A 21-foot skiff ran out of fuel between Petersburg and Juneau, Alaska, earlier this month. The Alaskan cruise ship Wilderness Legacy rescued the vessel near Farragut Bay, Alaska, after towing it to the area to refuel.
Tracking data from the Alaska Beacon, Halifax Shipping News, and MarineTraffic suggests that Mark Zuckerberg's superyacht, Launchpad, was closer to the stranded skiff than the Wilderness Legacy. According to AIS tracking data, the Launchpad slowed to a stop near the entrance of the bay as the Wilderness Legacy passed it.
There was near unanimous booing when the captain announced this
Michael Love, a passenger on the Wilderness Legacy, posted on Bluesky that the captain announced the Launchpad was closer but 'repeatedly refused to respond'.
Responses to the incident
Brian Baker, a spokesperson for Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, said that Mark and his family were not on board the Launchpad at the time of the incident. Baker stated that the crew reviewed the Coast Guard contact on a different radio channel from the one they were operating on and that the assist was already underway.
The US Coast Guard determined at approximately 9:56 p.m. that the skiff was not in distress and issued a marine assistance request on its behalf. The US Coast Guard reported the skiff was hailed for assistance near Point Highland, Alaska, at 9:32 p.m. on August 3.
Launchpad specifications
The Launchpad superyacht is reported to be worth $300 million. It is 387 feet long.
Length of the Launchpad superyacht
