FREEDOM 90

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Drunk hovercraft pilot jailed for two months

A hovercraft pilot has been jailed for eight months for being in charge of the "Freedom 90" while being at least three times over the drink-drive limit causing it to have near misses with a tanker and a busy pier before missing its landing pad. Richard Pease, of Cowes, Isle of Wight, pleaded guilty at a previous hearing to a charge of being master of a hovercraft having consumed excess alcohol under the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003. The court heard that Pease collapsed at the controls as he failed to steer the craft on to its landing pad at Ryde. The 50-year-old gave a breath test six hours after the incident on June 22, 2014, which gave a reading of 96mg of alcohol in 100 ml of breath - the drink-drive limit is 35mg. The defendant, who has 18 years' experience as a hovercraft pilot, told police that he had been drinking from a bottle which he had not realised contained alcohol in a bid to keep cool and hydrated in the hot cabin during two journeys which carried a total of more than 130 people. Pease had driven the Hovertravel craft from Ryde to Southsea, Hampshire, with 95 passengers on board when it failed to reach the landing pad. He then piloted the same craft back across the Solent with 36 passengers on board when his assistant, handling agent John Randles, realised that Pease had slowed down in the path of a tanker heading towards Southampton. It was noted the master did reduce his speed when coming across the front of the tanker, as a result of that observation, he (Mr Randles) asked the defendant if he had noticed the tanker to which he replied 'Yes'. At that point he increased his speed and he averted a potential incident. Pease started to lose control of the craft as it arrived at Ryde, missing the landing pad and headed towards Ryde Pier. Randles asked the defendant if he was ok, to which the defendant replied that he was. But he wasn't in line with pad as he was supposed to be. The defendant slightly adjusted the control but as he went to take control of the throttle, it appeared his hand slipped, he missed the control and he went to reach for it again. Unfortunately the adjustment made wasn't enough and the hovercraft was heading towards the pier rather than towards the pad. Once again he was asked if he was ok, at that point there was no positive response. He had drooped and he had gone limp in the chair. Mr Randles took immediate action and taking control of the hovercraft he landed it safely. Pease was taken to hospital by paramedics who noticed his speech was slurred and he was having alcohol sweats and six hours after the crossing, he gave the positive breath test. Throughout the court proceedings Hovertravel has co-operated fully with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency's investigation. Report with video: http://metro.co.uk/2014/10/12/watch-drunk-hovercraft-pilot-trying-to-land-with-vessel-full-of-passengers-4902331/

Hovercraft sailings halted due to safety concerns

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has suspended Hovertravels ISM Document of Compliance which allows them to operate. The effect of this is that their hovercrafts "Freedom 90" and "Island Express" cannot operate. The action was taken because of safety concerns following an investigation into a propeller failure that occurred on a third craft which highlighted inconsistencies in their safety management systems, particularly with vessel maintenance. Maritime and Coastguard Agency South East were working closely with Hovertravel and the propeller manufacturers to investigate the circumstances around the propeller failure. Hovertravels management team has responded positively to the concerns and MCA would be working with them over the weekend to resolve the issues so these hovercraft can return to service as soon as possible. By Nov 18, 2011, the "Freedom 90" was at Portsmouth.