Solo sailor's boat found upturned and empty

A small boat found floating upturned and empty off the west coast of Ireland is the craft of American Dr Nenad Belic, 62, who left Cape Cod, Massachusetts six months ago on an attempted lone transatlantic voyage.

It was spotted yesterday by a fishing vessel less than seven miles from Kilkee, Co Clare.

The Coast Guard said a diving inspection of the overturned boat, the LUN, had established there was nobody on board. Arrangements were underway to tow the craft into Kilkee.

The LUN has been officially posted missing since September 30 when an electronic position-indicating beacon was activated 215 nautical miles west of Castletownbere, Co Cork, in storm force 10 conditions.

An extensive search of the area by British and Irish coastguards, the RAF and the Irish Air Corps - as well as private aircraft engaged by Dr Belic’s family -failed to find any trace of the small boat.

The Belic family chartered two spotter planes to scour hundreds of square miles off Ireland’s south-west coast early last month, but the search was subsequently called off.

Dr Belic, a retired cardiologist, set off on his trip on May 11.