era, it was said that the length of a man’s boat, in feet, should match his age, in years. The Victorians would have had some questions at the fortieth annual Palm Beach International Boat Show, which convened this March on Florida’s Gold Coast. A typical offering: a two-hundred-and-three-foot superyacht named Sea Owl, selling secondhand for ninety million dollars. The owner, Robert Mercer, the hedge-fund tycoon and Republican donor, was throwing in furniture and accessories, including several auxiliary boats, a Steinway piano, a variety of frescoes, and a security system that requires fingerprint recognition. Nevertheless, Mercer’s package was a modest one; the largest superyachts are more than five hundred feet, on a scale with naval destroyers, and cost six or seven times what he was asking.

For the small, tight-lipped community around the world’s biggest yachts, the Palm Beach show has the promising air of spring training. On the cusp of the summer season, it affords brokers and builders and owners (or attendants from their family offices) a chance to huddle over the latest merchandise and to gather intelligence: Who’s getting in? Who’s getting out? And, most pressingly, who’s ogling a bigger boat?

On the docks, brokers parse the crowd according to a taxonomy of potential. Guests asking for tours face a gantlet of greeters, trained to distinguish “superrich clients” from “ineligible visitors,” in the words of Emma Spence, a former greeter at the Palm Beach show. Spence looked for promising clues (the right shoes, jewelry, pets) as well as for red flags (cameras, ornate business cards, clothes with pop-culture references). For greeters from elsewhere, Palm Beach is a challenging assignment. Unlike in Europe, where money can still produce some visible tells—Hunter Wellies, a Barbour jacket—the habits of wealth in Florida offer little that’s reliable. One colleague resorted to binoculars, to spot a passerby with a hundred-thousand-dollar watch. According to Spence, people judged to have insufficient buying power are quietly marked for “dissuasion.”

For the uninitiated, a pleasure boat the length of a football field can be bewildering. Andy Cohen, the talk-show host, recalled his first visit to a superyacht owned by the media mogul Barry Diller: “I was like the Beverly Hillbillies.” The boats have grown so vast that some owners place unique works of art outside the elevator on each deck, so that lost guests don’t barge into the wrong stateroom.

At the Palm Beach show, I lingered in front of a gracious vessel called Namasté, until I was dissuaded by a wooden placard: “Private yacht, no boarding, no paparazzi.” In a nearby berth was a two-hundred-and-eighty-foot superyacht called Bold, which was styled like a warship, with its own helicopter hangar, three Sea-Doos, two sailboats, and a color scheme of gunmetal gray. The rugged look is a trend; “explorer” vessels, equipped to handle remote journeys, are the sport-utility vehicles of yachting.

If you hail from the realm of ineligible visitors, you may not be aware that we are living through the “greatest boom in the yacht business that’s ever existed,” as Bob Denison—whose firm, Denison Yachting, is one of the world’s largest brokers—told me. “Every broker, every builder, up and down the docks, is having some of the best years they’ve ever experienced.” In 2021, the industry sold a record eight hundred and eighty-seven superyachts worldwide, nearly twice the previous year’s total. With more than a thousand new superyachts on order, shipyards are so backed up that clients unaccustomed to being told no have been shunted to waiting lists.

One reason for the increased demand for yachts is the pandemic. Some buyers invoke social distancing; others, an existential awakening. John Staluppi, of Palm Beach Gardens, who made a fortune from car dealerships, is looking to upgrade from his current, sixty-million-dollar yacht. “When you’re forty or fifty years old, you say, ‘I’ve got plenty of time,’ ” he told me. But, at seventy-five, he is ready to throw in an extra fifteen million if it will spare him three years of waiting. “Is your life worth five million dollars a year? I think so,” he said. A deeper reason for the demand is the widening imbalance of wealth. Since 1990, the United States’ supply of billionaires has increased from sixty-six to more than seven hundred, even as the median hourly wage has risen only twenty per cent. In that time, the number of truly giant yachts—those longer than two hundred and fifty feet—has climbed from less than ten to more than a hundred and seventy. Raphael Sauleau, the C.E.O. of Fraser Yachts, told me bluntly, “ COVID and wealth—a perfect storm for us.”

And yet the marina in Palm Beach was thrumming with anxiety. Ever since the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, launched his assault on Ukraine, the superyacht world has come under scrutiny. At a port in Spain, a Ukrainian engineer named Taras Ostapchuk, working aboard a ship that he said was owned by a Russian arms dealer, threw open the sea valves and tried to sink it to the bottom of the harbor. Under arrest, he told a judge, “I would do it again.” Then he returned to Ukraine and joined the military. Western allies, in the hope of pressuring Putin to withdraw, have sought to cut off Russian oligarchs from businesses and luxuries abroad. “We are coming for your ill-begotten gains,” President Joe Biden declared, in his State of the Union address.

Nobody can say precisely how many of Putin’s associates own superyachts—known to professionals as “white boats”—because the white-boat world is notoriously opaque. Owners tend to hide behind shell companies, registered in obscure tax havens, attended by private bankers and lawyers. But, with unusual alacrity, authorities have used subpoenas and police powers to freeze boats suspected of having links to the Russian élite. In Spain, the government detained a hundred-and-fifty-million-dollar yacht associated with Sergei Chemezov, the head of the conglomerate Rostec, whose bond with Putin reaches back to their time as K.G.B. officers in East Germany. (As in many cases, the boat is not registered to Chemezov; the official owner is a shell company connected to his stepdaughter, a teacher whose salary is likely about twenty-two hundred dollars a month.) In Germany, authorities impounded the world’s most voluminous yacht, Dilbar, for its ties to the mining-and-telecom tycoon Alisher Usmanov. And in Italy police have grabbed a veritable armada, including a boat owned by one of Russia’s richest men, Alexei Mordashov, and a colossus suspected of belonging to Putin himself, the four-hundred-and-fifty-nine-foot Scheherazade.

In Palm Beach, the yachting community worried that the same scrutiny might be applied to them. “Say your superyacht is in Asia, and there’s some big conflict where China invades Taiwan,” Denison told me. “China could spin it as ‘Look at these American oligarchs!’ ” He wondered if the seizures of superyachts marked a growing political animus toward the very rich. “Whenever things are economically or politically disruptive,” he said, “it’s hard to justify taking an insane amount of money and just putting it into something that costs a lot to maintain, depreciates, and is only used for having a good time.”

Nobody pretends that a superyacht is a productive place to stash your wealth. In a column this spring headlined “ A SUPERYACHT IS A TERRIBLE ASSET ,” the Financial Times observed, “Owning a superyacht is like owning a stack of 10 Van Goghs, only you are holding them over your head as you tread water, trying to keep them dry.”

Not so long ago, status transactions among the élite were denominated in Old Masters and in the sculptures of the Italian Renaissance. Joseph Duveen, the dominant art dealer of the early twentieth century, kept the oligarchs of his day—Andrew Mellon, Jules Bache, J. P. Morgan—jockeying over Donatellos and Van Dycks. “When you pay high for the priceless,” he liked to say, “you’re getting it cheap.”

Man talking to woman who is holding a baby keeping the dog and another child entertained and cooking.

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In the nineteen-fifties, the height of aspirational style was fine French furniture—F.F.F., as it became known in certain precincts of Fifth Avenue and Palm Beach. Before long, more and more money was going airborne. Hugh Hefner, a pioneer in the private-jet era, decked out a plane he called Big Bunny, where he entertained Elvis Presley, Raquel Welch, and James Caan. The oil baron Armand Hammer circled the globe on his Boeing 727, paying bribes and recording evidence on microphones hidden in his cufflinks. But, once it seemed that every plutocrat had a plane, the thrill was gone.

In any case, an airplane is just transportation. A big ship is a floating manse, with a hierarchy written right into the nomenclature. If it has a crew working aboard, it’s a yacht. If it’s more than ninety-eight feet, it’s a superyacht. After that, definitions are debated, but people generally agree that anything more than two hundred and thirty feet is a megayacht, and more than two hundred and ninety-five is a gigayacht. The world contains about fifty-four hundred superyachts, and about a hundred gigayachts.

For the moment, a gigayacht is the most expensive item that our species has figured out how to own. In 2019, the hedge-fund billionaire Ken Griffin bought a quadruplex on Central Park South for two hundred and forty million dollars, the highest price ever paid for a home in America. In May, an unknown buyer spent about a hundred and ninety-five million on an Andy Warhol silk-screen portrait of Marilyn Monroe. In luxury-yacht terms, those are ordinary numbers. “There are a lot of boats in build well over two hundred and fifty million dollars,” Jamie Edmiston, a broker in Monaco and London, told me. His buyers are getting younger and more inclined to spend long stretches at sea. “High-speed Internet, telephony, modern communications have made working easier,” he said. “Plus, people made a lot more money earlier in life.”

A Silicon Valley C.E.O. told me that one appeal of boats is that they can “absorb the most excess capital.” He explained, “Rationally, it would seem to make sense for people to spend half a billion dollars on their house and then fifty million on the boat that they’re on for two weeks a year, right? But it’s gone the other way. People don’t want to live in a hundred-thousand-square-foot house. Optically, it’s weird. But a half-billion-dollar boat, actually, is quite nice.” Staluppi, of Palm Beach Gardens, is content to spend three or four times as much on his yachts as on his homes. Part of the appeal is flexibility. “If you’re on your boat and you don’t like your neighbor, you tell the captain, ‘Let’s go to a different place,’ ” he said. On land, escaping a bad neighbor requires more work: “You got to try and buy him out or make it uncomfortable or something.” The preference for sea-based investment has altered the proportions of taste. Until recently, the Silicon Valley C.E.O. said, “a fifty-metre boat was considered a good-sized boat. Now that would be a little bit embarrassing.” In the past twenty years, the length of the average luxury yacht has grown by a third, to a hundred and sixty feet.

Thorstein Veblen, the economist who published “The Theory of the Leisure Class,” in 1899, argued that the power of “conspicuous consumption” sprang not from artful finery but from sheer needlessness. “In order to be reputable,” he wrote, “it must be wasteful.” In the yachting world, stories circulate about exotic deliveries by helicopter or seaplane: Dom Pérignon, bagels from Zabar’s, sex workers, a rare melon from the island of Hokkaido. The industry excels at selling you things that you didn’t know you needed. When you flip through the yachting press, it’s easy to wonder how you’ve gone this long without a personal submarine, or a cryosauna that “blasts you with cold” down to minus one hundred and ten degrees Celsius, or the full menagerie of “exclusive leathers,” such as eel and stingray.

But these shrines to excess capital exist in a conditional state of visibility: they are meant to be unmistakable to a slender stratum of society—and all but unseen by everyone else. Even before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the yachting community was straining to manage its reputation as a gusher of carbon emissions (one well-stocked diesel yacht is estimated to produce as much greenhouse gas as fifteen hundred passenger cars), not to mention the fact that the world of white boats is overwhelmingly white. In a candid aside to a French documentarian, the American yachtsman Bill Duker said, “If the rest of the world learns what it’s like to live on a yacht like this, they’re gonna bring back the guillotine.” The Dutch press recently reported that Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, was building a sailing yacht so tall that the city of Rotterdam might temporarily dismantle a bridge that had survived the Nazis in order to let the boat pass to the open sea. Rotterdammers were not pleased. On Facebook, a local man urged people to “take a box of rotten eggs with you and let’s throw them en masse at Jeff’s superyacht when it sails through.” At least thirteen thousand people expressed interest. Amid the uproar, a deputy mayor announced that the dismantling plan had been abandoned “for the time being.” (Bezos modelled his yacht partly on one owned by his friend Barry Diller, who has hosted him many times. The appreciation eventually extended to personnel, and Bezos hired one of Diller’s captains.)

As social media has heightened the scrutiny of extraordinary wealth, some of the very people who created those platforms have sought less observable places to spend it. But they occasionally indulge in some coded provocation. In 2006, when the venture capitalist Tom Perkins unveiled his boat in Istanbul, most passersby saw it adorned in colorful flags, but people who could read semaphore were able to make out a message: “Rarely does one have the privilege to witness vulgar ostentation displayed on such a scale.” As a longtime owner told me, “If you don’t have some guilt about it, you’re a rat.”

Alex Finley, a former C.I.A. officer who has seen yachts proliferate near her home in Barcelona, has weighed the superyacht era and its discontents in writings and on Twitter, using the hashtag #YachtWatch. “To me, the yachts are not just yachts,” she told me. “In Russia’s case, these are the embodiment of oligarchs helping a dictator destabilize our democracy while utilizing our democracy to their benefit.” But, Finley added, it’s a mistake to think the toxic symbolism applies only to Russia. “The yachts tell a whole story about a Faustian capitalism—this idea that we’re ready to sell democracy for short-term profit,” she said. “They’re registered offshore. They use every loophole that we’ve put in place for illicit money and tax havens. So they play a role in this battle, writ large, between autocracy and democracy.”

After a morning on the docks at the Palm Beach show, I headed to a more secluded marina nearby, which had been set aside for what an attendant called “the really big hardware.” It felt less like a trade show than like a boutique resort, with a swimming pool and a terrace restaurant. Kevin Merrigan, a relaxed Californian with horn-rimmed glasses and a high forehead pinked by the sun, was waiting for me at the stern of Unbridled, a superyacht with a brilliant blue hull that gave it the feel of a personal cruise ship. He invited me to the bridge deck, where a giant screen showed silent video of dolphins at play.

Merrigan is the chairman of the brokerage Northrop & Johnson, which has ridden the tide of growing boats and wealth since 1949. Lounging on a sofa mounded with throw pillows, he projected a nearly postcoital level of contentment. He had recently sold the boat we were on, accepted an offer for a behemoth beside us, and begun negotiating the sale of yet another. “This client owns three big yachts,” he said. “It’s a hobby for him. We’re at a hundred and ninety-one feet now, and last night he said, ‘You know, what do you think about getting a two hundred and fifty?’ ” Merrigan laughed. “And I was, like, ‘Can’t you just have dinner?’ ”

Among yacht owners, there are some unwritten rules of stratification: a Dutch-built boat will hold its value better than an Italian; a custom design will likely get more respect than a “series yacht”; and, if you want to disparage another man’s boat, say that it looks like a wedding cake. But, in the end, nothing says as much about a yacht, or its owner, as the delicate matter of L.O.A.—length over all.

The imperative is not usually length for length’s sake (though the longtime owner told me that at times there is an aspect of “phallic sizing”). “L.O.A.” is a byword for grandeur. In most cases, pleasure yachts are permitted to carry no more than twelve passengers, a rule set by the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, which was conceived after the sinking of the Titanic. But those limits do not apply to crew. “So, you might have anything between twelve and fifty crew looking after those twelve guests,” Edmiston, the broker, said. “It’s a level of service you cannot really contemplate until you’ve been fortunate enough to experience it.”

As yachts have grown more capacious, and the limits on passengers have not, more and more space on board has been devoted to staff and to novelties. The latest fashions include IMAX theatres, hospital equipment that tests for dozens of pathogens, and ski rooms where guests can suit up for a helicopter trip to a mountaintop. The longtime owner, who had returned the previous day from his yacht, told me, “No one today—except for assholes and ridiculous people—lives on land in what you would call a deep and broad luxe life. Yes, people have nice houses and all of that, but it’s unlikely that the ratio of staff to them is what it is on a boat.” After a moment, he added, “Boats are the last place that I think you can get away with it.”

Even among the truly rich, there is a gap between the haves and the have-yachts. One boating guest told me about a conversation with a famous friend who keeps one of the world’s largest yachts. “He said, ‘The boat is the last vestige of what real wealth can do.’ What he meant is, You have a chef, and I have a chef. You have a driver, and I have a driver. You can fly privately, and I fly privately. So, the one place where I can make clear to the world that I am in a different fucking category than you is the boat.”

After Merrigan and I took a tour of Unbridled, he led me out to a waiting tender, staffed by a crew member with an earpiece on a coil. The tender, Merrigan said, would ferry me back to the busy main dock of the Palm Beach show. We bounced across the waves under a pristine sky, and pulled into the marina, where my fellow-gawkers were still trying to talk their way past the greeters. As I walked back into the scrum, Namasté was still there, but it looked smaller than I remembered.

For owners and their guests, a white boat provides a discreet marketplace for the exchange of trust, patronage, and validation. To diagram the precise workings of that trade—the customs and anxieties, strategies and slights—I talked to Brendan O’Shannassy, a veteran captain who is a curator of white-boat lore. Raised in Western Australia, O’Shannassy joined the Navy as a young man, and eventually found his way to skippering some of the world’s biggest yachts. He has worked for Paul Allen, the late co-founder of Microsoft, along with a few other billionaires he declines to name. Now in his early fifties, with patient green eyes and tufts of curly brown hair, O’Shannassy has had a vantage from which to monitor the social traffic. “It’s all gracious, and everyone’s kiss-kiss,” he said. “But there’s a lot going on in the background.”

O’Shannassy once worked for an owner who limited the number of newspapers on board, so that he could watch his guests wait and squirm. “It was a mind game amongst the billionaires. There were six couples, and three newspapers,” he said, adding, “They were ranking themselves constantly.” On some boats, O’Shannassy has found himself playing host in the awkward minutes after guests arrive. “A lot of them are savants, but some are very un-socially aware,” he said. “They need someone to be social and charming for them.” Once everyone settles in, O’Shannassy has learned, there is often a subtle shift, when a mogul or a politician or a pop star starts to loosen up in ways that are rarely possible on land. “Your security is relaxed—they’re not on your hip,” he said. “You’re not worried about paparazzi. So you’ve got all this extra space, both mental and physical.”

O’Shannassy has come to see big boats as a space where powerful “solar systems” converge and combine. “It is implicit in every interaction that their sharing of information will benefit both parties; it is an obsession with billionaires to do favours for each other. A referral, an introduction, an insight—it all matters,” he wrote in “Superyacht Captain,” a new memoir. A guest told O’Shannassy that, after a lavish display of hospitality, he finally understood the business case for buying a boat. “One deal secured on board will pay it all back many times over,” the guest said, “and it is pretty hard to say no after your kids have been hosted so well for a week.”

Take the case of David Geffen, the former music and film executive. He is long retired, but he hosts friends (and potential friends) on the four-hundred-and-fifty-four-foot Rising Sun, which has a double-height cinema, a spa and salon, and a staff of fifty-seven. In 2017, shortly after Barack and Michelle Obama departed the White House, they were photographed on Geffen’s boat in French Polynesia, accompanied by Bruce Springsteen, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Hanks, and Rita Wilson. For Geffen, the boat keeps him connected to the upper echelons of power. There are wealthier Americans, but not many of them have a boat so delectable that it can induce both a Democratic President and the workingman’s crooner to risk the aroma of hypocrisy.

The binding effect pays dividends for guests, too. Once people reach a certain level of fame, they tend to conclude that its greatest advantage is access. Spend a week at sea together, lingering over meals, observing one another floundering on a paddleboard, and you have something of value for years to come. Call to ask for an investment, an introduction, an internship for a wayward nephew, and you’ll at least get the call returned. It’s a mutually reinforcing circle of validation: she’s here, I’m here, we’re here.

But, if you want to get invited back, you are wise to remember your part of the bargain. If you work with movie stars, bring fresh gossip. If you’re on Wall Street, bring an insight or two. Don’t make the transaction obvious, but don’t forget why you’re there. “When I see the guest list,” O’Shannassy wrote, “I am aware, even if not all names are familiar, that all have been chosen for a purpose.”

For O’Shannassy, there is something comforting about the status anxieties of people who have everything. He recalled a visit to the Italian island of Sardinia, where his employer asked him for a tour of the boats nearby. Riding together on a tender, they passed one colossus after another, some twice the size of the owner’s superyacht. Eventually, the man cut the excursion short. “Take me back to my yacht, please,” he said. They motored in silence for a while. “There was a time when my yacht was the most beautiful in the bay,” he said at last. “How do I keep up with this new money?”

The summer season in the Mediterranean cranks up in May, when the really big hardware heads east from Florida and the Caribbean to escape the coming hurricanes, and reconvenes along the coasts of France, Italy, and Spain. At the center is the Principality of Monaco, the sun-washed tax haven that calls itself the “world’s capital of advanced yachting.” In Monaco, which is among the richest countries on earth, superyachts bob in the marina like bath toys.

The nearest hotel room at a price that would not get me fired was an Airbnb over the border with France. But an acquaintance put me on the phone with the Yacht Club de Monaco, a members-only establishment created by the late monarch His Serene Highness Prince Rainier III, whom the Web site describes as “a true visionary in every respect.” The club occasionally rents rooms—“cabins,” as they’re called—to visitors in town on yacht-related matters. Claudia Batthyany, the elegant director of special projects, showed me to my cabin and later explained that the club does not aspire to be a hotel. “We are an association ,” she said. “Otherwise, it becomes”—she gave a gentle wince—“not that exclusive.”

Inside my cabin, I quickly came to understand that I would never be fully satisfied anywhere else again. The space was silent and aromatically upscale, bathed in soft sunlight that swept through a wall of glass overlooking the water. If I was getting a sudden rush of the onboard experience, that was no accident. The clubhouse was designed by the British architect Lord Norman Foster to evoke the opulent indulgence of ocean liners of the interwar years, like the Queen Mary. I found a handwritten welcome note, on embossed club stationery, set alongside an orchid and an assemblage of chocolate truffles: “The whole team remains at your entire disposal to make your stay a wonderful experience. Yours sincerely, Service Members.” I saluted the nameless Service Members, toiling for the comfort of their guests. Looking out at the water, I thought, intrusively, of a line from Santiago, Hemingway’s old man of the sea. “Do not think about sin,” he told himself. “It is much too late for that and there are people who are paid to do it.”

I had been assured that the Service Members would cheerfully bring dinner, as they might on board, but I was eager to see more of my surroundings. I consulted the club’s summer dress code. It called for white trousers and a blue blazer, and it discouraged improvisation: “No pocket handkerchief is to be worn above the top breast-pocket bearing the Club’s coat of arms.” The handkerchief rule seemed navigable, but I did not possess white trousers, so I skirted the lobby and took refuge in the bar. At a table behind me, a man with flushed cheeks and a British accent had a head start. “You’re a shitty negotiator,” he told another man, with a laugh. “Maybe sales is not your game.” A few seats away, an American woman was explaining to a foreign friend how to talk with conservatives: “If they say, ‘The earth is flat,’ you say, ‘Well, I’ve sailed around it, so I’m not so sure about that.’ ”

In the morning, I had an appointment for coffee with Gaëlle Tallarida, the managing director of the Monaco Yacht Show, which the Daily Mail has called the “most shamelessly ostentatious display of yachts in the world.” Tallarida was not born to that milieu; she grew up on the French side of the border, swimming at public beaches with a view of boats sailing from the marina. But she had a knack for highly organized spectacle. While getting a business degree, she worked on a student theatre festival and found it thrilling. Afterward, she got a job in corporate events, and in 1998 she was hired at the yacht show as a trainee.

With this year’s show five months off, Tallarida was already getting calls about what she described as “the most complex part of my work”: deciding which owners get the most desirable spots in the marina. “As you can imagine, they’ve got very big egos,” she said. “On top of that, I’m a woman. They are sometimes arriving and saying”—she pointed into the distance, pantomiming a decree—“ ‘O.K., I want that! ’ ”

Just about everyone wants his superyacht to be viewed from the side, so that its full splendor is visible. Most harbors, however, have a limited number of berths with a side view; in Monaco, there are only twelve, with prime spots arrayed along a concrete dike across from the club. “We reserve the dike for the biggest yachts,” Tallarida said. But try telling that to a man who blew his fortune on a small superyacht.

Whenever possible, Tallarida presents her verdicts as a matter of safety: the layout must insure that “in case of an emergency, any boat can go out.” If owners insist on preferential placement, she encourages a yachting version of the Golden Rule: “What if, next year, I do that to you? Against you?”

Does that work? I asked. She shrugged. “They say, ‘Eh.’ ” Some would gladly risk being a victim next year in order to be a victor now. In the most awful moment of her career, she said, a man who was unhappy with his berth berated her face to face. “I was in the office, feeling like a little girl, with my daddy shouting at me. I said, ‘O.K., O.K., I’m going to give you the spot.’ ”

Securing just the right place, it must be said, carries value. Back at the yacht club, I was on my terrace, enjoying the latest delivery by the Service Members—an airy French omelette and a glass of preternaturally fresh orange juice. I thought guiltily of my wife, at home with our kids, who had sent a text overnight alerting me to a maintenance issue that she described as “a toilet debacle.”

Then I was distracted by the sight of a man on a yacht in the marina below. He was staring up at me. I went back to my brunch, but, when I looked again, there he was—a middle-aged man, on a mid-tier yacht, juiceless, on a greige banquette, staring up at my perfect terrace. A surprising sensation started in my chest and moved outward like a warm glow: the unmistakable pang of superiority.

That afternoon, I made my way to the bar, to meet the yacht club’s general secretary, Bernard d’Alessandri, for a history lesson. The general secretary was up to code: white trousers, blue blazer, club crest over the heart. He has silver hair, black eyebrows, and a tan that evokes high-end leather. “I was a sailing teacher before this,” he said, and gestured toward the marina. “It was not like this. It was a village.”

Before there were yacht clubs, there were jachten , from the Dutch word for “hunt.” In the seventeenth century, wealthy residents of Amsterdam created fast-moving boats to meet incoming cargo ships before they hit port, in order to check out the merchandise. Soon, the Dutch owners were racing one another, and yachting spread across Europe. After a visit to Holland in 1697, Peter the Great returned to Russia with a zeal for pleasure craft, and he later opened Nevsky Flot, one of the world’s first yacht clubs, in St. Petersburg.

For a while, many of the biggest yachts were symbols of state power. In 1863, the viceroy of Egypt, Isma’il Pasha, ordered up a steel leviathan called El Mahrousa, which was the world’s longest yacht for a remarkable hundred and nineteen years, until the title was claimed by King Fahd of Saudi Arabia. In the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt received guests aboard the U.S.S. Potomac, which had a false smokestack containing a hidden elevator, so that the President could move by wheelchair between decks.

But yachts were finding new patrons outside politics. In 1954, the Greek shipping baron Aristotle Onassis bought a Canadian Navy frigate and spent four million dollars turning it into Christina O, which served as his home for months on end—and, at various times, as a home to his companions Maria Callas, Greta Garbo, and Jacqueline Kennedy. Christina O had its flourishes—a Renoir in the master suite, a swimming pool with a mosaic bottom that rose to become a dance floor—but none were more distinctive than the appointments in the bar, which included whales’ teeth carved into pornographic scenes from the Odyssey and stools upholstered in whale foreskins.

For Onassis, the extraordinary investments in Christina O were part of an epic tit for tat with his archrival, Stavros Niarchos, a fellow shipping tycoon, which was so entrenched that it continued even after Onassis’s death, in 1975. Six years later, Niarchos launched a yacht fifty-five feet longer than Christina O: Atlantis II, which featured a swimming pool on a gyroscope so that the water would not slosh in heavy seas. Atlantis II, now moored in Monaco, sat before the general secretary and me as we talked.

Over the years, d’Alessandri had watched waves of new buyers arrive from one industry after another. “First, it was the oil. After, it was the telecommunications. Now, they are making money with crypto,” he said. “And, each time, it’s another size of the boat, another design.” What began as symbols of state power had come to represent more diffuse aristocracies—the fortunes built on carbon, capital, and data that migrated across borders. As early as 1908, the English writer G. K. Chesterton wondered what the big boats foretold of a nation’s fabric. “The poor man really has a stake in the country,” he wrote. “The rich man hasn’t; he can go away to New Guinea in a yacht.”

Each iteration of fortune left its imprint on the industry. Sheikhs, who tend to cruise in the world’s hottest places, wanted baroque indoor spaces and were uninterested in sundecks. Silicon Valley favored acres of beige, more Sonoma than Saudi. And buyers from Eastern Europe became so abundant that shipyards perfected the onboard banya , a traditional Russian sauna stocked with birch and eucalyptus. The collapse of the Soviet Union, in 1991, had minted a generation of new billionaires, whose approach to money inspired a popular Russian joke: One oligarch brags to another, “Look at this new tie. It cost me two hundred bucks!” To which the other replies, “You moron. You could’ve bought the same one for a thousand!”

In 1998, around the time that the Russian economy imploded, the young tycoon Roman Abramovich reportedly bought a secondhand yacht called Sussurro—Italian for “whisper”—which had been so carefully engineered for speed that each individual screw was weighed before installation. Soon, Russians were competing to own the costliest ships. “If the most expensive yacht in the world was small, they would still want it,” Maria Pevchikh, a Russian investigator who helps lead the Anti-Corruption Foundation, told me.

In 2008, a thirty-six-year-old industrialist named Andrey Melnichenko spent some three hundred million dollars on Motor Yacht A, a radical experiment conceived by the French designer Philippe Starck, with a dagger-shaped hull and a bulbous tower topped by a master bedroom set on a turntable that pivots to capture the best view. The shape was ridiculed as “a giant finger pointing at you” and “one of the most hideous vessels ever to sail,” but it marked a new prominence for Russian money at sea. Today, post-Soviet élites are thought to own a fifth of the world’s gigayachts.

Even Putin has signalled his appreciation, being photographed on yachts in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. In an explosive report in 2012, Boris Nemtsov, a former Deputy Prime Minister, accused Putin of amassing a storehouse of outrageous luxuries, including four yachts, twenty homes, and dozens of private aircraft. Less than three years later, Nemtsov was fatally shot while crossing a bridge near the Kremlin. The Russian government, which officially reports that Putin collects a salary of about a hundred and forty thousand dollars and possesses a modest apartment in Moscow, denied any involvement.

Many of the largest, most flamboyant gigayachts are designed in Monaco, at a sleek waterfront studio occupied by the naval architect Espen Øino. At sixty, Øino has a boyish mop and the mild countenance of a country parson. He grew up in a small town in Norway, the heir to a humble maritime tradition. “My forefathers built wooden rowing boats for four generations,” he told me. In the late eighties, he was designing sailboats when his firm won a commission to design a megayacht for Emilio Azcárraga, the autocratic Mexican who built Televisa into the world’s largest Spanish-language broadcaster. Azcárraga was nicknamed El Tigre, for his streak of white hair and his comfort with confrontation; he kept a chair in his office that was unusually high off the ground, so that visitors’ feet dangled like children’s.

In early meetings, Øino recalled, Azcárraga grew frustrated that the ideas were not dazzling enough. “You must understand,” he said. “I don’t go to port very often with my boats, but, when I do, I want my presence to be felt.”

The final design was suitably arresting; after the boat was completed, Øino had no shortage of commissions. In 1998, he was approached by Paul Allen, of Microsoft, to build a yacht that opened the way for the Goliaths that followed. The result, called Octopus, was so large that it contained a submarine marina in its belly, as well as a helicopter hangar that could be converted into an outdoor performance space. Mick Jagger and Bono played on occasion. I asked Øino why owners obsessed with secrecy seem determined to build the world’s most conspicuous machines. He compared it to a luxury car with tinted windows. “People can’t see you, but you’re still in that expensive, impressive thing,” he said. “We all need to feel that we’re important in one way or another.”

Two people standing on city sidewalk on hot summer day.

In recent months, Øino has seen some of his creations detained by governments in the sanctions campaign. When we spoke, he condemned the news coverage. “Yacht equals Russian equals evil equals money,” he said disdainfully. “It’s a bit tragic, because the yachts have become synonymous with the bad guys in a James Bond movie.”

What about Scheherazade, the giant yacht that U.S. officials have alleged is held by a Russian businessman for Putin’s use? Øino, who designed the ship, rejected the idea. “We have designed two yachts for heads of state, and I can tell you that they’re completely different, in terms of the layout and everything, from Scheherazade.” He meant that the details said plutocrat, not autocrat.

For the time being, Scheherazade and other Øino creations under detention across Europe have entered a strange legal purgatory. As lawyers for the owners battle to keep the ships from being permanently confiscated, local governments are duty-bound to maintain them until a resolution is reached. In a comment recorded by a hot mike in June, Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national-security adviser, marvelled that “people are basically being paid to maintain Russian superyachts on behalf of the United States government.” (It usually costs about ten per cent of a yacht’s construction price to keep it afloat each year. In May, officials in Fiji complained that a detained yacht was costing them more than a hundred and seventy-one thousand dollars a day.)

Stranger still are the Russian yachts on the lam. Among them is Melnichenko’s much maligned Motor Yacht A. On March 9th, Melnichenko was sanctioned by the European Union, and although he denied having close ties to Russia’s leadership, Italy seized one of his yachts—a six-hundred-million-dollar sailboat. But Motor Yacht A slipped away before anyone could grab it. Then the boat turned off the transponder required by international maritime rules, so that its location could no longer be tracked. The last ping was somewhere near the Maldives, before it went dark on the high seas.

The very largest yachts come from Dutch and German shipyards, which have experience in naval vessels, known as “gray boats.” But the majority of superyachts are built in Italy, partly because owners prefer to visit the Mediterranean during construction. (A British designer advises those who are weighing their choices to take the geography seriously, “unless you like schnitzel.”)

In the past twenty-two years, nobody has built more superyachts than the Vitellis, an Italian family whose patriarch, Paolo Vitelli, got his start in the seventies, manufacturing smaller boats near a lake in the mountains. By 1985, their company, Azimut, had grown large enough to buy the Benetti shipyards, which had been building enormous yachts since the nineteenth century. Today, the combined company builds its largest boats near the sea, but the family still works in the hill town of Avigliana, where a medieval monastery towers above a valley. When I visited in April, Giovanna Vitelli, the vice-president and the founder’s daughter, led me through the experience of customizing a yacht.

“We’re using more and more virtual reality,” she said, and a staffer fitted me with a headset. When the screen blinked on, I was inside a 3-D mockup of a yacht that is not yet on the market. I wandered around my suite for a while, checking out swivel chairs, a modish sideboard, blond wood panelling on the walls. It was convincing enough that I collided with a real-life desk.

After we finished with the headset, it was time to pick the décor. The industry encourages an introspective evaluation: What do you want your yacht to say about you? I was handed a vibrant selection of wood, marble, leather, and carpet. The choices felt suddenly grave. Was I cut out for the chiselled look of Cream Vesuvio, or should I accept that I’m a gray Cardoso Stone? For carpets, I liked the idea of Chablis Corn White—Paris and the prairie, together at last. But, for extra seating, was it worth splurging for the V.I.P. Vanity Pouf?

Some designs revolve around a single piece of art. The most expensive painting ever sold, Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi,” reportedly was hung on the Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman’s four-hundred-and-thirty-nine-foot yacht Serene, after the Louvre rejected a Saudi demand that it hang next to the “Mona Lisa.” Art conservators blanched at the risks that excess humidity and fluctuating temperatures could pose to a five-hundred-year-old painting. Often, collectors who want to display masterpieces at sea commission replicas.

If you’ve just put half a billion dollars into a boat, you may have qualms about the truism that material things bring less happiness than experiences do. But this, too, can be finessed. Andrew Grant Super, a co-founder of the “experiential yachting” firm Berkeley Rand, told me that he served a uniquely overstimulated clientele: “We call them the bored billionaires.” He outlined a few of his experience products. “We can plot half of the Pacific Ocean with coördinates, to map out the Battle of Midway,” he said. “We re-create the full-blown battles of the giant ships from America and Japan. The kids have haptic guns and haptic vests. We put the smell of cordite and cannon fire on board, pumping around them.” For those who aren’t soothed by the scent of cordite, Super offered an alternative. “We fly 3-D-printed, architectural freestanding restaurants into the middle of the Maldives, on a sand shelf that can only last another eight hours before it disappears.”

For some, the thrill lies in the engineering. Staluppi, born in Brooklyn, was an auto mechanic who had no experience with the sea until his boss asked him to soup up a boat. “I took the six-cylinder engines out and put V-8 engines in,” he recalled. Once he started commissioning boats of his own, he built scale models to conduct tests in water tanks. “I knew I could never have the biggest boat in the world, so I says, ‘You know what? I want to build the fastest yacht in the world.’ The Aga Khan had the fastest yacht, and we just blew right by him.”

In Italy, after decking out my notional yacht, I headed south along the coast, to Tuscan shipyards that have evolved with each turn in the country’s history. Close to the Carrara quarries, which yielded the marble that Michelangelo turned into David, ships were constructed in the nineteenth century, to transport giant blocks of stone. Down the coast, the yards in Livorno made warships under the Fascists, until they were bombed by the Allies. Later, they began making and refitting luxury yachts. Inside the front gate of a Benetti shipyard in Livorno, a set of models depicted the firm’s famous modern creations. Most notable was the megayacht Nabila, built in 1980 for the high-living arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, with a hundred rooms and a disco that was the site of legendary decadence. (Khashoggi’s budget for prostitution was so extravagant that a French prosecutor later estimated he paid at least half a million dollars to a single madam in a single year.)

In 1987, shortly before Khashoggi was indicted for mail fraud and obstruction of justice (he was eventually acquitted), the yacht was sold to the real-estate developer Donald Trump, who renamed it Trump Princess. Trump was never comfortable on a boat—“Couldn’t get off fast enough,” he once said—but he liked to impress people with his yacht’s splendor. In 1991, while three billion dollars in debt, Trump ceded the vessel to creditors. Later in life, though, he discovered enthusiastic support among what he called “our beautiful boaters,” and he came to see quality watercraft as a mark of virtue—a way of beating the so-called élite. “We got better houses, apartments, we got nicer boats, we’re smarter than they are,” he told a crowd in Fargo, North Dakota. “Let’s call ourselves, from now on, the super-élite.”

In the age of oversharing, yachts are a final sanctum of secrecy, even for some of the world’s most inveterate talkers. Oprah, after returning from her sojourn with the Obamas, rebuffed questions from reporters. “What happens on the boat stays on the boat,” she said. “We talked, and everybody else did a lot of paddleboarding.”

I interviewed six American superyacht owners at length, and almost all insisted on anonymity or held forth with stupefying blandness. “Great family time,” one said. Another confessed, “It’s really hard to talk about it without being ridiculed.” None needed to be reminded of David Geffen’s misadventure during the early weeks of the pandemic, when he Instagrammed a photo of his yacht in the Grenadines and posted that he was “avoiding the virus” and “hoping everybody is staying safe.” It drew thousands of responses, many marked #EatTheRich, others summoning a range of nautical menaces: “At least the pirates have his location now.”

The yachts extend a tradition of seclusion as the ultimate luxury. The Medici, in sixteenth-century Florence, built elevated passageways, or corridoi , high over the city to escape what a scholar called the “clash of classes, the randomness, the smells and confusions” of pedestrian life below. More recently, owners of prized town houses in London have headed in the other direction, building three-story basements so vast that their construction can require mining engineers—a trend that researchers in the United Kingdom named “luxified troglodytism.”

Water conveys a particular autonomy, whether it’s ringing the foot of a castle or separating a private island from the mainland. Peter Thiel, the billionaire venture capitalist, gave startup funding to the Seasteading Institute, a nonprofit group co-founded by Milton Friedman’s grandson, which seeks to create floating mini-states—an endeavor that Thiel considered part of his libertarian project to “escape from politics in all its forms.” Until that fantasy is realized, a white boat can provide a start. A recent feature in Boat International , a glossy trade magazine, noted that the new hundred-and-twenty-five-million-dollar megayacht Victorious has four generators and “six months’ autonomy” at sea. The builder, Vural Ak, explained, “In case of emergency, god forbid, you can live in open water without going to shore and keep your food stored, make your water from the sea.”

Much of the time, superyachts dwell beyond the reach of ordinary law enforcement. They cruise in international waters, and, when they dock, local cops tend to give them a wide berth; the boats often have private security, and their owners may well be friends with the Prime Minister. According to leaked documents known as the Paradise Papers, handlers proposed that the Saudi crown prince take delivery of a four-hundred-and-twenty-million-dollar yacht in “international waters in the western Mediterranean,” where the sale could avoid taxes.

Builders and designers rarely advertise beyond the trade press, and they scrupulously avoid leaks. At Lürssen, a German shipbuilding firm, projects are described internally strictly by reference number and code name. “We are not in the business for the glory,” Peter Lürssen, the C.E.O., told a reporter. The closest thing to an encyclopedia of yacht ownership is a site called SuperYachtFan, run by a longtime researcher who identifies himself only as Peter, with a disclaimer that he relies partly on “rumors” but makes efforts to confirm them. In an e-mail, he told me that he studies shell companies, navigation routes, paparazzi photos, and local media in various languages to maintain a database with more than thirteen hundred supposed owners. Some ask him to remove their names, but he thinks that members of that economic echelon should regard the attention as a “fact of life.”

To work in the industry, staff must adhere to the culture of secrecy, often enforced by N.D.A.s. On one yacht, O’Shannassy, the captain, learned to communicate in code with the helicopter pilot who regularly flew the owner from Switzerland to the Mediterranean. Before takeoff, the pilot would call with a cryptic report on whether the party included the presence of a Pomeranian. If any guest happened to overhear, their cover story was that a customs declaration required details about pets. In fact, the lapdog was a constant companion of the owner’s wife; if the Pomeranian was in the helicopter, so was she. “If no dog was in the helicopter,” O’Shannassy recalled, the owner was bringing “somebody else.” It was the captain’s duty to rebroadcast the news across the yacht’s internal radio: “Helicopter launched, no dog, I repeat no dog today”—the signal for the crew to ready the main cabin for the mistress, instead of the wife. They swapped out dresses, family photos, bathroom supplies, favored drinks in the fridge. On one occasion, the code got garbled, and the helicopter landed with an unanticipated Pomeranian. Afterward, the owner summoned O’Shannassy and said, “Brendan, I hope you never have such a situation, but if you do I recommend making sure the correct dresses are hanging when your wife comes into your room.”

In the hierarchy on board a yacht, the most delicate duties tend to trickle down to the least powerful. Yacht crew—yachties, as they’re known—trade manual labor and obedience for cash and adventure. On a well-staffed boat, the “interior team” operates at a forensic level of detail: they’ll use Q-tips to polish the rim of your toilet, tweezers to lift your fried-chicken crumbs from the teak, a toothbrush to clean the treads of your staircase.

Many are English-speaking twentysomethings, who find work by doing the “dock walk,” passing out résumés at marinas. The deals can be alluring: thirty-five hundred dollars a month for deckhands; fifty thousand dollars in tips for a decent summer in the Med. For captains, the size of the boat matters—they tend to earn about a thousand dollars per foot per year.

Yachties are an attractive lot, a community of the toned and chipper, which does not happen by chance; their résumés circulate with head shots. Before Andy Cohen was a talk-show host, he was the head of production and development at Bravo, where he green-lighted a reality show about a yacht crew: “It’s a total pressure cooker, and they’re actually living together while they’re working. Oh, and by the way, half of them are having sex with each other. What’s not going to be a hit about that?” The result, the gleefully seamy “Below Deck,” has been among the network’s top-rated shows for nearly a decade.

Billboard that resembles on for an injury lawyer but is actually of a woman saying I told you so.

To stay in the business, captains and crew must absorb varying degrees of petty tyranny. An owner once gave O’Shannassy “a verbal beating” for failing to negotiate a lower price on champagne flutes etched with the yacht’s logo. In such moments, the captain responds with a deferential mantra: “There is no excuse. Your instruction was clear. I can only endeavor to make it better for next time.”

The job comes with perilously little protection. A big yacht is effectively a corporation with a rigid hierarchy and no H.R. department. In recent years, the industry has fielded increasingly outspoken complaints about sexual abuse, toxic impunity, and a disregard for mental health. A 2018 survey by the International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network found that more than half of the women who work as yacht crew had experienced harassment, discrimination, or bullying on board. More than four-fifths of the men and women surveyed reported low morale.

Karine Rayson worked on yachts for four years, rising to the position of “chief stew,” or stewardess. Eventually, she found herself “thinking of business ideas while vacuuming,” and tiring of the culture of entitlement. She recalled an episode in the Maldives when “a guest took a Jet Ski and smashed into a marine reserve. That damaged the coral, and broke his Jet Ski, so he had to clamber over the rocks and find his way to the shore. It was a private hotel, and the security got him and said, ‘Look, there’s a large fine, you have to pay.’ He said, ‘Don’t worry, the boat will pay for it.’ ” Rayson went back to school and became a psychotherapist. After a period of counselling inmates in maximum-security prisons, she now works with yacht crew, who meet with her online from around the world.

Rayson’s clients report a range of scenarios beyond the boundaries of ordinary employment: guests who did so much cocaine that they had no appetite for a chef’s meals; armed men who raided a boat offshore and threatened to take crew members to another country; owners who vowed that if a young stew told anyone about abuse she suffered on board they’d call in the Mafia and “skin me alive.” Bound by N.D.A.s, crew at sea have little recourse.“We were paranoid that our e-mails were being reviewed, or we were getting bugged,” Rayson said.

She runs an “exit strategy” course to help crew find jobs when they’re back on land. The adjustment isn’t easy, she said: “You’re getting paid good money to clean a toilet. So, when you take your C.V. to land-based employers, they might question your skill set.” Despite the stresses of yachting work, Rayson said, “a lot of them struggle with integration into land-based life, because they have all their bills paid for them, so they don’t pay for food. They don’t pay for rent. It’s a huge shock.”

It doesn’t take long at sea to learn that nothing is too rich to rust. The ocean air tarnishes metal ten times as fast as on land; saltwater infiltrates from below. Left untouched, a single corroding ulcer will puncture tanks, seize a motor, even collapse a hull. There are tricks, of course—shield sensitive parts with resin, have your staff buff away blemishes—but you can insulate a machine from its surroundings for only so long.

Hang around the superyacht world for a while and you see the metaphor everywhere. Four months after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, the war had eaten a hole in his myths of competence. The Western campaign to isolate him and his oligarchs was proving more durable than most had predicted. Even if the seizures of yachts were mired in legal disputes, Finley, the former C.I.A. officer, saw them as a vital “pressure point.” She said, “The oligarchs supported Putin because he provided stable authoritarianism, and he can no longer guarantee that stability. And that’s when you start to have cracks.”

For all its profits from Russian clients, the yachting industry was unsentimental. Brokers stripped photos of Russian yachts from their Web sites; Lürssen, the German builder, sent questionnaires to clients asking who, exactly, they were. Business was roaring, and, if some Russians were cast out of the have-yachts, other buyers would replace them.

On a cloudless morning in Viareggio, a Tuscan town that builds almost a fifth of the world’s superyachts, a family of first-time owners from Tel Aviv made the final, fraught preparations. Down by the docks, their new boat was suspended above the water on slings, ready to be lowered for its official launch. The scene was set for a ceremony: white flags in the wind, a plexiglass lectern. It felt like the obverse of the dockside scrum at the Palm Beach show; by this point in the buying process, nobody was getting vetted through binoculars. Waitresses handed out glasses of wine. The yacht venders were in suits, but the new owners were in upscale Euro casual: untucked linen, tight jeans, twelve-hundred-dollar Prada sneakers. The family declined to speak to me (and the company declined to identify them). They had come asking for a smaller boat, but the sales staff had talked them up to a hundred and eleven feet. The Victorians would have been impressed.

The C.E.O. of Azimut Benetti, Marco Valle, was in a buoyant mood. “Sun. Breeze. Perfect day to launch a boat, right?” he told the owners. He applauded them for taking the “first step up the big staircase.” The selling of the next vessel had already begun.

Hanging aloft, their yacht looked like an artifact in the making; it was easy to imagine a future civilization sifting the sediment and discovering that an earlier society had engaged in a building spree of sumptuous arks, with accommodations for dozens of servants but only a few lucky passengers, plus the occasional Pomeranian.

We approached the hull, where a bottle of spumante hung from a ribbon in Italian colors. Two members of the family pulled back the bottle and slung it against the yacht. It bounced off and failed to shatter. “Oh, that’s bad luck,” a woman murmured beside me. Tales of that unhappy omen abound. In one memorable case, the bottle failed to break on Zaca, a schooner that belonged to Errol Flynn. In the years that followed, the crew mutinied and the boat sank; after being re-floated, it became the setting for Flynn’s descent into cocaine, alcohol, orgies, and drug smuggling. When Flynn died, new owners brought in an archdeacon for an onboard exorcism.

In the present case, the bottle broke on the second hit, and confetti rained down. As the family crowded around their yacht for photos, I asked Valle, the C.E.O., about the shortage of new boats. “Twenty-six years I’ve been in the nautical business—never been like this,” he said. He couldn’t hire enough welders and carpenters. “I don’t know for how long it will last, but we’ll try to get the profits right now.”

Whatever comes, the white-boat world is preparing to insure future profits, too. In recent years, big builders and brokers have sponsored a rebranding campaign dedicated to “improving the perception of superyachting.” (Among its recommendations: fewer ads with girls in bikinis and high heels.) The goal is partly to defuse #EatTheRich, but mostly it is to soothe skittish buyers. Even the dramatic increase in yacht ownership has not kept up with forecasts of the global growth in billionaires—a disparity that represents the “one dark cloud we can see on the horizon,” as Øino, the naval architect, said during an industry talk in Norway. He warned his colleagues that they needed to reach those “potential yacht owners who, for some reason, have decided not to step up to the plate.”

But, to a certain kind of yacht buyer, even aggressive scrutiny can feel like an advertisement—a reminder that, with enough access and cash, you can ride out almost any storm. In April, weeks after the fugitive Motor Yacht A went silent, it was rediscovered in physical form, buffed to a shine and moored along a creek in the United Arab Emirates. The owner, Melnichenko, had been sanctioned by the E.U., Switzerland, Australia, and the U.K. Yet the Emirates had rejected requests to join those sanctions and had become a favored wartime haven for Russian money. Motor Yacht A was once again arrayed in almost plain sight, like semaphore flags in the wind. ♦

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By Zach Helfand

The Morality of Having Kids in a Burning, Drowning World

By Jessica Winter

A Teen’s Fatal Plunge Into the London Underworld

By Patrick Radden Keefe

Yacht sinks off Savannah, five rescued

The U.S. Coast Guard rescued five people after the vessel they were on allided with the north Savannah jetties on Monday night.

At about 10:55 p.m., Coast Guard Sector Charleston watchstanders received a VHF Channel 16 report for TowBoat assistance from the 57-foot (17m) M/Y Nauty Thoughts , crew stating they had struck the jetties and were aground and taking on water.

USCG crew aboard a Coast Guard Station Tybee Island 45-foot response boat and an Air Station Savannah MH-65 Dolphin helicopter arrived on scene. The helicopter aircrew lowered a rescue swimmer to assist, and all five people were rescued in good condition.

The yacht lost stability rapidly and could not be salvaged by TowBoat Savannah.

The 135-foot (41m) M/Y Seafaris caught fire and sank off the coast of Australia on Oct. 3, according to news reports. Eight crew and eight…

An 85-foot yacht sank upon launch on May 18 in Anacortes, Wash., according to news reports. It was unclear what caused the accident. The…

Tom Cruise, while vacationing on a 263 feet long superyacht, spotted a burning yacht. The real-life hero immediately sailed toward it and rescued the five victims just as their vessel sank into the Mediterranean waters.

A family got the surprise of their lifetime as Tom Cruise landed by a helicopter in their backyard garden, offered their kids a ride, and even posed for pictures.

The party continues on the Koru megayacht – After Bill Gates and Oprah, Jeff Bezos, and his fiancee Lauren Sanchez invite Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom, and Usher to their floating palace to enjoy the sun-kissed Mediterranean.

Baikal Yacht Group will build two megayachts measuring 282 feet. While the megayacht Baikal 86 Explorer will aim for the southern latitudes, its twin Baikal 86 Expedition will explore the North

Microsoft billionaire’s $60 million superyacht is a warship on vacation. Known as the father of MS Word and Excel, Charles Simonyi once worked as a night watchman in a computer lab. His yacht has a helipad and when cruising the massive ship is quieter than a Rolls Royce Phantom.

An American millionaire is building the world’s largest sportfish yacht – Longer than an Olympic-sized swimming pool the luxury vessel is designed to chase swordfish, marlin, and sailfish. It is spread across 6 decks and has laser-powered external lighting.

Myth or reality: Has Bugatti really banned Tom Cruise from purchasing their multi-million dollar supercars?

Superyacht Lady Linda set to sail in the Mediterranean

Amidst the Twitter buyout debacle and long hours at the Gigafactories, Elon Musk finally did take a short vacation, he was photographed partying shirtless along with his friends on a humble $50 million luxury yacht near Greece.

Ardent environmentalist Steven Spielberg may have to appear in court because of his $250 million megayacht. The luxurious 357 foot long yacht is built by the same shipyard that constructed Jeff Bezos’ Koru sailing yacht.

Kate Middleton, Prince William escape to vacation home with kids amid her cancer battle

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Prince William and Kate Middleton have escaped to their vacation home amid her battle with cancer .

The Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children flew via helicopter from Adelaide Cottage in Windsor to Anmer Hall in Norfolk on Saturday, “Entertainment Tonight” reported .

The family will spend the kids’ Easter school break at the Sandringham Estate property, according to the outlet, after Page Six confirmed they would skip this year’s holiday church service at St George’s Chapel.

Kate Middleton, Prince William and their kids.

There, they will have their own private celebration as Middleton, 42, continues to recuperate.

Last Friday, the princess revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer after undergoing abdominal surgery in January.

“My medical team therefore advised that I should undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy, and I am now in the early stages of that treatment,” she said in a video shared on social media.

Kate Middleton announcing her cancer diagnosis.

Middleton said that William, 41, has been a huge support throughout her struggles and that they had waited to announce the news until their children fully understood her condition .

However, it wasn’t until after the hospital where Middleton underwent surgery experienced a security breach in which multiple staffers attempted to access her medical files that she revealed her diagnosis.

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“They probably felt the pressure to announce ,” royal expert Valentine Low told Page Six exclusively last week. “It was too much to bear in the end; they had to say something.”

The princess had been staying out of the spotlight amid her recovery, spurring wild conspiracy theories about her health and whereabouts despite her reps confirming that she would not be returning to her in-person royal duties until after Easter .

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Worries heightened when Middleton posted a heavily doctored photo of herself with her kids, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, on British Mother’s Day after having been absent from any official events since last December .

Middleton issued an apology over the Photoshopped portrait and quelled concerns when she and William were spotted shopping at a farm stand in Windsor amid the mayhem.

The cancer news comes shortly after King Charles II announced his own battle with the disease on Feb. 5.

Kate Middleton and Prince William in Windsor.

Charles, 75, showed his support for his daughter-in-law , with a Buckingham Palace spokesperson telling Page Six that the reigning monarch is “so proud of Catherine for her courage in speaking as she did.”

The British sovereign has “remained in the closet contact with his beloved daughter-in-law” and will continue to offer “love and support,” the spokesperson added.

Middleton and Charles reportedly had a private lunch a day before she announced her diagnosis to discuss their “common health experience.”

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WATCH: Suspected Fugitive Saved From Sinking Yacht By Coast Guard In Wild Video

Heroes from the United States Coast Guard and every other public service branch in America simply don’t get enough credit for the amazing work they do day in and day out. A round of applause is in order for them all, from local leaders all the way up to the most elite special forces. Every day in America, brave people proudly go to work and put everything they have into serving, protecting, and making their communities a better place to be. Many of their heroic actions fly under the radar. Or simply get taken for granted by most of us regular Americans. Every once in a while though, a story pops up that reminds us just how lucky we are to be living in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

A story from earlier this weekend is just such a reminder. The recent story from Fox News is one of the wildest things you will ever read. This dude was just cruising in his Yacht down the Columbia River, seemingly having a good time. Then his boat ran into a gigantic wave and began to sink. Police soon realized the driver of the boat was actually a known suspect. Authorities had been looking for 35-year-old Jericho Labone since Wednesday. Authorities were hoping to question him after he left a dead fish at a nearby residence.

Making the story even more peculiar is that it wasn’t just any residence though. It was actually the house from the classic 1985 film, The Goonies . Just before the police caught up to him though, he was rescued and released by the Coast Guard.

Emergency Mayday Call To U.S. Coast Guard Saved The Man’s Life

Astoria Police Chief Stacy Kelly shared that an acquaintance alerted authorities to a video the man posted to social media that actually showed him being dumb enough to commit the questionable offense on camera. Additionally, as authorities started diving deeper, they realized the man was wanted in British Columbia on charges of criminal harassment, mischief, and failure to comply with the conditions of his court case last fall.

The U.S. Coast Guard posted a video that detailed the daring rescue. A series of tweets directly from the U.S. Coast Guard provided much more context for the situation.

(1/4) #BreakingNews – Talk about arriving in the nick of time! While conducting a training mission at the mouth of the Columbia River, 2 Coast Guard air crews received a #MAYDAY broadcast from the master of the P/C Sandpiper. After notifying watchstanders at Sector Columbia River pic.twitter.com/CtYSgpdPUG — USCGPacificNorthwest (@USCGPacificNW) February 3, 2023

The subsequent tweets in the thread detail that rescue boats were launched from a Coast Guard base in Cape Disappointment. Aircrews arrived on the scene to find the yacht being battered by a storm. Stormy conditions made the rescue difficult and dangerous. The Coast Guard was unable to get a boat directly next to the sinking ship because of the treacherous conditions. So the aircrew lowered a rescue swimmer into the water. In the video, the man battles the intense sea’s as he approaches the floundering yacht. Just as the rescue swimmer hits the water, the yacht capsizes and starts sinking fast.

Luckily the rescue swimmer pulled the man to safety before disaster struck. The man was taken back to the Coast Guard base for evaluation by a medical team. By the time the police arrived at the medical facility to apprehend the man, he had already been released without incident.

“It’s been a really odd 48 hours” concluded Police Chief Kelly.

Can Donald Trump's Truth Social deal save him from his financial woes? Maybe.

WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump is facing money challenges as he contends with legal fights on multiple fronts while trying to raise cash for his bid to reclaim the White House.

In a civil fraud case, Trump has been ordered to pay a half-billion dollar bond which his lawyers have called a “practical impossibility.” And in the 2024 presidential campaign, President Joe Biden has been lapping him in fundraising.

But a deal to take his social media platform, Truth Social , and its parent company public could provide the former president and business magnate a critical lifeline and could more than double his net worth and net him more than $3 billion.

The deal isn’t set in stone yet and Trump still has a few hurdles to clear if he wants immediate access to his newfound wealth. Here’s what to know about Trump’s social media deal and his financial woes.

What is Truth Social?

Truth Social is Trump's social media platform he launched after the 2020 election. The app is similar to X, formerly Twitter, and is Trump's favored messaging tool after his X account was permanently suspended for his false claims of election fraud. His account has since been reinstated after Elon Musk took control of the platform, but Trump has stayed on Truth Social.

Prep for the polls: See who is running for president and compare where they stand on key issues in our Voter Guide

The app is marketed as an alternative social media platform for conservatives. Trump said in a statement he started the platform to "stand up to the tyranny of Big Tech."

What is the Truth Social merger?

Investors on Friday green lighted a merger with Trump’s media and technology company, aptly named Trump Media & Technology Group. The company, which owns Truth Social, will merge with Digital World Acquisition Corp, an SPAC – companies aimed at raising cash and merging with other entities.

If all goes well with the agreement, Truth Social can start trading on Monday labeled DJT – Trump’s initials .

Trump’s stake in Truth Social’s parent company values over $3 billion but a prior agreement bars Trump from selling any of his shares or borrowing cash against them for six months. If the agreement sticks, Trump's financial problems won't be going away anytime soon.

What are Trump’s financial problems?

Trump’s most immediate problem is a nearly half billion dollar bond he is ordered to post by Monday.

Last month a New York judge ruled in a civil fraud case that the former president inflated the values of his properties and delivered a penalty of almost $454 million. Trump is seeking to appeal the ruling and must put up a bond equal to the penalty. His lawyers however, told an appeals court it was a “practical impossibility” to put up the bond.

“Despite scouring the market, we have been unsuccessful in our effort to obtain a bond for the Judgment Amount for Defendants for the simple reason that obtaining an appeal bond for $464 million is a practical impossibility under the circumstances presented,” his lawyers said in a court filing.

If Trump can’t post the bond by Monday, New York Attorney General Letitia James can begin collecting the penalty from last month’s case. If Trump can’t pay up, James could begin seizing his assets.

Trump's fundraising numbers

Trump is also significantly trailing Biden in campaign fundraising as he runs for a second term while he is mired in legal trouble.

Biden raised $21.3 million in February, nearly double what Trump raised the same month – $10.9 million – according to filings with the Federal Election Commission.

Not only that, Biden’s campaign has $71 million cash on hand compared to Trump’s campaign which falls behind at $33.5 million.

Can the Truth Social deal save Trump?

Trump could ask the company Truth Social is merging with to waive the six-month waiting period – called a “lock-up” provision – before he could turn his stake into cash but that has its own set of complications.

But waiving the requirement could lower the company’s value and might not even allow Trump to tap into all of his shares as he could be limited to how much stock he can sell.

With the Monday deadline quickly approaching, it’s still unclear how Trump will be able to post up the $464 million bond. In the meantime, Trump’s lawyers are attempting to either reduce the bond requirement or completely waive it.

Watch CBS News

These spring smartphone deals can save you up to $550

By Jason R. Rich

Updated on: March 25, 2024 / 1:14 PM EDT / Essentials

CBS Essentials is created independently of the CBS News editorial staff. We may receive commissions from some links to products on this page. Promotions are subject to availability and retailer terms.

Now that spring is here, you'll probably be spending more time out and about, so you'll want one of the best smartphones of 2024 to help you stay in touch with friends and family. The best smartphones can help with navigation and give you full access to the internet for web surfing, online shopping, managing social media and banking on the go. Plus, they're great gaming devices, productivity tools, fitness gadgets -- even mini-entertainment systems.

Whether you're looking to snag one of the latest Google Pixel 8 smartphones , an Android smartphone from a different company (like one of the Samsung Galaxy smartphones), or you want to get your hands on a new Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max , right now there are some great deals to be found. Our in-house team of consumer technology shopping experts have curated this roundup of smartphone deals for spring. Some are from the Amazon Big Spring Sale that's going on right now.

Samsung Galaxy S23 FE: $550 ($50 off) and up to $1,000 in trade-in credit

Head over to Samsung's website and get $50 off the regular price of the popular Galaxy S23 FE (128GB) smartphone, but when you activate it with T-Mobile and trade in your old phone, you can get up to $1,000 back (over 24 monthly bill credits).

Available in six colors, the S23 FE runs using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor and comes configured with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. The main rear-facing camera offers 50MP resolution with up to 30x zoom.

Meanwhile, on the front of this Android phone, there's a 6.4-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x Infinity-O touchscreen displayed with a maximum brightness of 1,500 nits and a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate. This phone is a good option if you don't need or want to pay for the power of Samsung's top-of-the-line Galaxy S24 Ultra.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra (512GB): $1,200 ($550 off)

Depending on where you buy Samsung's flagship Galaxy S24 Ultra smartphone, you can get up to $550 off the regular price, plus receive additional instant trade-in credit for your old phone.

Right now, Walmart has the 512GB version of the phone on sale for $1,200 (but only in a few colors), while Amazon has it on sale for $1,270 (11% off) in a wider range of color options. These prices are if you purchase the unlocked phone outright, without a trade in.

If you want to trade in an old phone, head over to Samsung's website. Here, you'll find the 512GB version of the phone listed for $1,420, but you could get up to $1000 in instant trade-in credit and when you activate it with AT&T (via the Samsung website).

The Galaxy S23 Ultra is among the most feature-packed and powerful Android phones currently available. It runs using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy processor and has a beautiful 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x display (with a 2,600 nits maximum brightness and 120Hz refresh rate). The main rear-facing camera offers 200MP resolution.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5: Get up to $1,000 instant trade-in credit

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 is one of the most popular Android phones on the market right now. People absolutely love it's folding capabilities. It easily fits in a pocket and many features can be used via the outside display (without having to open the phone).

When unfolded, however, the Flip 5 provides access to a stunning 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x Infinity Flex display with a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a maximum brightness of 1,600 nits. This Android phone is loaded with handy features and comes in eight color options.

Shop for the Galaxy Z Flip 5 from Samsung's website and enjoy up to $600 in instant trade-in credit if you purchase the unlocked phone outright. If you activate the phone with AT&T (through Samsung's website), you could receive up to $1,000 in trade in (via 24 monthly bill credits).

Additional savings is offered through the Samsung Offers Program if you're a teacher, student, government employee, first responder, active military or a veteran.

Motorola Moto G 5G (2023): $170 (32% off)

No, you don't need to spend thousands on a 2023 Android phone. In fact, you can get an entry-level phone from Motorola for just $170 when you take advantage of this special price available during the Amazon Big Spring Sale.

Right now, you can get 32% off certain colors of this phone, which includes 4GB RAM, 128GB of internal storage and a 48MP main rear-facing camera. Keep in mind, this phone only supports 5G connectivity in the USA on certain carriers, like T-Mobile or Verizon. With other popular U.S. carriers, only 4G LTE connectivity is available.

The Moto G phone offers a 6.5-inch LCD touchscreen display with a 120Hz refresh rate. Its built in speakers offer Dolby Atmos support and the 5,000mAh battery will last an entire day.

Lively Jitterbug Phone Smart 3: $50 (67% off)

If you only need basic smartphone functionality, the Lively Jitterbug Smart3 phone is now on sale for just $50. The catch: You have to activate the phone with the company's own cellular service plan.

This phone uses older tech and supports 4G LTE, not 5G connectivity. But it's designed to be easy to view and hear. It offers a 6.2-inch touchscreen. One of the phone's key features is its 24/7 urgent-response button.

Other core features include a built-in camera for video calling, basic texting functions, and an integrated web browser. The phone can also be used for navigation, managing email and more.

Motorola Edge (2023): $340 (42% off)

During Amazon's Big Spring Sale, you can save 42% on this Motorola Edge smartphone and buy it outright for just $340. This is an Android phone that offers 5G connectivity. It comes with 8GB of RAM, 256GB of internal storage and a 6.6-inch touchscreen display. The refresh rate is a lightning-quick 144Hz. The phone is also waterproof (IP68 rated).

This 2023 Motorola Edge comes unlocked, so you can activate it with the provider of your choice. It's decently powered, thanks to the MediaTek 7030 processor. The main, rear-facing camera offers 50MP resolution.

Perhaps the most intriguing feature of this phone is that a 10-minute quick charge will provide an entire day's worth of power. Even at full price, this phone offers an incredible value, but at 42% off, the deal is too good to pass up.

OnePlus 12R: $400 ($100 off with any trade-in)

The brand new OnePlus 12R phone, which is a scaled-down version of the company's OnePlus 12 smartphone is yours $100 discount if you head over to the OnePlus website and have any phone -- in any condition -- to trade in.

Get the 128GB version of the phone for just $400 and choose between the iron gray or cool blue housing color. And if you're a student, OnePlus will give you an additional 10% discount.

The OnePlus 12 and 12R are among the few smartphones that already support the new Wi-Fi 7 protocol. The phone is also equipped with a 50MP main, rear-facing camera. It runs using OxygenOS 14, which is almost fully compatible with Android 14.

You'll enjoy the 6.78-inch AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. It's powered using the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor and Adreno 740 GPU.

Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max (512GB): $1,200 ($100 off with AT&T activation)

For Apple fans ready to upgrade to the latest iPhone 15 Pro Max, we suggest visiting the Best Buy website, where you can snag the phone for $100 off. And with AT&T or Verizon activation, you could be eligible for up to a $1,000 trade-in credit.

You'll see a range of financing offers through Best Buy, AT&T and Verizon, so you could wind up paying as little as $33.34 per month for 36 months.

At the moment, the iPhone 15 Pro Max represents Apple's flagship phone. Among its numerous features: a 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR display and durable titanium housing. It runs using Apple's A17 Pro processor and has an impressively powerful camera system. Battery life is up to 23 hours per charge.

Google Pixel 8 Pro (128GB): $750 (save $250)

For a limited time, Best Buy is offering Google's top-of-the-line Pixel 8 Pro smartphone for $250 off (for the 128GB version), which brings the price down to just $750 when you purchase the unlocked phone outright.

The Pixel 8 Pro was our pick for best Android phone for power users in our coverage of the best smartphones of 2024 and our pick for best Google smartphone in our recently published roundup of the best Android smartphones for 2024.

Google has done an excellent job marrying its Android system with a powerful smartphone in ways competitors can't match -- especially when it comes to photos, videos and customizing the phone.

Google has also taken a bunch of steps to protect user privacy and enhance online security. The Google One VPN is integrated into the OS for added online security when using Wi-Fi hotspots, plus, you get features like malware blocking and phishing protection. Battery life of the Pixel 8 Pro is up to 24 hours, or 72 hours in "extreme battery saver" mode.

This Pixel 8 Pro phone has a 6.7-inch touchscreen display and is powered using Google's own Tensor G3 processor and Titan M2 security chip.

Samsung Galaxy S24+ (512GB): $970 (13% off)

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra smartphone is the company's highest-end and most powerful phone, but you can also buy a slightly scaled-down and less expensive version, called the Galaxy S24+. For a limited time, Amazon has dropped the price of this popular Android phone by 13%, so you can purchase it outright for just $970. Tthe configuration includes 512GB of storage.

The S24+ comes in your choice of eight colors and runs Android 14. It's powered using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy processor and has a really nice 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x QHD+ display.

In addition to all-day battery life and a feature-packed camera system, the S24+ offers a handful of new Android features, like Circle to Search and real-time language translations during phone calls.

From robotic vacuums to outdoor grills and power tools , discover all of the latest deals being offered during the Amazon Big Spring Sale by keeping up with our frequently updated coverage available in the CBS Essentials Deals & Shopping News section . And for more information on your favorite consumer tech gadgets, including smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, smart TVs and so much more, stay up to date by reading all of our latest tech coverage .

Jason R. Rich ( www.JasonRich.com ) is an internationally recognized consumer technology expert with more than 30 years' writing experience. He's also an accomplished author and photographer. One of his most recently published books, The Remote Worker's Handbook: How to Effectively Work From Anywhere ($24.99, Entrepreneur Books) is now available from Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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What's in tattoo ink? Expert says some additives aren't on the packaging

Chemistry researchers found as much as 90% of tattoo inks in the U.S. might be mislabled, with some containing substances that could cause allergic reactions.

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Catherine, Princess of Wales, revealed Friday that she was diagnosed with cancer. CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook takes a look at what her treatment could entail.

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The festival, which marks the arrival of spring, involve families and friends smearing powdered colors on each others' faces and drenching each other in colored water.

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U.N. Security Council demands immediate cease-fire in Israel-Hamas war

Israel says the U.S. declining to block a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding an immediate Gaza cease-fire "gives Hamas hope."

Entertainment

Steve Martin: Comic, banjo player, and now documentary film subject

The 78-year-old comedian known for being wild and crazy is now the subject of a documentary on Apple TV+, titled "STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces."

Steve Martin gets the documentary film treatment

The comedian known for being wild and crazy is now the subject of a documentary on Apple TV+, titled "STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces." Correspondent Tracy Smith talks with Steve Martin, and with filmmaker and longtime fan Morgan Neville, about telling the 78-year-old legend's life story, from his comedy records and "SNL," to walking away from standup, to playing a mean banjo.

Writer Percival Everett: "In ownership of language there resides great power"

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"James" author Percival Everett on race, language and art

Author Percival Everett has challenged the schism of race in such satirical novels as "Erasure" (basis of the Oscar-winning film "American Fiction"). His latest, "James," re-tells the story of "Huckleberry Finn" from the point of view of Huck's enslaved friend, Jim, for whom language becomes a shield, and an avenue toward freedom. Everett talks with correspondent Martha Teichner about his writing, his artwork, and his penchant for privacy.

DOJ targets Apple in antitrust lawsuit

The U.S. Justice Department has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple that accuses the company of monopolizing the smartphone market. This landmark case could have significant implications for both iPhone and Android users.

Election-2024 Trump Insurrection Amendment

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DOJ files antitrust lawsuit against Apple

The Justice Department Thursday filed a massive antitrust lawsuit against Apple, alleging the tech giant unfairly tries to keep users hooked on iPhones, and charges high fees to app developers which ultimately cost consumers money. Jo Ling Kent has details.

Study finds racial disparities in online patient portal responses

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Seal of the U.S> Department of Justice before a news conference in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023.

U.S. hits Apple with antitrust suit, accusing tech giant of stifling competition

The Justice Department said Apple illegally engaged in anti-competitive behavior in an effort to build a "moat around its smartphone monopoly."

The U.S. spring weather outlook

Warmer than normal temperatures across the U.S., and concerns of floods and droughts in different parts of the country are expected during this year's spring season, say Ed Clark and Jon Gottschalck of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who joined CBS News with more on NOAA's spring weather outlook.

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EPA announces tailpipe emissions rules

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Where Biden and Trump stand on climate change

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6 big mistakes people make during job interviews and how to avoid them, from a hiring manager

Maya Wald is the head of marketing for a tech startup and has interviewed candidates for various roles.
She says she often sees candidates coming into an interview unprepared and asking the wrong questions.
Her advice for nailing an interview includes using metrics to highlight your wins and following up.

In the current job market , job seekers may find themselves armed with optimized résumés and LinkedIn profiles but still struggling to land the elusive corporate dream job. Even if you get a response from a job posting and have years of experience, the interview process can be full of uncertainty.

I'm the head of marketing for a Series A tech startup, and I've played the role of both interviewee and hiring manager for companies of various sizes over the past eight years.

Here are the six most common mistakes I've noticed during interviews and what you can do to avoid them.

1. Not preparing enough

To stand out, do your homework — it's the first step to interview success.

Thorough preparation impacts both sides of the interview. As an interviewee, neglecting to research the company can be a fatal error. As a hiring manager, encountering candidates who haven't taken the time to understand the organization's mission and goals is not only disheartening but painfully obvious.

Go into your interview armed with (at least) an understanding of the product or service offered by the company, an overview of the market landscape and key competitors in it, and an idea of the target audience. Use the resources available to you to create a thorough study guide (you can even use artificial-intelligence tools such as ChatGPT to help you); just be sure not to read from your study guide word for word during the interview.

2. Failing to include metrics in your story

While your résumé or even a networking connection may open the door, it's your ability to tell your story that leaves a lasting impression. I've come to appreciate candidates who go beyond listing achievements and instead share personal anecdotes with metrics demonstrating their skills and values .

As a hiring manager, I don't need an hourlong explanation of every role and project you've been a part of. The most impressive candidates can consolidate their experiences into a succinct and compelling narrative that demonstrates their expertise and drive, associated with key metrics pertinent to the role. This leaves me with a clear understanding of the candidate's past performance and what they're capable of.

3. Neglecting to ask the right questions

Asking insightful questions in your interview showcases your interest in and curiosity about the role and company. As a hiring manager, encountering candidates who have no questions, or only surface-level questions, can signal a lack of genuine interest or preparation.

4. Overlooking nonverbal cues

Nonverbal communication is important during any interview (especially for roles within marketing, for which excellent communication in all forms is an absolute necessity).

As an interviewee, maintaining eye contact and positive body language can enhance your perceived confidence and credibility — even over Zoom. You should appear engaged through appropriate hand motions and maintain good posture. As a hiring manager, I pay close attention to these cues to gauge a candidate's professionalism and demeanor.

Your actions speak volumes — make sure they're saying the right things.

5. Ignoring cultural fit

Cultural fit is paramount for both interviewees and hiring managers. As an interviewee, take the time to assess whether the company's values and culture align with your own.

Burnout and work-life balance are hot topics. A big mistake I made early in my career was to ignore company red flags because a company name or salary felt too good to pass up. While some of these are certainly subjective, the main things to keep an eye out for are:

The interviewer can't speak to the company values and how the team and employee experience aligns with them.

The interviewer can't speak to how performance will be evaluated and at what frequency.

The interviewer doesn't have an answer to "When did you last take your paid time off?" which often indicates a lack of emphasis on mental health and employees avoiding burnout.

Associating my core values with the values of the companies I choose to be a part of has drastically improved my mental health. Remember, just because something looks good on paper, or feels good to someone else, doesn't mean it's the right opportunity for you.

6. Forgetting to follow up

Post-interview etiquette isn't dead, but in an increasingly remote world, people often forget this is the case. Sending a thank-you email or post-interview LinkedIn connection demonstrates professionalism and reinforces your interest in the role.

Having received and sent such messages, I can attest to their impact — they leave a positive impression and keep you top of mind during the decision-making process. Make sure to include at least one specific anecdote from the conversation that resonated with you.

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Saved by the Jacket

Many lives have been saved throughout the world by boaters who did the responsible thing and wore a life jacket. Browse these real-life accounts of boaters in the U.S. who have been “Saved by the Jacket.”

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Italian-Designed Interior of the Fifty-Five Yacht Provides a Modern
Terry Pegula's Success: From Oil Tycoon to Sports Empire Owner
65m motor yacht GALACTICA STAR (Project Omnia) launched by Heesen
Man Saved From Stolen Yacht In Remarkable Rescue In Oregon
70-metre custom yacht project She by CRN
Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 1 Episode 6 What's Got the Charter Guests Saying: "Holy Sh--"?

COMMENTS

Five Saved From Yacht
Five Saved From Yacht. Share full article. Dec. 7, 1958. Credit... The New York Times Archives. See the article in its original context from December 7, 1958, Page 51 Buy Reprints. View on ...
Five classic superyachts brought back to life from the brink
Built in 1902, Shenandoah has been restored to her former glory. Credit: Stuart Pearce. More than once the famous yacht Shenandoah of Sark has been pulled back from the brink. As others have observed, she has really lived. She has seen all sides of life and come, in the process, perilously close to extinction.
Five of the most impressive rescues at sea
Here, BOAT unpacks five of the most impressive rescues at sea and how they came about. Man rescued from an inflatable ring raft "He was extremely weak and not quite coherent," said captain Marc Wellnitz, who was involved in the dramatic rescue of a 29-year-old man who had been stranded at sea for five days in a "pool toy" doughnut raft.
Royal Navy warship rescues five people on sinking yacht
A Royal Navy destroyer rescued five sailors on a yacht which began to sink in the English Channel. The craft, travelling from Beaulieu in Hampshire to France, issued a Mayday call at 21:00 GMT on ...
Crew of five rescued from grounded yacht
Five crew members had to be rescued after a yacht ran aground west of Diamond Harbour. The Coastguard responded to the incident near Pāua-o-Hinekotau Head and all five crew members were safely dropped off at Lyttelton on Wednesday night. The 12m racing yacht remains at the base of a cliff, with 15 litres of diesel on board in sealed tanks.
Superyacht Rescues at Sea: 4 Yachts & Their Crews That Saved Lives This
Victorious Rescues Capsized Sailors. At the very start of 2023, we learned about the yacht Victorious rescuing five sailors from a capsized catamaran. The 279-foot (85-meter) Victorious was en route to Saint Martin when the crew heard a distress call on the VHF. A 49-foot (15-meter) catamaran had capsized far from shore, injuries some of the ...
Five rescued after yacht runs aground on Banks Peninsula
A yacht carrying 15 litres of diesel has run aground at the bottom of a cliff on Canterbury's Banks Peninsula. The regional council said the Harbourmaster's office was notified on Wednesday evening, and all five crew were rescued and returned safety to Lyttelton. It said the 12-metre racing yacht ...
For sale: Five superyacht projects in need of rescue
Builder: Feadship Length: 26.4m Year: 1964 Rebuilding a Feadship has become a badge of honour for owners brave enough to take on such a task. Launched in 1964 as Exact, this classic canoe stern has had as many lives as a cat, with nine names in total.She was built for the former commodore of the New York Yacht Club, J Burr Bartram, for observing the 1964 America's Cup trials and offered ...
How to stay afloat: Top tips for rescuing a sinking yacht
A 5cm (2in) diameter hole 30cm below the water will let in 11,000 litres in one hour. Move that hole down to 1m, and 20,000 litres of water will flow in. The yacht reached Salcombe safely and the ...
Jurien Bay sea rescue saves five people as man and daughter swim 9km
The yacht was en route from Rottnest Island to Exmouth when it ran into trouble. Posted 31 May 2021 31 May 2021 Mon 31 May 2021 at 12:01am , updated 27 Aug 2021 27 Aug 2021 Fri 27 Aug 2021 at 5:53am
Two Saved From Sinking Yacht in Dramatic Rescue During Deadly ...
Two people were rescued from a sinking yacht in waters off Queensland's Gold Coast amid deadly Christmas Day storms.Queensland Police said officers were conducting welfare check patrols near ...
The Time Surfer Duke Kahanamoku Rescued People From A Sinking Ship
Five fishermen had drowned a year earlier when their 30-foot boat capsized in a storm off the Corona del Mar beach. Just three weeks before The Duke's heroic actions, a teenager drowned after a rowboat he was in with two friends overturned in turbulent waters. When Kahanamoku saw the Thelma struggling, he knew he had to take action.
Man rescued from sinking yacht in Oregon allegedly left dead fish at
A man saved from a sinking yacht was later identified as a wanted suspect who allegedly left a fish on the porch of the house from "The Goonies" in Oregon, police said.
93m Mayan Queen IV superyacht rescues over 100 migrants from sinking
Over 100 migrants were rescued by the superyacht Mayan Queen IV after a fishing vessel capsized in the Mediterranean off the coast of Greece. ... Sailing Yachts. Motor Yachts. By Shipyard. Feadship. Benetti. Azimut. Lürssen. Sanlorenzo. Westport. Heesen. SilverYachts. By Type. Explorer. Sport Fishermen. Flybridge. Trawler. Sport. SYT Products.
Greek authorities seize 3.75 million capsules of contraband nerve pain
Add to your saved stories. ... On the yacht, the coast guard found 3.75 million capsules of Nervigesic, a brand name used by Indian pharmaceuticals firm HAB Pharma for pregabalin. The capsules ...
Superyacht saves 16 in harrowing Caribbean migrant rescue
Superyacht rescue. "At 23.30 on 27th March 2023, while motor-sailing from Antigua to Saint Maarten, approximately 16nm NE of Conaree, St Kitts, the lookout heard a faint noise that sounded like ...
Leonardo DiCaprio helps save man who fell overboard in the Caribbean
Leonardo DiCaprio helps rescue man who fell from yacht 01:16. Leonardo DiCaprio got to play a real-life hero to a man who fell off a yacht in the Caribbean and had to tread water for hours. The ...
The Age of the Superyacht
Take the case of David Geffen, the former music and film executive. He is long retired, but he hosts friends (and potential friends) on the four-hundred-and-fifty-four-foot Rising Sun, which has a ...
Yacht sinks off Savannah, five rescued
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued five people after the vessel they were on allided with the north Savannah jetties on Monday night. At about 10:55 p.m., Coast Guard Sector Charleston watchstanders received a VHF Channel 16 report for TowBoat assistance from the 57-foot (17m) M/Y Nauty Thoughts, crew stating they had struck the jetties and
Tom Cruise, while vacationing on a 263 feet long ...
The real-life hero immediately sailed toward it and rescued the five victims just as their vessel sank into the Mediterranean waters. by Neha ... The Mission: Impossible actor channeled his inner Ethan Hunt back in 1996 and saved five people whose yacht caught fire due to an electrical short circuit. Cruise was cruising with his family, then ...
Top Five II Is Tops for Her Owners
Top Five II holds a further designation: She is the first delivery from the shipyard after it received its Royal designation last year. "The yacht is a culmination of their 101-year shipbuilding history as well as serving as the springboard for excellence for the next 100 years," the de Chalains declare. Diana Yacht Design dianayachtdesign.nl
Kate Middleton, Prince William go to vacation home amid cancer
The couple and their children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, 5, reportedly flew via helicopter to Sandringham Estate.
Nutritionist Shares His 5 Minimally-Processed Grocery Store Snacks
When hunger strikes, grabbing a 3 p.m. chocolate chip cookie or after-work bag of chips can tempt even the most disciplined and dedicated healthy eaters. That's probably because snack foods like ...
The Boating World Is Speculating Mark Zuckerberg Bought a Superyacht
A bookmark Save. Read in app ... Aerial shots of the yacht seem to show a pool on its main deck and a helipad. Ruben Griffioen/SuperYachtTimes But Zuckerberg's name has been connected to Launchpad ...
NBC Faces '5-Alarm Fire' From Own Staff Over Hiring Ronna McDaniel
NBC's Chuck Todd on Sunday essentially called out the network over the McDaniel hire, telling Kristen Welker that "our bosses owe you an apology."
Man Saved by Coast Guard Seconds Before Capsizing
In the video, the man battles the intense sea's as he approaches the floundering yacht. Just as the rescue swimmer hits the water, the yacht capsizes and starts sinking fast. Luckily the rescue swimmer pulled the man to safety before disaster struck. The man was taken back to the Coast Guard base for evaluation by a medical team.
Can Donald Trump's Truth Social deal solve his money problems?
Not only that, Biden's campaign has $71 million cash on hand compared to Trump's campaign which falls behind at $33.5 million. Can the Truth Social deal save Trump? Maybe.
These spring smartphone deals can save you up to $550
When unfolded, however, the Flip 5 provides access to a stunning 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x Infinity Flex display with a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a maximum brightness of 1,600 nits.
6 Job-Interview Mistakes to Avoid, According to Hiring Manager
Then if the salary expectations are misaligned, time and bandwidth can be saved on both sides. Leadership style, performance evaluation, team structure, ... 5. Ignoring cultural fit.
Saved by the Jacket
Michigan. DNR Officer, Firefighter Jump off Cliff into Lake Monroe to Save Teen Stranded in Cold Water. A Family Of 5 Was Saved By OPP After Their Boat Capsized In The Detroit River. Three People and Dog Rescued on Lake Michigan. Five Tubers, Kayakers Rescued from Paw Paw River.